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AP Bio Semester Exam

Total questions: 47

Worksheet time: 47mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

Parental protective behavior in turkeys is triggered by the cheeping sound of young chicks. What term best applies to this behavior?

a)

sign stimulus

b)

migration

c)

imprinting

d)

associative learning

2.

Natural selection involves energetic trade-offs between

a)

choosing how many offspring to produce over the course of a lifetime and how long to live.

b)

producing large numbers of gametes when employing internal fertilization and fewer numbers of gametes when employing external fertilization.

c)

increasing the number of individuals produced during each reproductive episode and a corresponding increase in parental care.

d)

high survival rates of offspring and the cost of parental care.

3.

Why do populations grow more slowly as they approach their carrying capacity?

a)

Density-dependent factors lead to fewer births and increased mortality.

b)

Density-independent factors lead to fewer births and increased mortality.

c)

Hormonal changes promote higher death rates in crowded populations.

d)

Individuals voluntarily stop mating so that overcrowding does not occur.

4.

Which of the following statements is consistent with the principle of competitive exclusion?

a)

Bird species generally do not compete for nesting sites.

b)

The random distribution of one competing species will have a positive impact on the population growth of the other competing species.

c)

Two species with the same fundamental niche will exclude all other competing species.

d)

Even a slight reproductive advantage will eventually lead to the elimination of the less well adapted of two competing species.

5.

Evidence shows that some grasses benefit from being grazed. Which of the following terms would best describe this plant-herbivore interaction?

a)

Mutualism

b)

Commensalism

c)

Parasitism

d)

Competition

6.

Which of the following groups would be most likely to exhibit uniform dispersion?

a)

red squirrels, animals that actively defend territories

b)

cattails, plants that grow primarily at edges of lakes and streams

c)

dwarf mistletoes, plants that parasitize particular species of forest trees

d)

moths in a city at night

7.

Which of the following best defines a cohort?

a)

a group of individuals that inhabits a small isolated region within the range for the species

b)

all of the individuals that are annually added to a population by birth and immigration

c)

the reproductive males and females within the population

d)

a group of individuals from the same age group, from birth until they are all dead

8.

What is population dispersion?

a)

the number of individuals per unit of area or volume

b)

the pattern of spacing among individuals within the boundaries of the population

c)

the influx of new individuals from other areas

d)

the defense of a bounded physical space against encroachment by others

9.

A human baby performs sucking behavior perfectly when it is put in the presence of the nipple of its mother's breast. What form of animal behavior is this?

a)

associative learning

b)

innate behavior

c)

imprinting

d)

altruistic behavior

10.

Which of the following describes a Type II survivorship curve?

a)

flat at the start, reflecting low death rates during early and middle life, then dropping steeply as death rates increase among older age groups

b)

dropping sharply at the start, reflecting very high death rates for the young, then flattening out as death rates decline for those few who survive

c)

a constant death rate over the organism's life span

d)

flat at the start, reflecting low death rates during early and middle life, then rising steeply as death rates decrease among older age groups

11.

As N approaches K for a certain population, which of the following is predicted by the logistic equation?

a)

The population growth rate will not change.

b)

The population growth rate will approach zero.

c)

The population will increase exponentially.

d)

The carrying capacity of the environment will increase.

12.

In models of logistic population growth,

a)

the population growth rate slows dramatically as N approaches K.

b)

new individuals are added to the population most rapidly when there are few individuals.

c)

new individuals are added to the population most rapidly as N approaches K.

d)

only density-independent factors affect the rate of population growth.

13.

Carrying capacity is

a)

seldom exceeded in real populations.

b)

the maximum population size that a particular environment can support.

c)

fixed for most species over most of their range most of the time.

d)

determined by density and dispersion data.

14.

The feeding relationships between species in a community is called

a)

Biomass.

b)

trophic structure.

c)

top-down control.

d)

bottom-up control.

15.

Species richness increases

a)

as evapotranspiration decreases.

b)

as we travel southward from the North Pole to the equator.

c)

on islands as distance from the mainland increases.

d)

in communities experiencing frequent disturbance events.

16.

Why is a pathogen generally more virulent in a new habitat?

a)

More pathogens tend to immigrate into newer habitats.

b)

Intermediate host species are more motile and transport pathogens to new areas.

c)

Pathogens evolve more efficient forms of reproduction in new environments.

d)

Hosts in new environments have not had a chance to become resistant to the pathogen through natural selection.

17.

All of the following are density dependent factors that limit an animal population size EXCEPT

a)

Weather

b)

Predation

c)

Disease

d)

Birth rate

18.

Corn production in many states of the Midwest is limited by nitrogen levels in the soil. Some farmers reduce the need to apply expensive anhydrous ammonia to their fields by rotating corn crops with nitrogen-fixing soybean crops. Using soybeans to add nitrogen to degraded soils is an example of

a)

biological augmentation.

b)

the biomass pyramid.

c)

promoting leaching efficiency.

d)

Bioremediation.

19.

Animal behavior that includes searching for, capturing, and eating food is known as

a)

innate behavior.

b)

Foraging.

c)

Imprinting.

d)

altruistic behavior.

20.

Which of the following ecological locations, if destroyed, would result in the greatest loss of species diversity?

a)

Tundra

b)

deciduous forests

c)

tropical rain forest

d)

Grasslands

21.

Which of the following provides the best evidence of a biodiversity crisis?

a)

the incursion of a non-native species

b)

increasing pollution levels

c)

decrease in regional productivity

d)

high rate of extinction

22.

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), 73% of species have become extinct, endangered, vulnerable, or rare because of

a)

chemical pollution of water and air.

b)

stratosphere ozone depletion.

c)

overexploitation of certain species.

d)

alteration or destruction of the physical habitat.

23.

Which of the following conditions is the most likely indicator of a population in an extinction vortex?

a)

The population is geographically divided into many populations.

b)

The species in question is found only in small, stable pockets of its former range.

c)

The effective population size of species falls below 500.

d)

Genetic measurements indicate a loss of genetic variation over time.

24.

Which of the following is true about secondary consumers in an ecosystem?

a)

They eat only plants

b)

They are eaten by primary consumers

c)

They are smaller and weaker than are primary consumers

d)

They are fewer in number than are primary consumers.

25.

Which point on the curve in the diagram above best represents the carrying capacity of the environment for the population shown?

a)

A

b)

B

c)

C

d)

D

e)

E

26.

Which of the following organisms is most likely to be located at the top of the pyramid of biomass

a)

Grass

b)

Grasshopper

c)

Snake

d)

Hawk

27.

The law of conservation of mass states that matter cannot be created, yet matter is sometimes gained or lost to an ecosystem. What is the reason for this seeming contradiction?

a)

Chemoautotrophic organisms can convert matter to energy.

b)

Ecosystems are open systems; therefore, matter can be moved in/out of an ecosystem from/to another ecosystem.

c)

Photosynthetic organisms convert sugars to more complex organic molecules.

d)

Detritivores convert matter to energy.

28.

Upon observing a golden eagle flying overhead, a prairie dog on "guard duty" gives a warning call to other members of the prairie dog community that are foraging. What form of animal behavior is this?

a)

associative learning

b)

innate behavior

c)

Imprinting

d)

altruistic behavior

29.

What situation does not describe an innate behavior?

a)

an action present in an animal that has a very short life span

b)

an action that is genetically determined

c)

that webs of spiders are identical

d)

an action that is influenced by rewards

30.

Photosynthetic organisms are unique to most ecosystems because they

a)

synthesize organic compounds they obtain from decaying heterotrophs.

b)

synthesize inorganic compounds from organic compounds.

c)

use light energy to synthesize organic compounds from inorganic compoounds.

d)

use chemical energy to synthesize organic compounds.

31.

Which of the following is true of detritivores?

a)

They synthesize organic molecules that are used by primary producers.

b)

They convert organic materials from all trophic levels to inorganic compounds usable by primary producers.

c)

They secrete enzymes that convert the organic molecules of detritus into CO2 and H2O.

d)

Some species are autotrophic, whereas others are heterotrophic.

32.

For most terrestrial ecosystems, pyramids composed of species abundances, biomass, and energy are similar in that they have a broad base and a narrow top. The primary reason for this pattern is that

a)

secondary consumers and top carnivores require less energy than producers.

b)

at each step, energy is lost from the system because of the second law of thermodynamics.

c)

as matter passes through ecosystems, some of it is lost to the environment.

d)

the accumulation of toxic materials in tissues of animals limits the secondary consumers and top carnivores.

