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WorksheetsFactors Affecting An Ecosystem
Total questions: 20
Worksheet time: 35mins
What is the correct order?
lichen, moss, grasses, shrubs, trees
lichen, shrubs, moss, grasses, trees
lichen, trees, flowers, moss, shrubs
Shrubs, trees, lichen, moss, flowers
Which of the following best describes primary succession?
A volcano wipes out ecosystem that gradually grows back from ash covered soil.
A volcano creates a new island of rock that slowly forms an ecosystem.
A fire burns down a forest that regrows over time.
A tornado destroys a grassland that must slowly grow back over time.
Why does biodiversity increase during the course of succession?
Biodiversity refers to the difference in ages of organisms, so some organisms arrive earlier than others.
Over time, the same trees begin to reproduce and take over an area.
Many populations of organisms gradually begin to occupy the same area to create a climax community.
Many organisms move in to the area for a short amount of time, then leave to find a better habitat.
What is an example of an area that is likely to undergo primary succession?
Glaciers melt and leave exposed rock
Plants die from drought and decompose
Land is bulldozed and soil remains
What is the main difference between primary and secondary ecological succession?
Primary begins WITHOUT soil; Secondary begins WITH soil
Primary is the first state and secondary is the second stage
Primary builds plant community; secondary builds animal community
Primary begins WITH soil; Secondary begins WITHOUT soil
Which statement best explains a biotic factor and its impact on the population of phytoplankton in an aquatic ecosystem?
A change in temperature will cause a decrease in the plankton population.
An increase in fish population will cause the population of plankton to decrease.
A change in the amount of sunlight will cause an increase in the plankton population.
An increase in bacteria population will cause no change in the population of plankton.
Based on the diagram above, which of the following groups lists only abiotic factors in the wetland ecosystem?
Group A
Group B
Group C
Group D
Weeds are plants that grow in areas where they are unwanted. Often they spread aggressively and damage garden plants by competing with them for sunlight, water, and nutrients. The growth of weeds is the first stage of ecological succession, which acts to —
restructure a habitat and allow only the most hardy plants to survive.
clear-cut a habitat and allow only the smallest plants to survive.
bring water to a habitat and allow only the most water-loving plants to survive.
drain water from a habitat and allow only the most fibrous plants to survive.
Read the passage and answer the following question(s). Directions: Use the information from this passage and your knowledge of science to answer any questions that follow. Mr. Mac had his students conduct an experiment on ecological succession. He built a large 20-foot by 20-foot wooden box in the school yard and had his students fill it with fresh sand and rocks. He then had his students record weekly data on what was growing in the microhabitat over a twelve month period.
If Mr. Mac's students came back to visit the school twenty-five years later, and their microhabitat were left undisturbed, what would theymost likely observe?
The microhabitat would be barren because it did not occur naturally.
The microhabitat would contain only a variety of grasses.
The microhabitat would be overgrown by a large variety of bushes and trees.
The microhabitat would contain many varieties of pioneer species.
Which of the following statements about biodiversity is TRUE?
More diversity = Less chance for an ecosystem to sustain itself
More diversity = Better chance for an ecosystem to sustain itself
More diversity = Less species in an ecosystem
More diversity = More pollution in an ecosystem
A scientist observed three very different ecosystems. Her observations are recorded in the label. Based on her observations, what can you infer?
Ecosystem B has too many different species to sustain itself.
Ecosystem C has the best chance of sustaining itself because it has a few species.
Ecosystem B has the best chance of protecting itself from outside stress, compared to Ecosystems A and C.
Ecosystem A has the best chance of protecting itself from the outside stress compared to Ecosystems B and C.
The graph shows how the number of species in a particular ecosystem changed over a 200 year period. What is one conclusion you can make based on the information in the graph?
The number of species increased the most during the first 80 years.
The number of species decreased the most during the last 80 years.
The number of species decreased by 25,000 over a period of 200 years.
The number of species increased by 25,000 over a period of 200 years.
An ocean ecosystem has a high sustainability because of -
strong, persistent currents.
predator/prey relationships.
green plants growing on the bottom.
the large variety of different organisms.
According to the graph, what is causing the deer population to decrease
They got sick
The wolf population is decreasing
The wolf population increased
They ran out of food
10. Which of the following scenarios could explain the
drop in biomass labeled X in the graph to the right?
Felled trees are replanted by humans
A forest fire is started by lightening
Bioaccumulation of toxins affects top predators
Pollution in an ecosystem is drastically reduced
11. Based on the data in the graph, what will happen to an ecosystem after its climax community has been destroyed?
It will proceed through the stages of succession until it returns to a stable community
It will remain in a state of disarray and never recover from the natural disaster
The community will recover, but the biodiversity will never be regained
The original hardwood forest will forever be replaced by a softwood forest
What is an example of an area that is likely to undergo primary succession?
Glaciers melt and leave exposed rock
Plants die from drought and decompose
Land is bulldozed and soil remains
