Unit 5 - Ecology Quiz 2

Two farmers decide to plant fewer types of corn in their fields. How will changing the biodiversity of the corn crop affect the fields?

• Predator species that eat corn will lose their food source.

• Planting fewer types of corn will add more nutrients to the soil.

• The introduction of invasive plant pathogens will increase the crop yield

• Planting fewer types of corn will make the corn more vulnerable to plant pathogens.

Which action will most likely cause a negative impact on the biodiversity of a small region?

• planting native species in a bare field to attract wildlife

• draining a wetland for the development of a new park

• reducing the amount of pesticides and fertilizers used

• having a controlled burn to remove undergrowth of a forest

What would most likely happen if coastal North Carolina increased implementation of wind energy?

• Investment costs to taxpayers would decrease

• The production of greenhouse gases would decrease.

• Turbines could be built in highly populated areas because of low noise pollution.

• The energy output would be consistent because wind patterns are always predictable.

On the edge of many deserts, there is a delicate area with abundant vegetation. Sometimes cattle are allowed to graze in these areas. The hooves of the cattle compact the topsoil making it less absorbent. Which environmental concern is MOST likely to happen at the edge of the desert when cattle graze there?

• erosion

• nutrient depletion

• atmospheric heating

• groundwater contamination

Which of the following describes anything in an ecosystem or community that is either alive or has ever been alive?

• Vitriolic Factors
• Biotic Factors
• Abiotic Factors
• Mortality Factors

Why does Exponential Growth in a population not generally last very long?

• A population might reach its carrying capacity which limits its growth
• Resources may run out, causing the population to fall
• Diseases may cause the population to fall
• All of the Above

The largest population size a given environment can sustainably support is known as its

• limiting capacity.

• logistic limit.

• carrying capacity.

• biotic potential.

All of the living and nonliving things in an area make up a

• community

• habitat

• species

• ecosystem

The removal of which of the following groups would cause an immediate decrease in the amount of energy flowing through the system? 

• Producers

• Consumers

• Decomposers

• Inorganic nutrients

The graph below shows average yearly temperatures for Earth from 1900 to 1990. Which is NOT a likely reason why this change occurred?

• increased awareness of harmful effects humans have on the environment

• increased human population

• increased burning of fossil fuels

• increased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere