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NATIONAL
SENIOR CERTIFICATE
GRADE 12
MARINE SCIENCES P2
NOVEMBER 2021
MARKS: 150
TIME: 2½ hours
This question paper consists of 16 pages.
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Marine Sciences Grade 12 P2 NSC November 2021 QP (Eng)
Grade 12 Marine Sciences Paper 2 question paper from the NSC November Exam 2021 (English), 16 pages. Read online or download the free PDF.
Marine Sciences · Grade 12 · NSC November Exam · 2021. Question paper, 16 pages. Read online or download the PDF.
- Subject
- Marine Sciences
- Grade
- Grade 12
- Document type
- Question paper
- Year
- 2021
- Exam period
- NSC November Exam
- Paper
- 2
- Curriculum
- CAPS
- Pages
- 16
- File size
- 551.8 KB
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This exam
NSC November Exam 2021
- Paper 1Question paperMemo
- Paper 2Question paperMemo
Questions in this paper
- Question 1.1Marine Ecosystems and Biodiversity18 marks
- Question 1.2Marine Ecosystems and Biodiversity8 marks
- Question 1.3Marine Ecosystems and Biodiversity10 marks
- Question 1.4Marine Ecosystems and Biodiversity5 marks
- Question 2.1Marine Ecosystems and Biodiversity6 marks
- Question 2.2Marine Ecosystems and Biodiversity10 marks
Show all 13 questions
- Question 2.3Marine Ecosystems and Biodiversity8 marks
- Question 2.4Marine Ecosystems and Biodiversity8 marks
- Question 3.1Marine Ecosystems and Biodiversity14 marks
- Question 3.2Marine Ecosystems and Biodiversity5 marks
- Question 3.3Marine Ecosystems and Biodiversity6 marks
- Question 3.4Marine Ecosystems and Biodiversity7 marks
- Question 3.5Marine Ecosystems and Biodiversity12 marks
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Marine Sciences/P2 2 DBE/November 2021
NSC
INSTRUCTIONS AND INFORMATION
Read the following instructions carefully before answering the questions.
1. This question paper consists of THREE sections. Answer the questions as
follows:
SECTION A: COMPULSORY
SECTION B: Consists of QUESTIONS 2 and 3.
Answer BOTH questions in this section.
SECTION C: Consists of QUESTIONS 4 and 5.
Answer any ONE of the two questions in this section.
2. Write ALL the answers in the ANSWER BOOK.
3. Start the answer to EACH question at the top of a NEW page.
4. Number the answers correctly according to the numbering system used in this
question paper.
5. Present your answers according to the instructions of each question.
6. Do ALL drawings in pencil and label them in blue or black ink.
7. Draw diagrams, tables or flow charts only when asked to do so.
8. The diagrams in this question paper are NOT necessarily drawn to scale.
9. Do NOT use graph paper.
10. You must use a non-programmable calculator, protractor and a compass,
where necessary.
11. Write neatly and legibly.
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Marine Sciences/P2 3 DBE/November 2021
NSC
SECTION A
QUESTION 1
1.1 Various options are provided as possible answers to the following questions.
Choose the answer and write only the letter (AD) next to the question
numbers (1.1.1 to 1.1.9) in the ANSWER BOOK, e.g. 1.1.10 D.
1.1.1 Which statement about brittle stars is CORRECT?
A They evert their stomachs to digest their food.
B They use only their tube feet for locomotion.
C They have no anus.
D Their mouths are on the upper surface.
1.1.2 A turtle species known to nest on northern KZN beaches in
significant numbers:
A Green
B Olive Ridley
C Hawksbill
D Leatherback
1.1.3 The lateral line organ in bony fish detects …
A chemicals in the water.
B electricity.
C the temperature of the water.
D vibrations.
1.1.4 Which fins in Osteichthyes are generally paired?
A Caudal
B Pelvic
C Anal
D Dorsal
1.1.5 Consider the following characteristics and complete the statement
below.
(i) Diploblastic
(ii) Triplobastic
(iii) Water vascular system
(iv) Exoskeleton
(v) Tube feet
Characteristic features of Echinoderms include …
A (i), (iii) and (v).
B (ii), (iv) and (v).
C (ii), (iii) and (v).
D (ii), (iii) and (iv).
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Marine Sciences/P2 4 DBE/November 2021
NSC
1.1.6 Consider the following characteristics and complete the statement
below.
(i) Scales
(ii) Triplobastic
(iii) Bone vertebral column
(iv) Jawless
(v) No paired fins
Characteristic features of Agnathan fish include …
A (i), (iii) and (v).
B (ii), (iv) and (v).
C (ii), (iii) and (v).
