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Ecology Quiz

Total questions: 58

Worksheet time: 32mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

Which of the following is a biotic factor?

a)

wind

b)

disease-causing microbe

c)

temperature

d)

soil particle size

2.

The study of nutrient cycling though the environment is an example of which of the following?

a)

organismal ecology

b)

population ecology

c)

community ecology

d)

ecosystem ecology

3.

Understory plants in a temperate forest have adaptations to capture limited (a)   .

4.

An ecologist hiking up a mountain may notice different biomes along the way due to changes in all of the following except:

a)

elevation

b)

rainfall

c)

latitude

d)

temperature

5.

Which of the following biomes is characterized by abundant water resources?

a)

deserts

b)

boreal forests

c)

savannas

d)

tropical wet forests

6.

Which of the following biomes is characterized by short growing seasons?

a)

deserts

b)

tropical wet forests

c)

Arctic tundras

d)

savannas

7.

Where would you expect to find the most photosynthesis in an ocean biome?

a)

aphotic zone

b)

abyssal zone

c)

benthic realm

d)

intertidal zone

8.

A key feature of estuaries is:

a)
  1. low light conditions and high productivity

b)
  1. little or no vegetation

c)
  1. frequent algal blooms

d)
  1. salt water and fresh water

9.

Which of the following is an example of a weather event?

a)

The hurricane season lasts from June 1 through November 30.

b)

The amount of atmospheric CO2 has steadily increased during the last century.

c)

A windstorm blew down trees in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in Minnesota on July 4, 1999.

d)

Deserts are generally dry ecosystems having very little rainfall.

10.

Which of the following natural forces is responsible for the release of carbon dioxide and other atmospheric gases?

a)

The Milankovitch cycles

b)

volcanoes

c)

solar intensity

d)

burning of fossil fuels

11.

Which of the following methods will tell an ecologist about both the size and density of a population?

a)

mark and recapture

b)

mark and release

c)

quadrat

d)

life table

12.

Which of the following is best at showing the life expectancy of an individual within a population?

a)

quadrat

b)

mark and recapture

c)

survivorship curve

d)

life table

13.

Humans have which type of survivorship curve?

a)

Type I

b)

Type II

c)

Type III

d)

Type IV

14.

How is a clumped population distribution beneficial for prey animals?

a)

Being a member of a larger group provides protection for each individual from predators.

b)

Prey animals rely on each other to acquire food.

c)

Prey animals live in small family groups to raise young.

d)

Clumped population distributions ensure that at least one member of the population knows how to identify the seasonal migration route.

15.

Which of the following is associated with long-term parental care?

a)

few offspring

b)

many offspring

c)

semelparity

d)

fecundity

16.

Which of the following is associated with multiple reproductive episodes during a species' lifetime?

a)

semelparity

b)

iteroparity

c)

semelparity

d)

fecundity

17.

Which of the following is associated with the reproductive potential of a species?

a)

few offspring

b)

many offspring

c)

semelparity

d)

fecundity

18.

Species with limited resources usually exhibit a(n) ________ growth curve.

a)
logistic
b)
  1. logical

c)
  1. experimental

d)

exponential

19.

The maximum rate of increased characteristic of a species is called its ________.

a)

  1. limit

b)
  1. carrying capacity

c)
  1. biotic potential

d)
  1. exponential growth pattern

20.

The population size of a species capable of being supported by the environment is called its ________.

a)
limit
b)
  1. carrying capacity

c)
  1. biotic potential

d)
  1. logistic growth pattern

21.

Species that have many offspring at one time are usually:

a)

r-selected

b)

K-selected

c)

both r- and K-selected

d)

not selected

22.

A forest fire is an example of ________ regulation.

a)

density-dependent

b)

density-independent

c)

r-selected

d)

K-selected

23.

Primates are examples of:

a)

density-dependent species

b)

density-independent species

c)

r-selected species

d)

K-selected species

24.

Which of the following statements does not support the conclusion that giraffes are K-selected species?

a)

Giraffes are approximately 6' tall and weigh 150 lbs at birth.

b)

Wild giraffes begin mating at 6-7 years of age.

c)

Newborn giraffes are capable of coordinated walking within an hour of birth, and running within 24 hours of birth.

d)

Giraffes rarely give birth to twins.

25.

Which of the following events would not negatively impact Yellowstone’s grey wolf carrying capacity?

a)

snow in winter

b)

a beaver damming a river upstream

c)

a forest fire

d)

chronic wasting disease in the deer population

26.

A country with zero population growth is likely to be ________.

a)
  1. economically developed

b)
  1. economically underdeveloped

27.

Which type of country has the greatest proportion of young individuals?

a)

economically developed

b)

economically underdeveloped

c)

countries with zero population growth

d)

countries in Europe

28.

Which of the following is not a way that humans have increased the carrying capacity of the environment?

a)

agriculture

b)

using large amounts of natural resources

c)

domestication of animals

d)

use of language

29.

The first species to live on new land, such as that formed from volcanic lava, are called ________.

a)
pioneer species
b)
  1. climax community

c)
  1. keystone species

d)
  1. foundation species

30.

Which type of mimicry involves multiple species with similar warning coloration that are all toxic to predators?

a)

Batesian mimicry

b)

Müllerian mimicry

c)

Emsleyan/Mertensian mimicry

d)

Mertensian mimicry

31.

