Practice test ch 4

Temperate Grassland

temperature differences between winter and summer become more extreme rainfall diminishes the limited ant of precipitation in the great plains region can support grasses more easily than trees vegetation is dominated by grasses -- p. 95

If a human consumes both plant and animal products then he or she is considered a(n) _____. primary consumer herbivore producer omnivore

omnivore Omnivores eat both plant and animals as food.

Using "+" for those that benefit, "−" for those that are harmed, and "0" for no effect, which of the following expressions best represents competition between species? − / − + / + 0 / − + / −

− / − Both species suffer when competition exists.

Ecological restoration tries to _____. rebuild natural communities to look like what they were in the year 1900 preserve pristine environments by keeping humans out redesign natural areas to have the showiest plants in places that are the easiest to see so more visitors will come return ecosystems to a more "natural" state, often what they were like before industrial civilization altered them

return ecosystems to a more "natural" state, often what they were like before industrial civilization altered them The goal is to restore the community to the state that existed before human impact. Finding this state and getting the community there take research and expertise from a range of scientists.

Which statement is an accurate description of a keystone species? Keystone species are the largest-bodied species in a community. Keystone species are always predators. If the keystone species disappears, the whole ecosystem collapses and nothing survives. A keystone species that is a predator controls the herbivore populations, which in turn maintains the plant populations and keeps balance.

A keystone species that is a predator controls the herbivore populations, which in turn maintains the plant populations and keeps balance. Although removal of a keystone species will alter the food web on an ecosystem, some parts will persist.

Which biome is correctly matched with its description? The temperate deciduous forest is dominated by conifers, has long cold winters, and is home to moose. The taiga or boreal forest has heavy year-round rainfall and consists of dense growth of conifers, ferns, and mosses. The rain forest biome has permafrost. A temperate grassland biome has a hot, dry summer and fall, has few to no trees, and contains large grazing animals like bison.

A temperate grassland biome has a hot, dry summer and fall, has few to no trees, and contains large grazing animals like bison. This statement is a correct description of temperate grasslands.

Which statement is correct concerning the process of ecological succession? After a disturbance, the community goes through a somewhat predictable set of changes until reaching a final state. Primary succession starts after a forest fire. Shrubs will replace pines during succession. Planting pines in an abandoned farm field mimics the natural progression of species during succession.

After a disturbance, the community goes through a somewhat predictable set of changes until reaching a final state. Succession is the somewhat predictable replacement of one group of species by another over time after a disturbance. Eventually, a climax community forms that replaces itself and change stops until the next disturbance.

When a species is moved from its native area to a new area, it can become an invasive species and damage its new ecosystem. What is one reason these species are able to do damage to an ecosystem? When moved to the new location, the species fills in unoccupied niches. Having been moved from its home country, the introduced species does not know the local language so is unable to communicate with its new neighbors and gets angry, lashing out at any nearby organisms and doing great harm. When a species is transported, it leaves behind its predators and the diseases that previously kept its population in check. Therefore the species is able to grow to large and damaging numbers. In nearly every case, when a species is moved across an ocean and into a new habitat it becomes a harmful invasive species simply because it is in a new habitat.

When a species is transported, it leaves behind its predators and the diseases that previously kept its population in check. Therefore the species is able to grow to large and damaging numbers. The loss of limiting factors such as predators and diseases allows these invasive species to increase in number more than they would in their home range.

If you wanted to represent the relative importance of the trophic levels in a food chain, the most accurate way to do so would be a graph in the form of __________. a pyramid of the number of individuals a pyramid of keystone species a pyramid of energy a pyramid of specific interactions between species

a pyramid of energy The pyramid of energy measures the caloric value of each trophic level. hint: Reread the section called "Ecological Communities" to better understand trophic levels.

While driving through an area in October you notice that most of the trees are full of beautiful autumn-colored leaves. When you return to the area again in December you notice that the trees have lost their leaves and are bare. Which of the following ecosystems might this be? a temperature deciduous forest a boreal forest a temperate grassland a desert

a temperature deciduous forest A forest filled with deciduous trees would display such fall colors and lose their leaves in the winter. Such a forest is called a temperature deciduous forest.

Which of the following biomes has soil with the fewest nutrients and least organic matter? a temperate deciduous forest a tundra a tropical rain forest a temperate grassland

a tropical rain forest Permafrost limits the depth of the soil available for plants. Nutrient recycling is very slow there because of the cold temperatures. This means that the nutrients stay in the soil. hint: Review the types of biomes. Which type of biome stores most of its nutrients outside of the soil?

Which of the following would have the largest biomass in a terrestrial ecosystem? primary consumers secondary consumers autotrophs tertiary consumers

autotrophs Although the primary consumer level of the biomass pyramid is relatively large, the level below has to be larger to support it. hint: How is the biomass pyramid set up? - less and less every is available in each successive trophic level: each lever contains only about 10% of the energy of the trophic level below it -there are also far fewer organisms and less biomass (mass of living matter) at each higher trophic lever

Which list includes biomes in the correct order based on those that have the lowest annual rainfall to those that have the highest? desert, grassland, tropical rain forest, temperate deciduous forest tropical rain forest, temperate deciduous forest, grassland, desert desert, grassland, temperate deciduous forest, tropical rain forest grassland, desert, tropical rain forest, temperate deciduous forest

desert, grassland, temperate deciduous forest, tropical rain forest Deserts have the lowest annual rainfall of all the biomes.

When a parasite lives inside the human gastrointestinal tract, absorbing some of the human's nutrients at the human's expense, it is considered a(n) _____ interaction. Galápagos exploitative partitioned displacement

exploitative This is a perfect example of an exploitative interaction. hint: Examples of this type of interaction include not only parasitism, but also predation and herbivory.