D (ii), (iii) and (iv).
1.1.7 In 1910 the African penguin population size was estimated to be
1 500 000 penguins. Just over a century later, in 2012, there were
only 23 700.
What percentage is the 2012 population size of the 1910
population size?
A 15,80%
B 1,58%
C 0,15%
D 0,015%
1.1.8 Most elasmobranchs retain urea in their blood and body tissues.
The reason for this is to …
A make them taste bad, so other predators do not eat them.
B keep them warmer.
C make their gills more efficient.
D keep the concentration of their cells isotonic with sea water.
1.1.9 Fish living in fresh water …
A absorb a lot of water and produce a lot of urine.
B need to drink a lot.
C are hypotonic to their surroundings.
D have no kidneys. (9 x 2) (18)
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Marine Sciences/P2 5 DBE/November 2021
NSC
1.2 Give a suitable scientific word/term for each of the following descriptions.
Write only the term next to the question numbers (1.2.1 to 1.2.8) in the
ANSWER BOOK.
1.2.1 Small bones in some animals or the flat bony plates forming the
skeleton of echinoderms
1.2.2 Animal phyla in which the blastopore becomes the anus
1.2.3 A common opening for the digestive and reproductive tracts in
vertebrates
1.2.4 A form of camouflage, where the dorsal surface of a flying or
swimming animal blends in with the surface below it, while the
ventral surface blends in with the sky or ocean surface above it
1.2.5 An oxygen-storing substance similar to haemoglobin, found in the
muscles of some animals
1.2.6 The bony plates on the ventral surface of a turtle or tortoise
1.2.7 The ability of certain organisms to emit light from their bodies
1.2.8 The small bones in the inner ear of a fish, which can be used to
estimate their age (8 x 1) (8)
1.3 Indicate whether each of the descriptions in COLUMN I apply to A ONLY,
B ONLY, BOTH A AND B or NONE of the items in COLUMN II. Write A only,
B only, both A and B or none next to the question numbers (1.3.1 to 1.3.5)
in the ANSWER BOOK.
COLUMN I COLUMN II
1.3.1 A reproductive strategy in turtles A: altricial
B: precocial
1.3.2 A mammalian reproductive strategy A: oviparous
B: viviparous
1.3.3 Double circulation A: Osteichthyes
B: Chondrichthyes
1.3.4 Baleen plates A: pinnipeds
B: Odontocetes
1.3.5 Scales of dermal origin A: Reptilia
B: Osteichthyes
(5 x 2) (10)
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Marine Sciences/P2 6 DBE/November 2021
NSC
1.4 Study the picture of an animal in the class Aves to answer the questions that
follow.
1.4.1 For feather A, give:
(a) The name (1)
(b) ONE function (1)
1.4.2 Answer the following questions on feathers:
(a) Name ONE other type of feather found on birds. (1)
(b) State ONE function of the feather in your answer to
QUESTION 1.4.2(a). (1)
(4)
TOTAL SECTION A: 40
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Marine Sciences/P2 7 DBE/November 2021
NSC
SECTION B
QUESTION 2
2.1 Identify the organisms represented by pictures A, B and C below by giving the
common name and the class name for EACH.
A B
C (3 x 2) (6)
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Marine Sciences/P2 8 DBE/November 2021
NSC
2.2 The diagram below shows the front end of a hagfish. Study the diagram and
answer the questions that follow.
2.2.1 Which letter (AE) indicates the nostril? (1)
2.2.2 What is the adaptation and primary function of structures B? (2)
2.2.3 Label D, which indicates the six large pores. (1)
2.2.4 (a) Name the smaller pores, indicated by E, that continue all the
way to the tail. (1)
(b) How do the pores assist the hagfish to protect itself? (2)
2.2.5 C indicates the mouth.
Explain how the hagfish ingests food. (3)
(10)
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Marine Sciences/P2 9 DBE/November 2021
NSC
2.3 Read the extract about sea squirts below and answer the questions that
follow.
One of our closer relatives does not look a lot like us. It is effectively a tough,
fluid-filled, translucent bag sitting at the bottom of the sea, spending its time
sucking in water and feeding on microscopic particles it finds there. This
week's specimen of the week is your cousin … the sea squirt.
Most members of the sea squirt group, the tunicates or Tunicata, spend their
adult lives permanently attached to rocks and other hard underwater surfaces,
sucking water into one hole (called a siphon), filtering it for food and blowing it
out of another siphon. Despite looking like a wet paper bag, they are actually
quite advanced. This may be surprising because they look and behave quite a
lot like sponges, the simplest of animals.