A symbiotic relationship where both of the coexisting species benefit from the interaction is called ________.

a)
  1. commensalism

b)

  1. parasitism

c)
  1. mutualism

d)
  1. communism

32.

Which of the following is not a mutualistic relationship?

a)

a shark using an aquatic cleaning station

b)

a helminth feeding from its host

33.

The ability of rats to learn how to run a maze is an example of ________.

a)

  1. imprinting

b)
  1. classical conditioning

c)
  1. operant conditioning

d)
  1. cognitive learning

34.

The training of animals usually involves ________.

a)
  1. imprinting

b)
  1. classical conditioning

c)
  1. operant conditioning

d)
  1. cognitive learning

35.

The sacrifice of the life of an individual so that the genes of relatives may be passed on is called ________.

a)
kin selection
b)
  1. operant learning

c)
  1. imprinting

d)
  1. kinesis

36.

Why are polyandrous mating systems more rare than polygynous matings?

a)
  1. Only males are capable of multiple rounds of reproduction within a single breeding season.

b)

Only females care for the young.

c)

Females usually experience more intrasexual selection pressure than males.

d)

Females usually devote more energy to offspring production and development.

37.

The ability of an ecosystem to return to its equilibrium state after an environmental disturbance is called ________.

a)
resilience
b)
  1. resistance

c)
  1. restoration

d)
  1. reformation

38.

A re-created ecosystem in a laboratory environment is known as a ________.

a)
mesocosm
b)
  1. reproduction

c)
  1. microcosm

d)
  1. simulation

39.

Decomposers are associated with which class of food web?

a)

grazing

b)

detrital

c)

inverted

d)

aquatic

40.

The primary producers in an ocean grazing food web are usually ________.

a)
phytoplankton
b)
  1. plants

c)
  1. animals

d)
  1. fungi

41.

What term describes the use of mathematical equations in the modeling of linear aspects of ecosystems?

a)

analytical modeling

b)

simulation modeling

c)

conceptual modeling

d)

individual-based modeling

42.

The position of an organism along a food chain is known as its ________.

a)
trophic level
b)
  1. locus

c)
  1. microcosm

d)
  1. location

43.

The loss of an apex consumer would impact which trophic level of a food web?

a)

primary producers

b)

primary consumers

c)

secondary consumers

d)

all of the above

44.

A food chain would be a better resource than a food web to answer which question?

a)

How does energy move from an organism in one trophic level to an organism on the next trophic level?

b)

How does energy move within a trophic level?

c)
  1. What preys on grasses?

d)

How is organic matter recycled in a forest?

45.

The weight of living organisms in an ecosystem at a particular point in time is called:

a)

energy

b)

production

c)

entropy

d)

biomass

46.

Which term describes the process whereby toxic substances increase along trophic levels of an ecosystem?

a)

biomagnification

b)

biomagnification

c)

bioentropy

d)

heterotrophy

47.

Choose the term that encompasses all organisms that can make their own food using inorganic molecules:

a)

autotrophs

b)

heterotrophs

c)

photoautotrophs

d)

chemoautotrophs

48.

In the English Channel ecosystem, the number of primary producers is smaller than the number of primary consumers because ________.

a)
  1. the apex consumers have a low turnover rate

b)

the primary producers have a low turnover rate

c)

the primary producers have a high turnover rate

d)

the primary consumers have a high turnover rate

49.

What law of chemistry determines how much energy can be transferred when it is converted from one form to another?

a)

the first law of thermodynamics

b)

the second law of thermodynamics

c)

the conservation of matter

d)

the conservation of energy

50.

The mussels that live at the NW Eifuku volcano are examples of ________.

a)

chemoautotrophs

b)

photoautotrophs

c)

apex predators

d)

primary consumers

51.

The movement of mineral nutrients through organisms and their environment is called a _______ cycle.

a)

biological

b)

bioaccumulation

c)

biogeochemical

d)

biochemical

52.

Carbon is present in the atmosphere as _______.

a)
carbon dioxide
b)
  1. carbonate ion

c)
  1. carbon dust

d)
  1. carbon monoxide

53.

The majority of water found on Earth is:

a)

ice

b)

water vapor

c)

fresh water

d)

salt water

54.

The average time a molecule spends in its reservoir is known as _______.

a)
residence time
b)
  1. restriction time

c)
  1. resilience time

d)
  1. storage time

55.

The process whereby oxygen is depleted by the growth of microorganisms due to excess nutrients in aquatic systems is called _______.

a)
eutrophication
b)
  1. dead zoning

c)
  1. depletion

d)
  1. retrofication

56.

The process whereby nitrogen is brought into organic molecules is called _______.

a)
  1. nitrification

b)
  1. denitrification

c)
  1. nitrogen fixation

d)
  1. nitrogen cycling

57.

Which of the following approaches would be the most effective way to reduce greenhouse carbon dioxide?

4 lines
58.

How would loss of fungi in a forest affect biogeochemical cycles in the area?

a)

Nitrogen could no longer be fixed into organic molecules.

b)

Phosphorus stores would be released for use by other organisms.

c)

Sulfur release from eroding rocks would cease.

d)

Carbon would accumulate in dead organic matter and waste.