1. Energy _____________ through an ecosystem. Matter is _______________.
Option 1: recycles, conserved
Option 2: flows, recycled
Option 3: flows, depleted
Option 4: cycles, depleted
Option 2: flows, recycled
2. Which of the following would be an example of detritus?
Option 1: A used wrapper thrown on the ground
Option 2: Redwood branches that fall to the forest floor
Option 3: The remains of a dead squirrel on the ground
Option 4: Both options 2 and 3
Option 4: Both options 2 and 3
3. Earthworms, scavenging insects, and fish that eat the remains of other organisms are all
Option 1: detritovores
Option 2: carnivores
Option 3: decomposers
Option 4: predators
Option 1: detritovores
4. An acre of Canadian maple forest puts on about 27 kg of new biomass per year in the form of leaves, twigs, thicker branches, etc. This gain is called
Option 1: Gross primary production
Option 2: Net ecosystem production
Option 3: Net Primary Production
Option 4: Net biomass index
Option 3: Net Primary Production
5. Biologists discover they can trigger an algal bloom by adding phosphorus to a lake. What does this tell us about the lake?
Option 1: Under normal conditions, phosphorus is a limiting factor
Option 2: Phosphorus may inhibit the growth of certain cyanobacteria
Option 3: Adding phosphorus may be a viable strategy to prevent eutrophication
Option 4: There is an abundance of non-water soluble phosphate in the surrounding mineral bank
Option 1: Under normal conditions, phosphorus is a limiting factor
6. A healthy forest ecosystem is very efficient at absorbing carbon from the atmosphere. What does this tell us about the relationship between carbon and forests?
Option 1: The forest is a carbon source
Option 2: The forest is a carbon sink
Option 3: Trees exploit the free energy trapped in carbon dioxide
Option 4: The ground beneath the forest is a carbon reservoir
Option 2: The forest is a carbon sink
7. Which of the following statements is true?
Option 1: When there is an increase in Net Primary Production, it usually means an increase in the free energy of the system
Option 2: Net Primary Production is a good indicator of the change in free energy
Option 3: As energy passes through an ecosystem from one organism to another, the free energy changes
Option 4: All of the above statements are true
Option 4: All of the above statements are true
8. Which of the following is true about forest soils?
Option 1: Rainforests have a rapid nutrient uptake, so that soils are poor in nutrients and most of the nutrients are in the tissues of living organisms
Option 2: Temperate forests have poor soils compared to tropical forests, because the warmth and moisture of the tropics allow matter to decompose faster
Option 3: Due to weaker sunlight in northern climates, trees gain less energy through photosynthesis, and they have to draw more nutrients from the soil to make up the difference. As a result, temperate forests have poor soil
Option 4: Temperate forest soils are depleted each year when melting snow causes extreme runoff
Option 1: Rainforests have a rapid nutrient uptake, so that soils are poor in nutrients and most of the nutrients are in the tissues of living organisms
9. When researchers clearcut a watershed in the Hubbard Brook Forest, they discovered a dramatic increase in levels of calcium, potassium, and nitrate. What are the implications of this research?
Option 1: Clearcutting can release nutrients that would otherwise be unavailable
Option 2: Muddy water provides a healthy source of nitrates to organisms downstream
Option 3: Plants play a critical role in the movement and regulation of nutrients in an ecosystem
Option 4: By opening the canopy and increasing exposure to sunlight, evaporation becomes more intense and runoff is eliminated.
