APES final 3 and 4

the Venus flytrap is a carnivorous plant that grows best in nutrient-poor, acidic soil. They typically grow in certain long leaf pine savanna ecosystems in the Carolinas. Which of the following best describes this species?

A specialist species because it thrives only in soils with low nutrient levels

A farm is experiencing extensive crop loss due to high rains causing overly saturated soils. Which of the following would best help the farmer alleviate the problem?

Amending the soil with sand to increase permeability of the soil

Which of the following is the correct order of soil particles in order of increasing size?

Clay-silt-sand

The primary cause of Earth's seasons is what?

Constant tilt of Earth's rotational axis with respect to the plane of its orbit around the Sun

Most of the Earth's deserts are at approximately 30° latitude, north and south, because these latitudes are characterized by what?

Descending dry air currents

Earth currently rotates on an axis at an angle of 23.5 degrees. If that axis changed to 20 degrees, so that the axis was closer to vertical, what would be expected to occur?

Earth would experience a change in seasonal timing and length

What explains the tectonic plate activity on the West Coast of the United States?

Earthquakes occur at the San Andreas Fault when stored energy is released from locked plates.

Overgrazing of grasslands can lead to reduced range quality. Two of the major effects of overgrazing are what?

Erosion and desertification

What is a positive effect likely to result from an El Niño event?

Fewer hurricanes forming in the Central Atlantic basin

What areas of the world which exhibits a growing nonvolcanic mountain chain due to uplift?

Himalayas

El Niño and La Niña are natural phenomena associated with changing water temperatures in the Pacific Ocean. The occurrence of these events can result in changes in global weather and ocean circulation patterns. What changes in eastern Pacific Ocean food webs is typically associated with La Niña events?

Increased phytoplankton concentrations

Where did a magnitude 9.0 earthquake occur (at a nearby subduction zone), triggered one of the largest nuclear reactor disasters in history?

Japan

What should be included in a watershed map to best determine the non-point source of a pollutant, such as fertilizer, found in a river?

Land use upstream of the river and water quality indicators in streams that run downstream into the river

The shaded area in New York State, Pennsylvania, and Ohio in the northeast United States is referred to as a snowbelt. On average, this region receives much more snowfall than surrounding areas.What best explains why the shaded area receives more snowfall than the other parts of New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio?

Moisture picked up from the warmer water in the Great Lakes is deposited as snow downwind (lake effect)

Scientists are looking for new locations to generate electricity using geothermal energy. Where would be the best choice for a geothermal energy generating plant?

Near tectonic plate boundaries

The city of London in the United Kingdom is found approximately at the same latitude as the city of Calgary in Canada. Calgary has an average high temperature in December of -4 degrees Celsius, while London has an average high temperature of 8.6 degrees Celsius.What best explains why the average temperature of London is warmer than that of Calgary in December?

Oceanic currents warm the atmosphere in London.

Where does seafloor spreading result in rifts and possible volcanoes?

Plate A

Where would activity result in volcanoes, island arcs, and mountains?

Plate B

Where is an earthquake most likely to occur as two plates slide sideways past each other?

Plate C

Most volcanism in the world is associated with what?

Plate boundaries

Raccoons eat a variety of foods and can live in a variety of habitats, including locations near humans. Tiger salamanders eat an abundance of worms and insects and require wetland habitats so they do not dry out. Which of the following best identifies the two different species?

Raccoons are generalists and salamanders are specialists

The low anchovy catch in 1998 was most likely the result of what?

Reduced ocean upwelling along the coast

Reasons that human populations historically have settled in floodplains, what are they?

Soil is fertile, terrain tends to be flat, close to rivers for transportation

Why is it important in understanding a watershed and its boundaries is important in designing housing developments along a river?

Surface water and stormwater runoff will drain downstream within the watershed boundaries, so it's important to understand the flow of water through the watershed

What correctly describes the season and length of day at the Tropic of Cancer at the time of year shown in the diagram?

The Northern Hemisphere is tilted away from the Sun so it is winter at the Tropic of Cancer and daylight is less than twelve hours per day

Which of the following areas receives the most intense solar radiation at the time of year shown in the diagram, and why?

The Tropic of Capricorn, because this latitude is nearly horizontal to incoming solar radiation.

Based on the diagram, what best explains why the climate of the West Coast of Africa is drier than that of the East Coast of the United States, even though they are located at similar northern latitudes?

