Intro to Environmental Science, Energy and Matter, Biodiversity, Land Ecosystem and Succession

Which of the following could cause a species to become extinct?

• Adequate Resources
• changing environmental conditions
• migration
• exponential growth

A field consists of one species of plant. What can you infer about the sustainability if the field ecosystem?

• low biodiversity and the disease would be wiped out 
• high biodiversity and easily withstand a drought
• there is not enough information to determine if the ecosystem is sustainable
• abiotic factors will not affect the sustainability of an ecosystem

The most sustainable ecosystem would 

• have low biodiversity
• have high biodiversity
• not experience change
• have no predators

There would not be an ecosystem where lions were the only animals because-

• lions need other animals in their food chain
• the ecosystem would become too perfectly balanced to be a healthy place
• lions are too large to be the only animals in a healthy ecosystem

A hurricane hits coastal prairie and destroys the habitat. Years later there is an appearance of small plants with rapidly spreading roots on newly formed coastal sand dunes. The vegetation describes-

• a microhabitat
• primary succession
• secondary succession
• biodiversity

Which of these types of environments is most likely to experience the arrival of a pioneer species?

• an old growth forest
• an undisturbed prairie
• an established mountain lake
• a newly formed volcanic island

The diagrams above show an ecosystem during different stages of ecological succession. In which order will these stages occur, from earliest to latest?

• 4,2,1,3
• 1,2,3,4
• 3,1,4,2
• 2,4,3,1

The figure shows the same ecosystem in Texas at two different times. Which of the following most likely caused the change of species shown in the figure?

• development of a parking lot
• passing through a glacier
• preservation of habitat
• occurrence of a forest fire

Which of the following is NOT a type of  biodiversity?

• species diversity
• genetic diversity
• individual diversity
• ecosystem diversity

Biodiversity refers to

• extinct species
• the variety of species on Earth
• nonrenewable resources
• the rate of species decline