Option 3: Plants play a critical role in the movement and regulation of nutrients in an ecosystem
10. Which of the following can move matter through an ecosystem?
Option 1: The weathering of rocks, releasing more nutrients
Option 2: respiration and photosynthesis
Option 3: decomposition
Option 4: all of the above
Option 4: all of the above
11. How many species of living things exist in the world today?
Option 1: 2 million that have been discovered and named, and probably another 10-100 million that have not been studied
Option 2: Somewhere between 10 million and 100 million, or maybe more or maybe less
Option 3: We really don’t know
Option 4: All of the above
Option 4: All of the above
12. Why are biologists concerned about genetic diversity?
Option 1: So that Mendel’s work can be repeated
Option 2: Because genetic diversity increases the chance that a species will survive a new crisis
Option 3: Genetic diversity hold the potential that new medicines, new foods, and new useful products can be discovered
Option 4: Both 2 and 3
Option 4: Both 2 and 3
13. Which of the following statements is true about “ecosystem services?”
Option 1: Ecosystems clean our air and water, enrich the soil, and perform services that would be expensive to perform through human effort
Option 2: The cost of artificially replacing ecosystem services can exceed the commercial value of the land
Option 3: Both 1 and 2 are true
Option 4: None of the above statements are true
Option 3: Both 1 and 2 are true
14. Why is the loss of habitat a threat to biodiversity?
Option 1: When an ecological niche is destroyed, the species that occupied the niche is threatened
Option 2: Once you tamper with an ecosystem, all of the native species vanish forever
Option 3: It is not a threat because most species will adapt or migrate to a new habitat
Option 4: Globally, most habitats remain intact but we don’t know what the future will bring
Option 1: When an ecological niche is destroyed, the species that occupied the niche is threatened
15: Which of the following best describes the danger of introduced species?
Option 1: They can change the balance of nature by supplying an extra food source to local populations
Option 2: Introduced species will often mimic local species, making it difficult for biologists to assess local population size
Option 3: Introduced species have no natural predators, so they can quickly destroy or crowd out local species
Option 4: Introduced species don’t have resistance to local diseases, so they quickly die out, polluting the ecosystem with their corpses
Option 3: Introduced species have no natural predators, so they can quickly destroy or crowd out local species
16. Two hundred years ago, several acres of oak forest were cleared away for farmland. Now a private conservation group has purchased the land and wants to restore the forest. Which strategy would be best?
Option 1: Since the land has been cleared and plowed for hundreds of years, ecological succession may not work. The group should plant oak trees and let them grow on their own.
Option 2: Set the grass on fire, and let nature run its course
Option 3: Introduce local native shrubs and herbs (ie, bioaugmentation) to build the soil and prepare it for the introduction of oaks
Option 4: It is unlikely that any of these strategies will work. What’s gone is gone.
Option 3: Introduce local native shrubs and herbs (ie, bioaugmentation) to build the soil and prepare it for the introduction of oaks
17. Why is human intervention often necessary to restore an ecosystem?
Option 1: There may be introduced species, toxic waste, or other permanent conditions that prevent native populations from recovering
Option 2: The environment may be so badly degraded that it no longer supports the original community
Option 3: Both of the above statements are true
Option 4: None of the above
Option 3: Both of the above statements are true
18. Rice is very efficient at absorbing arsenic. A team of biologists plant rice in a field that has been contaminated by arsenic. The rice is not grown for human consumption, it is thrown away after it has absorbed arsenic from the soil. This kind of process is an example of:
Option 1: organic farming
Option 2: bioremediation
Option 3: bioaugmentation
Option 4: ecological succession
Option 2: bioremediation
19: What are some of the challenges to the Minimum Viable Population (MVP) approach to conservation?
Option 1: It is difficult to know how many individuals it takes to make an MVP
Option 2: MVP is not taken seriously by most biologists
Option 3: MVP is useless if you don’t have the minimum in your population to begin with
Option 4: The MVP is different for every species
Option 1: It is difficult to know how many individuals it takes to make an MVP
20. What does the case of the red-cockaded woodpecker tell us about conservation biology?
Option 1: Declining populations usually recover on their own if left alone
Option 2: It can take two or more attempts to find the real cause of population decline and a way to reverse it
Option 3: Woodpeckers don’t necessarily prefer live trees
Option 4: When working with bird populations, you must always take their flight patterns into account.
Option 2: It can take two or more attempts to find the real cause of population decline and a way to reverse it