Environmental Factors

The picture shows a type of plant called kudzu. Kudzu is a fast-growing Asian vine that was introduced into the United States. Kudzu quickly uses available resources and can completely cover the plants in an area. What effect does the rapid growth of kudzu most likely have on an ecosystem?

• The variety of native plants decreases

• The water supply in the area increases

• Weather patterns in the area change

• The number of other plants increases

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According to the chart, what would most likely happen in an ecosystem if there were a sudden decrease in the number of bacteria and fungi?

• The number of plants would increase

• The number of bees would increase

• The amount of nutrients in the soil would decrease

• The amount of water in the air would decrease

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Clearing a forest to build a shopping mall will most likely result in woodpeckers —

• nesting on roofs

• losing habitat

• laying more eggs

• flying slower

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The picture shows a frog in a pond containing duckweed. Which of these human activities would most likely cause an overgrowth of duckweed in a pond environment?

• Gradually introducing geese into the pond

• Fishing in the pond as recreation

• Planting trees in nearby forests

• Heavily fertilizing nearby farm fields

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Mountain lions do not live near humans. As the human population increases, the mountain lion—

• loses habitat

• increases in population

• adapts to city life

• has more cubs

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When trees develop leaves in the spring, changes occur on the forest floor. Why does the development of leaves cause changes on the forest floor?

• Rainfall increases

• Sunlight is reduced

• Wind speed increases

• Animal migration is stopped

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What is a likely consequence of cutting down rainforests?

• A decrease in the amount of air pollution on Earth

• An increase in the number of plants living on Earth

• A decrease in the variety of organisms living on Earth

• An increase in the number of arctic ecosystems on Earth

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The diagram shows an area before and after a housing development was built there. Tall pine trees grow very well in East Texas. However, these trees do not do well in parts of West Texas. Which of the following is MOST important in determining where a plant can grow and survive?

• Wind

• Climate

• Tides

• Sunshine

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A science teacher bought some tomatoes that were still green and not yet ripened. He placed half of them in the refrigerator and half on a kitchen table at room temperature. After 4 days, the tomatoes in the refrigerator were still green, while those on the table were red and ripe. Which of the following is the BEST reason for the difference in ripening?

• Tomatoes need sunlight to ripen

• There was not enough air in the refrigerator

• The tomatoes placed in the refrigerator were just bad

• Tomatoes do not ripen well at cold temperatures

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If a fire destroyed the grasses on a grassy plain, which animal would most likely be affected first?

• Coyotes

• Alligators

• Rabbits

• Red-tail hawks

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