33.

Consider the food chain grass--> grasshopper--> mouse--> snake--> hawk. How much of the chemical energy fixed by photosynthesis of the grass (100%) is available to the hawk?

a)

0.01%

b)

0.1%

c)

1%

d)

10%

34.

Which of the following statements about biogeochemical cycling is correct?

a)

The phosphorus cycle involves the recycling of atmospheric phosphorus.

b)

The phosphorus cycle involves the weathering of rocks.

c)

The carbon cycle is a localized cycle that primarily involves the burning of fossil fuels.

d)

The carbon cycle has maintained a constant atmospheric concentration of CO2 for the past million years.

35.

Which of the following is an example of bioremediation?

a)

using a bulldozer to reshape the land around an abandoned strip mine to change erosion patterns

b)

dredging a river bottom to remove contaminated sediments

c)

reconfiguring the channel of a river to increase the flow of water down a river

d)

raising chromium-accumulating plants to extract chromium from contaminated soil

36.

The organic and inorganic materials in all the organisms in the diagram will eventually return to the environment by the action of

a)

decomposers

b)

Producers

c)

primary consumers

d)

secondary consumers

37.

Examine the diagram of a hypothetical food web in Figure 41.3. The arrows represent the transfer of energy between the various trophic levels. Which letter represents an organism that could be a primary producer?

a)

A

b)

B

c)

C

d)

D

e)

E

38.

Which of the following is an example of aposematic coloration?

a)

the brightly colored patterns of poison dart frogs

b)

eye color in humans

c)

green color of a plant

d)

colors of an insect-pollinated flower

39.

Which statement best describes the evolutionary significance of mutualism?

a)

Mutualism offers more biodiversity to a community.

b)

Individuals partaking in a mutualistic relationship are more resistant to parasites.

c)

Interaction increases the survival and reproductive rates of mutualistic species.

d)

Mutualistic interaction lessens competition in communities where it is present.

40.

How might an ecologist test whether a species is occupying its complete fundamental niche or only a portion of it?

a)

Observe whether the niche size changes after the addition of nutritional resources to the habitat.

b)

Observe whether the niche size changes after the introduction of a similar non-native species.

c)

Measure the change in reproductive success when the species is subjected to environmental stress.

d)

Observe whether the species expands its range after the removal of a competitor.

41.

Elephants are not the most dominant species in African grasslands, yet they influence community structure. The grasslands contain scattered woody plants, but they are kept in check by uprooting activities of the elephants. If the elephants are taken away, the grasslands convert to forests or to shrublands. The newly growing forests support fewer species than the previous grasslands. Which of the following describes why elephants are the keystone species in this situation?

a)

Elephants exhibit a disproportionate influence on the community relative to their abundance.

b)

Grazing animals depend upon the elephants to convert forests to grassland.

c)

Elephants prevent drought in African grasslands.

d)

Elephants are the biggest herbivore in this community.

42.

_______ mimicry is the resemblance of a harmless animal to a harmful animal. _______ mimicry is when species have the same coloring to signal that they are also harmful.

a)

Mullerian; Batesian

b)

Camouflage; aposematic coloration

c)

Batesian; Mullerian

d)

Batesian; Camouflage

43.

Which of the following levels of ecological organization is arranged in the correct sequence from most to least inclusive?

a)

community, ecosystem, individual, population

b)

ecosystem, community, population, individual

c)

population, ecosystem, individual, community

d)

individual, population, community, ecosystem

44.

Which of the following choices causes all of the others in creating global terrestrial climates?

a)

differential heating of Earth's surface

b)

ocean currents

c)

global wind patterns

d)

evaporation of water from ocean surfaces

45.

Studying species transplants in a way that ecologists

a)

determine the abundance of a species in a specified area.

b)

determine the distribution of a species in a specified area.

c)

develop mathematical models for distribution and abundance of organisms.

d)

determine if dispersal is a key factor in limiting distribution of organisms.

46.

A population is correctly defined as having which of the following characteristics?


I. inhabits the same general area

II. belongs to the same species

III. possesses a constant and uniform density and dispersion

a)

I only

b)

III only

c)

I and II only

d)

II and III only

47.

The formation of attachment to something in the environment shortly after birth is

a)

Conditioning.

b)

Imprinting.

c)

Habituation.

d)

insight learning.