The cold ocean currents off africa absorb heat from land and therefore cool the atmosphere

A small developing country with negligible rates of immigration and emigration is going through a demographic change. Thirty years ago the crude birth rate was 44 per thousand per year and the crude death rate was 17 per thousand per year. Now the crude birth rate is 16 thousand per year and the crude death rate is 5 per thousand per year. Which of the following statements about the country now is most likely true

The country is at the industrial stage of the demographic transition

Hoover Dam is the largest dam in the United States, built on the Colorado River to supply hydroelectric power and flood control. What is a downstream environmental effect of Hoover Dam on the Colorado River watershed?

The damming of the Colorado River led to a change in stream flow, preventing river water and sediments from reaching the delta area

What two main factors would best indicate the quality of life of a country's population?

The life expectancy and the infant mortality rate

Which of the following best explains why City B regularly receives less precipitation than City A?

The rain shadow effect causes City B to be drier because the mountain blocks precipitation from reaching the city.

Which of the following does NOT exert a major influence on Earth's overall climate?

The seasonal development of temperature inversions in geographical basins

In the desert regions of the southwestern United States, daily high and low temperatures will frequently fluctuate by 40 degrees F or more. What best explains the large variation in temperature?

There are no bordering oceans or large bodies of water to provide a stabilizing humidity to the air

Which of the following factors is fundamentally responsible for seasons on Earth?

Tilt of earth's rotational axis

The axis of Earth in relation to the Sun is tilted at a 23.5 degree slant, as illustrated in the diagram below. If the diagram illustrates Earth's relative position on December 21 of a given year, What part of the earth is experiencing summer?

Tropic of Capricorn

Brown pelicans are fish-eating birds. As a result of an El Niño event, the population of brown pelicans in southern California declines. What best explains the relationship between the El Niño event and the population decline?

Warm ocean temperatures can cause fish to move to colder water farther from pelican nest sites

What causes the air to rise high into the atmosphere in the areas labeled A, B, and C on the diagram?

Warm, moist air that is less dense than the surrounding air.

What is a primary cause of El Niño climate variations?

Warmer surface waters in the pacific ocean

What is the most likely effect of a strong El Niño event on the weather patterns in the United States?

Wetter weather and cooler than average temperatures in the southeastern states and warmer temperatures in the Pacific Northwest

The supply of Earth's fresh water is fixed and is being depleted at a rapid rate. Which of the following best describes the effects of a limited freshwater supply on human populations?

World food production will decrease, leading to increased famine

Which latitude shown on the diagram below experiences 24 hours of daylight on December 21?

antarctic circle

Which soil composition would be the best choice for lining a landfill?

clay

Which soil indicated on the soil triangle would most likely have the highest water-holding capacity?

clay

Which of the following best exemplifies population momentum?

continued growth of a population after fertility drops to replacement level

In a human population undergoing the demographic transition, which of the following generally decreases first?

death rate

What biome is found at 30 degrees N and and 30 degrees S, as seen in the diagram?

deserts

The high sea surface temperature in 1998 was most likely due to what?

el nino

A major environmental problem caused by using the agricultural practice of tilling is

eutrophication from excessive fertilizer use

The K-selection reproductive strategy maximizes survival of offspring by producing

few offspring with high levels of parental care

Which of the following environmental conditions will have a negative effect on the limit a certain population of organisms is able to achieve in that habitat?

high levels of predation

Which of the following properties is most likely associated with soils that contain more sand-sized particles than soils that contain more clay-sized particles?

high permeability

Although the fertility rate for women in the United States has declined in recent years to a value below replacement level, the United States population is still increasing because of

immigration

the world population growth rate in 2015 is about 1 percent. It is expected to drop to 0.5 percent by 2050, partly because of increased access to birth control in developing nations. Another likely cause for the expected decline is

increasing numbers of women entering the workforce in developing nations

Which of the following is most likely the primary cause of high death rates in phase 1?

infant and childhood mortality

Which of the following is a true statement about replacement-level fertility?

it is greater in countries with high infant-mortality rates than in countries with low infant mortality rates

A team at a university in Pennsylvania has concerns about the health of streams in a watershed because of the various land uses in the area. There has been an increase in road repair work, and the area has many dairy farms. Which of the following would be the most effective at preventing sediment runoff into the streams of the watershed?

maintain zones of grass at least 100m wide on the sides of streams in the area

which of the following statements best describes the difference between developed and undeveloped countries?

more-developed countries tend to have lower fertility rates than less-developed countries

Which of the following best describes a density-independent factor that controls population size?

occurrences of droughts and flooding

the tropical rainforests are known to have a large variety of animals. One example is the orchid mantis that is highly camouflaged when standing on a certain species of orchid found in tropical environments. Another species, the tropical cockroach, can live anywhere in the rainforest where it can find water and a food source. Which of the following statements best describes why it is predicted that the orchid mantis will be more affected by global climate change than the tropical cockroach will be?

