Limiting Factors and Carrying Capacity EOC Review

Limiting Factors and Carrying Capacity EOC Review

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Pre-Assessment

Multiple Choice

In a large Maine forest with many animals and lots of space, there are only a small number of bears. Which of these most likely limits the population of bears in the forest?

• Supply of food

• Space

• Cloud cover in the atmosphere

• Types of trees in the area

Multiple Choice

Look at the carrying capacity graphic.

Why does the month of June have the largest seasonal carrying capacity?

• Longer summer days causes vegetation to wilt, leading to animal starvation

• An increase in humidity allows predators extra moisture for hunting

• Warm weather supplies ample food and shelter for life

• The breeding stock is not interested in mating during hot, humid days.

Multiple Choice

An environmental factor such as storms and extreme heat or cold that decrease a population are considered to be -

• density-dependent factor

• population density

• dispersion

• density-independent factor

Multiple Choice

Which of the following would INCREASE the carrying capacity of an ecosystem?

• Increase in predators

• Disease

• Increase in available food

• Drought

Multiple Choice

European Mouflon sheep were introduced in Tasmania in year 1813. The graph shows the population of Mouflon sheep from the year 1814 to the year 1914. According to this graph, around which year did the population of European Mouflon sheep reach their carrying capacity?

• 1844

• 1854

• 1874

• 1894

Limiting factors are any factor that reduces or the size of a population or keeps it from increasing

• May be a resource, another species, the environment, etc.

• Example: food is a limiting factor because you can't have more individuals than food to feed them

Multiple Choice

Components of an environment that can reduce a population size are called -

• biotic factors

• limiting factors

• abiotic factors

• half-life

Limiting factors whose effect depends on the size of the population are called density-dependent

• Includes natural resources (food, water, space), diseases, and predators

• Tend to have a greater effect on large, dense populations because of increased competition and more opportunity to attract predators and disease

Multiple Choice

Competition for food is a limiting factor that can cause a decrease in the growth of a population. The growth of which type of population will most strongly be affected by this limiting factor?

• Large and dense

• Small and sparse

• Large and sparse

• Small and growing

Multiple Choice

In population ecology, one of the factors that is studied is a density-dependent factor. Density-dependent factors have the greatest effect on dense populations and little to no effect on very sparse populations. What would NOT be an example of a density-dependent factor?

• Parasitism

• Predation

• Communicable disease

• The average rainfall of a region

Limiting factors that DO NOT depend on population size are called density-independent

• Include climate, weather, natural disasters, and pollution

• Affect all populations the same, whether they are large or small

Multiple Choice

Limiting factors which impact the size of a population no matter how large that population is.

• Density Independent Limiting Factors
• Density Dependent Limiting Factors
• Carrying Capacity
• Exponential Growth

The maximum number of organisms an ecosystem can support is its carrying capacity

• This number depends on what limiting factors are present

• May increase or decrease if those limiting factors change

Multiple Choice

The maximum number of members of a species that an environment can support is called its -

• niche

• limiting factors

• carrying capacity

• abiotic factors

On a population graph, the carrying capacity is represented by a flat line

• May also be a small "wave"

• Follows a period of exponential growth; a J-shaped curve where the population keeps increasing

• The line represents population size, so it decreases in response to a limiting factor

Multiple Choice

The graph shows the growth rate of a population in an ecosystem. At which two points on the graph does the population reach its carrying capacity?

• Points D and E

• Points B and D

• Points B and E

• Points A and C

Multiple Choice

In the graph to the right, what is the population of deer at the carrying capacity of the environment?

• 3

• 7

• 70

• 40

Multiple Choice

Which graph depicts exponential growth in a population?

Post-Assessment

Multiple Choice

The picture to the right represents a sunny, dry desert.

Which factor most likely limits the desert’s carrying

capacity for plant life?

• The number of animals that eat plants

• The amount of sunlight

• The availability of space to grow

• The availability of water

Multiple Choice

Excessive amounts of rain caused a flood in the southwest United States that resulted in substantial amounts of deaths in the rabbit population? This situation is an example of a _____________ limiting factor.

• density-independent

• density-dependent

• too high

• too low

Multiple Choice

Which example describes or illustrates how a density-dependent limiting factor can affect a forest ecosystem?

• A forest fire forces many animals to move to new habitats

• A heat wave causes the death of many animals in the forest

• An earthquake causes the death of many animals in the forest

• A disease causes death of many animals in the forest

Multiple Choice

The carrying capacity of the water flea Daphnia in a laboratory culture medium is 134/mL. A researcher adds a fixed amount of nutrients to the medium every day to maintain their concentration. The researcher decides to increase the amount of nutrients that are added daily to the culture. How will this increase impact the carrying capacity of Daphnia in the medium?

• The carrying capacity will remain unchanged

• The carrying capacity will decrease

• The carrying capacity will decrease and then increase

• The carrying capacity will increase

Multiple Choice

On which day did the population represented in the graph reach the carrying capacity of the ecosystem?

• Day 11

• Day 8

• Day 3

• Day 5