Ecosystem and Fire Adaptations Quiz

What role do decomposers like fungi and bacteria play in an ecosystem?

• Break down dead matter and return nutrients to the soil

• Eat insects and plants

• Clean up pollution

• Increase plant temperature

What effect might the introduction of foxes have on a balanced food web?

• Reduce bird numbers, increasing insect population

• Increase the number of producers

• Help decomposers survive

• Support plant diversity

What is a correct trophic level match?

• Snake – producer

• Koala – primary consumer

• Magpie – herbivore

• Eucalyptus tree – secondary consumer

If 12 koala food trees are removed, and one koala needs 6 trees, how many koalas will lose their habitat?

• 1

• 2

• 3

• 6

Why does the eucalyptus transect area have higher temperature and light levels than the paperbark trail?

• It has more trees and ground cover

• It has less canopy cover and more sunlight

• It has higher soil pH

• It is closer to water

What feature of the paperbark trail helps it recover faster after fire?

• More sunlight and dry soil

• Moist soil and shaded undergrowth

• Thicker tree bark

• Fewer birds

Which adaptation helps eucalyptus trees survive bushfires?

• Hollow trunks

• Epicormic buds and thick bark

• Soft leaves and small roots

• Early flowering

How do paperbark trees benefit from fire?

• Fire dries out their roots

• Oily leaves help fire release seeds

• Fire softens their bark

• They lose their seeds permanently

Which area is more likely to recover faster after fire?

• Eucalyptus transect area – drier with sandy soil

• Paperbark trail – moist soil, regrowing ferns and grasses

• Eucalyptus transect – no animals present

• Paperbark – completely destroyed by fire

What happens to biotic factors in the eucalyptus transect area after fire?

• Eucalypts regrow, but insects and flowers are lost

• All trees die permanently

• Soil moisture increases

• No changes occur