[Adapted from a blog by Jack Ashby, of the Grant Museum of Zoology]
2.3.1 The author is quite correct in saying that the tunicates are closely
related to 'us', as they are in the same phylum.
Which phylum does the author refer to? (1)
2.3.2 Draw a simple outline of a local tunicate, the red bait, to illustrate
why the author refers to it as a 'wet paper bag'.
Label the siphons. A heading is NOT required. (2)
2.3.3 A closer study of the sea squirt shows only a few characteristics of
the phylum that we as humans belong to.
State TWO defining features of the phylum that humans belong to.
Also state why scientists have added sea squirts to this phylum. (3)
(6)
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Marine Sciences/P2 10 DBE/November 2021
NSC
2.4 Sea urchins are stenohaline, meaning that they can only tolerate a limited
change in the salinity of their environment. The Breede River in the Western
Cape has its mouth at the head of San Sebastian Bay. Sea urchin populations
are known to spread closer to the mouth of the river during summer months,
only to die off during winter when an increase in rainfall causes the river to
flow much more strongly.
In the years of the drought, which reached its peak in 2018, sea urchin
populations increased in rock pools on both sides of the river mouth until
June 2019, when the river flowed strongly for the first time in five years.
At the end of 2018, a survey was done to determine the effect of salinity on
sea urchin population densities in rock pools around six sites.
The map below shows these sites, approximately 500 m apart, from the river
mouth to a site just around a point beyond which the river water seldom
reached.
MAP OF TEST SITES WHERE AVERAGE SEA URCHIN POPULATION
DENSITIES AND SALINITIES WERE RECORDED DURING
DECEMBER 2018 AND JULY 2019
In 2018, the average population density of sea urchins at all the sites was
10 sea urchins per square metre (m2).
The salinity was the same at all sites, measuring 35 ppt (parts per
thousand).
Two weeks after the first significant flow of water into the bay, in
July 2019, a second survey was done.
The salinity and average sea urchin population densities were recorded
again.
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Marine Sciences/P2 11 DBE/November 2021
NSC
The table below shows the average sea urchin population density and salinity
at each of the sites.
SITE 1 2 3 4 5 6
SALINITY (PPT) 4 13 18 27 32 35
AVERAGE SEA URCHIN POPULATION
DENSITIES (number/m2) 0 1 4 8 10 10
2.4.1 Draw a chart for the July 2019 data, on the same set of axes,
where a bar graph represents the average sea urchin population
densities per site and a line graph shows salinities across the sites.
Use the following scale:
1 cm per sea urchin for the bar graph
1 cm per 5 ppt for the salinity line graph (10)
2.4.2 Write a brief summary of the results indicated on the chart. (3)
2.4.3 Discuss the aspects of sea urchin physiology that make them
stenohaline. (3)
2.4.4 Suggest possible reasons why not all the sea urchins die at some
of the sites with lower salinities. (2)
(18)
[40]
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Marine Sciences/P2 12 DBE/November 2021
NSC
QUESTION 3
3.1 The extracts below are from a series of blogs written by staff at the Two
Oceans Aquarium, Cape Town, about pyjama catsharks and sevengill
cowsharks.
Read the extracts below and answer the questions that follow.
PYJAMA CATSHARKS
1 Pyjama sharks (Poroderma africanum) are elongated, slender sharks with
short whisker-like barbels that give them the name 'catshark'.
2 During the day, pyjama sharks spend their time hiding motionless in
caves and rocky crevices or under fronds of kelp they are easy prey for
Cape fur seals and larger sharks. They do not have any defences against
these large predators, so when threatened, they will roll themselves into a
'doughnut' shape, protect their eyes with their tails and wait for an
opportunity to escape.
3 These nocturnal hunters thrive at night. They are opportunistic predators
and feed on a wide variety of prey from small fish to molluscs.
4 There is no mating season for pyjama sharks and they are able to mate
whenever there is sufficient food. Females lay two eggs at a time and
attach them to seaweeds or sea fans.
SEVENGILL COWSHARKS
5 As you may have guessed from its name, the sevengill shark has seven
pairs of gills most sharks have only five. They also have only one dorsal
fin most sharks have two.
6 They are true apex predators and have even been found to have pups of
great white sharks in their stomach contents.
[Source: www.aquarium.co.za/blog/sharkshowcase]
3.1.1 What is the purpose of the barbels mentioned in paragraph 1 AND
what evidence in the extract indicates that they would need them? (2)
3.1.2 Explain how catsharks are able to 'roll themselves into a doughnut'
(paragraph 2). (2)
3.1.3 Catsharks are nocturnal (paragraph 3). Answer the following
questions:
(a) Which adaptation of their eyes enables them to hunt equally
effectively in bright daylight if they sense edible food nearby? (2)
(b) How does the eye of a bony fish differ from that of a shark? (1)
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Marine Sciences/P2 13 DBE/November 2021
NSC
3.1.4 In paragraph 4 it states that catsharks are oviparous.
(a) How are they different from bony fish, which are also
oviparous, in this reproductive strategy? (1)
(b) Not all sharks have the same reproductive strategy.