Many plants have developed complicated defenses to protect themselves against _____. pollination parasitoidism herbivory Invasive species

herbivory When animals feed on the tissues of plants the plants have a more difficult time surviving to reproduce. They can develop elaborate defenses to deter their herbivores. note: What exploitive relationship do some organisms have with plants that would require plant defense?

What kind of interaction occurs when two cardinals (birds of the same species) are trying to build a nest in the same tree? fundamental competition mutualism intraspecific competition interspecific competition

intraspecific competition When two members of the same species compete for the same resource, it is called intraspecific competition.

If you wanted to predict which biome you would find in an area, what two things would you would need to know about that area? its annual rainfall and temperature the annual soil nutrient levels and relative humidity the annual daytime high and nighttime low temperatures the annual levels of light and length of day

its annual rainfall and temperature Combining temperature and rainfall allow us to accurately predict which biome you would find in an area. hint: What two critical factors are most important for determining a biome?

When wolves were eliminated from Yellowstone National Park in 1926, the elk population exploded and biodiversity along streams declined dramatically as the elks consumed all of the riverside vegetation. When wolves were reintroduced the biodiversity of these riverside, communities increased dramatically. What kind of species is the wolf in the Yellowstone community? parasite keystone benthic herbivore

keystone Loss of the wolf population caused major impacts on the Yellowstone ecosystem. hint: Which kinds of species play major roles in the structure and health of an ecosystem?

temperate deciduous forest

midlatitude forests characterized by broad leafed trees that lose their leaves each fall and remain dormant during the winter occur in areas where precipitation is spread relatively evenly throughout the year: much of europe Easter china and eatern NA far fewer tree specimen than tropical rainforests though soils here are relatively fertile oaks, beeches, and maples are a few of the most abundant trees

Many wild orchids cannot be successfully dug up and transplanted because they need the native mychorrhizae (a fungus) in the soil to survive. What kind of interaction is this? parasitism herbivory mutualism competition

mutualism In this interaction, the plant provides energy and protection to the fungus and the fungus provides nutrients in the soil to the plant.

When looking at the distribution of the world's biomes, there is a predictable pattern that results when starting at the equator and moving north or south (a longitudinal change). Where else do we see the same sort of predictable pattern? Starting in an area after a disturbance and following it through time. starting at the base of a mountain and climbing up to the top starting at zero degrees latitude and moving east or west starting at the source of a river and following it to where it ends

starting at the base of a mountain and climbing up to the top Reread the section called "Earth's Biomes" to see how biomes can change geographically

The type of biome that has been converted most frequently by humans for agricultural use is the _____. tundra desert temperate grassland savanna

temperate grassland Temperate grasslands do not contain forests that need to be cut down and their climates have the necessary rainfall and temperature for crop production. hint: Reread the section called "We can divide the world into roughly ten terrestrial biomes."

A marine ecosystem is exposed to a potentially devastating invasive species and responds by remaining stable throughout the invasion. It could be said that _____. the ecosystem demonstrated resistance to the disturbance the ecosystem demonstrated permanence in regard to the ecosystem the ecosystem demonstrated resilience to the disturbance the ecosystem demonstrated primary succession in response to the disturbance

the ecosystem demonstrated resistance to the disturbance Because the ecosystem resisted change, it is not necessary for the ecosystem to undergo primary succession. hint: What are some of the different ways that ecosystems respond to disturbance?

Pick the answer that best evaluates the following statement: "It has been said that land animals can't exist without plants but that plants could exist without animals." This statement is incorrect because the animals must supply the detritus for the decomposition process that supports plants. This statement is incorrect because animals are the only source of carbon dioxide that plants need for photosynthesis. This statement is true because plants are able to convert sun energy into food energy and animals must get their energy from plants or other organisms that eat plants. This statement is incorrect because plants can't reproduce without the energy of animals, and animals cannot reproduce without the energy of plants.

This statement is true because plants are able to convert sun energy into food energy and animals must get their energy from plants or other organisms that eat plants. The sun's energy must be captured and is stored in the chemical bonds of foods made by plants. Animals are unable to capture the sun's energy as a food source and are therefore dependent on plants for their energy. hint: What type of relationship do plants and animals share?-- herbivory

Which of the following statements best describes competition for a niche? Two species could divide a niche through "resource partitioning." Competition for resources always involves aggression. Competition for a niche always results in the disappearance of one of the competing species. Members of different species never compete for resources.

Two species could divide a niche through "resource partitioning." Resource partitioning is one way that two species can divide a shared niche.

How does predation differ from parasitism? Predation happens between trophic levels while parasitism happens within a trophic level. Parasites are only insects or mites, while predators can be any kind of large animal. Parasites rarely kill their host while predators kill their prey. Predation is + / − while parasitism is + / 0. (0 stands for no effect.)

Parasites rarely kill their host while predators kill their prey. Parasites often feed off one host for a prolonged period of time, so killing the host would be not serve the parasite's best interest.

Which of the following is the best strategy for protecting natural systems from degradation? Carry out restoration projects. Watch an ecosystem and intervene with human impact on the ecosystem when species in that ecosystem start to become extinct. Take several individuals from each species in an ecosystem and breed them in captive breeding programs (in zoos) to prevent the loss of keystone species. Protect all natural ecosystems to the best of our ability before damage starts to occur and by acting in a sustainable way.

Protect all natural ecosystems to the best of our ability before damage starts to occur and by acting in a sustainable way. As humans, this is the best way to ensure that our natural ecosystems will never be degraded in the first place. hint: Reread the section called "Altered communities can be restored."