orchard mantises tend to be advantaged in habitats that remain constant, the rain forest habitat is likely to shift because of global climate change

What zone is located in the atmosphere between the stratopause and the tropopause?

ozone layer

Which of the following properties of the soil sample most influences the flow of water through the sample

permeability

The Sun's radiation provides the energy for all of the following EXCEPT

plate tectonics

Members of the r selected species characteristically

reach sexual maturity quickly

Which of the following is most typically associated with the transition from a rural to an industrialized society?

reduced birth rates

Salamanders, ospreys, snapping turtles, and beavers all live in aquatic habitats. Salamanders lay their eggs in small freshwater pools and feed on insects. Osprey habitats include rivers, bays, and swamps and the birds feed on fish and other animals in the water or on land. Snapping turtles live in fresh or brackish water and feed on plants, fish, frogs, and snakes. Beavers build lodges on islands, pond banks, and lake shores and eat a variety of shrubs, grasses, and crops. Based on the information provided, which of the following species would best be classified as a specialist?

salamanders

Of the following which has the greatest permeability?

sand

Which of the following problems is best addressed with contour plowing?

soil erosion

What is the source of energy driving the circulation pattern labeled C in the diagram?

solar radiation

In a certain country, the birth rate is high, the death rate is high, and there are many children that are part of the workforce. The country is most likely in which of the following states of the demographic transition?

stage 1

Which layer of Earth's atmosphere contains the ozone layer that absorbs the sun's ultraviolet rays?

stratosphere

Farmers need to make many decisions about how they grow their crops. One of these decisions is whether to use synthetic fertilizer or organic fertilizer, such as manure. An advantage of using synthetic fertilizer instead of organic fertilizer is that

synthetic fertilizer can provide more targeted macronutrients to the crops

The increase in the size of Earth's human population in the last century has been dramatic. Which of the following identifies two major contributors to this increase?

the Industrial Revolution and modern medicine

certain species of dinosaur laid large numbers of eggs, and the hatchlings had high mortality early in life but if they survived, the young dinosaurs were able to grow at a rapid pace and disperse into the environment in order to thrive. Based on this information, which of the following best characterizes this species of dinosaur

the dinosaurs were r-strategists and exhibited a type 3 survivorship curve

Which of the following can be interpreted from an age-structure diagram of a country?

the relative population growth rate of the population

The spotted lantern fly is a herbivorous insect that is native to Asia and feeds on over 70 species of plants.The feeding behavior of the spotted lantern fly damages plants, and the nymph and adult lantern flies secrete sticky residues that exacerbate the damage to native plant species by promoting mold growth. The spotted lantern fly reproduces once during its lifetime by laying between 30 and 50 eggs, and the eggs hatch after a short amount of time. The range of the spotted lantern fly is increasing because the insects are transported to new environments by the movements of animals and people, and it is now found in many parts of the United States. Which of the following best describes the spotted lantern fly in the Unites States?

the spotted lantern fly is an r-selected and invasive species

Which of the following is a true statement about the total fertility of a society?

the total fertility of a society decreases as the society progresses through the demographic transition

As a country goes through the demographic transition, the greatest rate of population growth takes place during which phase?

the transitional

Which layer of Earth's atmosphere contains the fewest molecules of the layers shown, and the low density of gas leads to very few molecules transferring heat to an object. In this layer, ultraviolet radiation causes photodissociation of molecules(aurora borealis), creating ions?

thermosphere

Which of the following is generally true of K-strategist species as compared to r-strategist species

they have longer life spans

El Niño, a periodic warming of ocean surface waters, occurs in which of the following regions?

tropical east pacific

Which layer of Earth's atmosphere has the highest density of any atmospheric layer and contains most of the water vapor in the atmosphere?

troposphere

Which of the following agricultural practices would most likely lead to improved water salinity in nearby streams and rivers?

using crop rotation in fields

In a human population, the population momentum effect is most likely to occur in cases in which a large percent of people in the population are in which age group

younger than 18 years old

If a city of population 10,000 experiences 100 births, 40 deaths, 10 immigrants, and 30 emigrants in the course of a year, what is its net annual percentage growth rate?

0.4%

factors that affect the total fertility rate of a human population include which of the following? 1. cultural traditions 2. government policies and economic incentives 3. education level and economic opportunities for females

1, 2, and 3

If a country has a crude birth rate of 24 per 1,000 and a crude death rate of 8 per 1,000, the natural annual percent increase of its population is

1.6%

If the population of a country grows at a rate of approximately 5 percent per year, the number of years required for the population to double is closest to

15 years

A country currently has a population of 100 million and an annual growth rate of 3.5 percent. If the growth rate remains constant, what will be the population of the country in 40 years?

400 million