Name TWO other strategies AND explain how the embryos
are nourished while they develop. (4)
3.1.5 Refer to paragraph 6.
(a) What is meant by an apex predator? (1)
(b) Why has the author used this example to emphasise the
statement? (1)
(14)
3.2 Generally, fast-swimming predatory fish, like tuna, have a core of dark muscle
around the vertebral column. This muscle is very efficient but needs to be
kept warmer than the surroundings in order to function correctly. Viewing the
flesh of such a fish under a microscope shows that there is a system of tightly
packed capillaries around these core muscles.
3.2.1 Give a name or term for this system. (1)
3.2.2 Explain how this system functions. (3)
(4)
3.3 Consider the diagrams of the shark teeth below and answer the questions
that follow.
3.3.1 What type of tooth do great white sharks have? (1)
3.3.2 Shark teeth are adapted for functionality.
Analyse the teeth in the diagrams above and describe the structure
AND give a specific function for A and B respectively. (4)
(5)
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Marine Sciences/P2 14 DBE/November 2021
NSC
3.4 Reproduction in sharks (elasmobranchs) differ from species to species. View
the diagram of an unhatched shark (removed from the egg) below and answer
the questions that follow.
3.4.1 (a) What is the function of the yolk sack attached to the shark? (1)
(b) Name the type of reproduction where sharks lay eggs and live
young emerge from them. (1)
3.4.2 The blood of sharks travels through the body via single circulation.
What does single circulation mean? (3)
(5)
3.5 Medical doctors have perceived that humans exhibit a physiological response
known as the dive reflex. To initiate the dive reflex, a person simply needs to
stop breathing (hold their breath) or splash water on the face, submerge the
face in water, or place a cold pack across the cheeks and nose. This will
cause the person to hold his/her breath automatically and the nervous system
will trigger bradycardia.
This reflex assists humans to hold their breath for longer. Gordon Corsetti
suggested on his website mentallyagile.com that this technique can be used
to control panic attacks which are characterised by an increased breathing
rate and a high heart rate and blood pressure brought about by extreme
stress. He tested this on himself and noted results within 20 seconds after
immersing his face in cold water and even more significantly over the next few
minutes. He came up for air occasionally.
As Marine Science students, you will be aware that the dive reflex, better
known as diving bradycardia, is a significant characteristic of the other land
vertebrate classes, especially those which have returned to marine habitats.
3.5.1 What result would Gordon Corsetti have reported from his
experiment? (2)
3.5.2 How would this be useful to someone having a panic attack? (1)
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Marine Sciences/P2 15 DBE/November 2021
NSC
3.5.3 Name THREE changes within the bodies of marine mammals
during diving bradycardia. (3)
3.5.4 Turtles are able to stay submerged for significantly longer than
mammals or birds of a similar size and mass.
Explain why this is the case. (3)
3.5.5 Diving birds and mammals may be able to stay submerged for
shorter times than turtles, but they have a different advantage.
What is this advantage and why do they have it? (3)
(12)
[40]
TOTAL SECTION B: 80
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Marine Sciences/P2 16 DBE/November 2021
NSC
SECTION C
Answer any ONE question in this section.
Clearly indicate the QUESTION NUMBER of the chosen question.
NOTE: Your answer must be in the form of an essay. NO marks will be awarded for
answers in the form of a table, flow charts or diagrams.
QUESTION 4
'Evidence from fossil records shows that vertebrates slowly evolved from fish similar to
mudskippers in order to move onto dry land. The gaseous exchange process
evolved significantly in vertebrate classes as they slowly populated more demanding
land habitats and changed lifestyles.'
Support this statement by comparing the gaseous exchange process in typical
examples of Osteichthyes, Amphibia, Reptilia and Aves.
Content: (25)
Synthesis: (5)
[30]
QUESTION 5
'Evidence from fossil records shows that vertebrates slowly evolved from fish similar to
mudskippers in order to move onto dry land. The process of reproduction and
parental care evolved significantly in vertebrate classes as they slowly populated
more demanding land habitats and changed lifestyles.'
Support this statement by comparing reproduction and parental care in typical
examples of Osteichthyes and the four land-living vertebrate classes.
Content: (25)
Synthesis: (5)
[30]
TOTAL SECTION C: 30
GRAND TOTAL: 150
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