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Principles of Ecology

Total questions: 40

Worksheet time: 30mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

Which is the best example of mutualism?

a)

a fish protecting a shrimp, who builds a burrow for the pair to share

b)

a peacock courting and mating with a peahen

c)

a snake administering its toxic venom to a mouse

d)

a crayfish resting under the roots of an aquatic plant

2.

A fish swimming beneath a shark to collect scraps while the shark remains unaffected is an example of

a)

mutualism

b)

commensalism

c)

predation

d)

parasitism

3.

Which is part of Earth’s biogeochemical cycle?

a)

solar radiation traveling to Earth

b)

helium gas escaping into space

c)

an avalanche rumbling down the mountain

d)

carbon from decomposition trapped on the ocean floor

4.

The specific range of land—approximately 4 km2— a place for the jaguar to live is its

a)

Biome

b)

Habitat

c)

Niche

d)

Biosphere

5.

Deep ocean vents, African wildlife, and arctic glaciers are all part of the Earth's

a)

Community

b)

Ecosystem

c)

Biome

d)

Biosphere

6.

What will happen to polar bears if the Earth’s average temperature keeps rising?

a)

Their population will grow

b)

Food will be more plentiful for them

c)

They will become forest-dwellers seeking shade

d)

The ice sheets will melt and they will be unable to obtain food and travel

7.

The algae, insect larvae, protozoans, and other species in a small pond would be an example of a

a)

Community

b)

Biome

c)

Biosphere

d)

Population

8.

Select all that apply: limiting factors on population growth

a)

competitors

b)

disease

c)

weathers

d)

fires

e)

available habitats

9.

What is meant by ecological tolerance?

a)

Two species competing for resources

b)

The sun's effect on global warming

c)

Microbes in the soil breaking down nitrates

d)

The range of environmental conditions that are necessary for survival in a species.

10.

How can detritivores be beneficial to the environment?

a)

provide food for autotrophs

b)

rid waste and dead matter

c)

allow predation to occur

d)

eating excess producers

11.

How is most energy at each level of a pyramid of energy lost?

a)

Gases

b)

Water

c)

Heat

d)

Food

12.

A(n) ________collects energy from sunlight or inorganic substances to produce food.

a)

autotroph

b)

heterotroph

c)

decomposer

d)

detritivore

13.

A fish grazing on ocean algae is an example of a

a)

autotroph

b)

heterotroph

c)

decomposer

d)

detritivore

14.

Study the graph above: what is the optimal range of water temperature for Steelhead Trout?

a)

9℃ - 13℃

b)

13℃ - 21℃

c)

21℃ - 25℃

d)

25℃ - 30℃

15.

Infer the abiotic factors affecting the growth of a palm tree that has sprouted along the shore of a tropical island. Which of the following could be considered abiotic factors?

a)

palm trees

b)

hermit crabs

c)

sea gulls

d)

ocean water

16.

What does the illustration above respresent?

a)

a food pyramid

b)

a food chain

c)

a food web

d)

an energy pyramid

17.

Which organisms in the illustration above are autotrophs?

a)

squirrels

b)

rabbits

c)

foxes

d)

green plants

18.

What process involves the capture and conversion of nitrogen into a form usable by plants in soil?

a)

condensation

b)

phosphatization

c)

nitrification

d)

ammoniazation

19.

What process involves the conversion of water vapor into liquid water?

a)

condensation

b)

evaporation

c)

denitrification

d)

transpiration

20.

What process occurs through plants that makes dew?

a)

condensation

b)

evaporation

c)

precipitation

d)

transpiration

21.

What is the source of all energy on Earth?

a)

the sun

b)

the soil

c)

water

d)

consumers

22.

An organism that eats other heterotrophs

a)

autotroph

b)

detritivore

c)

carnivore

d)

producer

23.

What kind of creature is a dog?

a)

autotroph

b)

detritivore

c)

carnivore

d)

producer

24.

An organism that eats both plants and animals

a)

herbivore

b)

carnivore

c)

autotroph

d)

omnivore

25.

An organism that collects energy from sunlight or nutrients from dark places to produce its own food

a)

herbivore

b)

omnivore

c)

heterotroph

d)

autotroph

26.

An organism that eats fragments of dead matter and returns nutrients to the soil, air and water

a)

autotroph

b)

herbivore

c)

detritivore

d)

omnivore

27.

An organism that gets its energy by consuming other organisms

a)

heterotroph

b)

omnivore

c)

herbivore

d)

autotroph

28.

An organism that eats only plants

a)

autotrophs

b)

heterotrophs

c)

herbivores

d)

onmivores

29.

Select all that apply: important biogeochemical processes that cycle matter

a)

nitrogen fixation

b)

denitrification

c)

photosynthesis

d)

precipitation

e)

cellular respiration

30.

How are these elements converted during photosynthesis? 6CO2 + 6H20

a)

H12C6O22 + 6C

b)

6N + 12C

c)

6O2 + 18H2O

d)

C6H12O6 + 6O2

31.

Describe the flow of energy through a food chain that begins with algae at the lowest level

a)

algae, fish, bird, alligator

b)

algae, bird, alligator, fish

c)

algae, fish, alligator, bird

d)

alligator, fish, bird, algae

32.

What is the independent variable in this graph?

a)

growth

b)

Colpidium

c)

Paramecium

d)

temperature

33.

What is the dependent variable in the graph?

a)

growth

b)

Colpidium

c)

Paramecium

d)

temperature

34.

According to the graph, which protist thrives in cooler temperatures?

a)

Colpidium

b)

Paramecium

c)

neither

d)

both

35.

According to the graph, which protist thrives in warmer temperatures?

a)

neither

b)

both

c)

Colpidium

d)

Paramecium

36.

What is biomass?

a)

the total weight of the biosphere

b)

the mass of organic waste

c)

the total mass of organisms in a given area

d)

the volume of essential nutrient in an area

37.

What is meant by symbiosis?

a)

the symmetry of certain species

b)

the sharing of food

c)

any living arrangement between two different species in the same habitat

d)

the chanting of mating calls at the same time

38.

What is the niche of a certain species?

a)

the functional role that it plays within an ecosystem

b)

a place or area of a habitat

c)

special food preparation required by the species

d)

the relationship it has with another species

39.

What is predation?

a)

the sudden death of a plant

b)

one organism kills and consumes another

c)

the scavenging of meat

d)

habitat sharing

40.

What is meant by cycling of matter?

a)

the destruction of matter

b)

the creation of new matter

c)

the transformation of sun energy into solid masses

d)

the continuous processes of the transformation and migration of matter in nature