ecology regents questions

There are trade-offs involved in the use of solar-powered cars. Provide one advantage and one disadvantage of owning a solar car.

Advantages: — Solar energy is a renewable resource. — no air pollution from solar vehicle — burning less oil/coal/natural gas — using less gasoline Disadvantages: — cost — cannot charge at night — cannot use year-round in some areas — may not be able to drive at night

State one community action, other than recycling, that could be implemented to address one part of the Solid Waste Management Act of 1988 and explain how this action would improve the environment of the community

Community Action: requiring deposits on water/soda bottles Improvement: reduce solid waste Community Action: requiring reduced packaging of products or using reusable shopping bags Improvement: less waste produced Community Action: building power plants that use solid waste for fuel Improvement: recover energy from solid waste

Identify one factor that would hinder recycling efforts within a community and state how it could be corrected.

Factor: People won't recycle. Correction: Fine individuals who put recyclables in their garbage. Factor: lack of education about recycling Correction: Distribute recycling information or sponsor television and radio ads. Factor: too time consuming Correction: Companies can collect unsorted recyclables.

Identify one specific human activity, other than mowing, that could alter this succession and explain how this activity affects biodiversity.

Human activity: cut down forest Effect on biodiversity: Different plant and animal species will be present. Many species that live in the forest will be lost. Human activity: plant trees Effect on biodiversity: decrease biodiversity by shading out small plants or increase biodiversity by adding new species. Human activity: building a mall Effect on biodiversity: removes many plants and animals from the environment Human activity: plant wild flowers Effect on biodiversity: increase biodiversity because you are adding new plants

Select one organism from the food chain you constructed and write it on the line below. State one way the removal of the organism you selected would affect another organism in the food chain. Support your answer.

Organism: grass or plant — All other organisms decrease because there is less food. Organism: rabbit or cow — Grass overpopulates because it is not being eaten. Organism: red ant — Butterflies die out because they are not fed and protected by the ants. — no ant grubs for the caterpillars to eat Organism: butterfly — Red ants increase because they are not being eaten by butterfly caterpillars.

Identify which population, other than lake sturgeon, will increase in size after the lake sturgeon are added to the new ecosystems. Support your answer.

— Algae, because there will be fewer organisms that feed on them. — More algae will survive and reproduce because populations of insect larvae, clams, and worms that eat the algae will decrease in size because they will be eaten by both lake sturgeon and bloater fish.

State one possible relationship between CO2 levels and the change in Antarctic ice mass.

— An increase in CO2 levels caused the ice to melt. — An increase in CO2 brought about global warming, which melted the ice. — As the level of CO2 increased, ice mass decreased. — As CO2 increased, the temperature increased, and the ice mass decreased

State one negative impact on humans when the use of pesticides for mosquitoes is decreased.

— An increased mosquito population could lead to more malaria. — An increased mosquito population could lead to disease. — There would be more deaths from malaria. — more mosquito bites

Describe one possible effect that the increased deaths of the birds could have on the rest of the ecosystem

— Animals that eat the birds would not have enough food. — The decomposing birds could spread disease. — The gobie population would increase. — decreases biodiversity — disrupts food webs

Daphnia are freshwater organisms sometimes referred to as "water fleas." Design an experiment that could be used to test the effects of temperature on the size of a daphnia population. In your experimental design, be sure to: • state a hypothesis to be tested • describe how the control group will be treated differently from the experimental group • identify the independent variable in the experiment • identify the type of data that will be collected

— As temperature increases, the daphnia population decreases. — Temperature has an effect on the size of a daphnia population. — If the temperature decreases, then the size of the daphnia population decreases. — The control group will be at normal temperature for the species. — The control group will be at normal freshwater pond temperature, while the experimental groups will be at other temperatures. — change in the number of daphnia in the population — number of daphnia at each temperature

Biofuels are produced from resources that can be grown, such as algae. Explain one specific benefit of using biofuels in place of the fossil fuels in wide use today.

— Biofuels are renewable while fossil fuels are not. — Biofuels reduce our dependence on oil. — The use of biofuels does not deplete nonrenewable resources. — They may lower greenhouse gases. — It could reduce air pollution.

Both food chains and food webs can be used to illustrate relationships between organisms in an ecosystem. Discuss these methods of representing relationships. In your answer, be sure to: • state one similarity in the way relationships between organisms are shown in food chains and food webs • explain why using a food chain is more limiting than using a food web to show relationships between organisms in an ecosystem

— Both show which organisms feed on other organisms. — Both illustrate how energy flows from one organism to another through an ecosystem — Food chains only show one specific series of feeding relationships. — Food webs show the feeding relationships more completely. — Food webs show more ways that energy can flow through the ecosystem. — Food webs show that organisms eat more than one type of food.

State one reason why it is important to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

— Carbon dioxide adds to the "Greenhouse Effect." — Excessive carbon dioxide increases the temperature. — CO2 has been associated with global warming/global climate change.

Explain what is meant by the carrying capacity of a particular population in an ecosystem.

— Carrying capacity is the maximum number of individuals the environment can support over an extended period of time. — It is the largest population size that can survive in an area year-round. — It is the maximum population size that an area's resources can support

Explain how the carrying capacity affects the number of predators in an area.

— Carrying capacity limits the number of organisms that can live in an area. There are only so many hares, so there can be only so many predators of hares. — There is a limited number of prey animals. These determine the carrying capacity of the area and can support only a certain number of predators. — The carrying capacity of the predators is directly related to the size of the hare population.

State one ecological advantage of using oxpeckers to solve the problem with these ticks.

— Each oxpecker can eat 13,000 ticks in a day, reducing the parasite population. — No harmful chemicals are used. — Biodiversity is increased. — The birds will have food to eat. — It will save the oxpeckers from extinction.

If a large quantity of herbicide, a chemical that is designed to kill weeds, were accidentally spilled into a large lake, it could endanger all the organisms living in the lake. State one way the effects of killing the weeds in the lake could be destructive to populations of fish and other animals.

— Fish and other animal populations in the lake would be harmed because they depend on the plants directly or indirectly for food. — Fish and other animal populations would be harmed because they depend on the plants for oxygen. — There would be fewer hiding/breeding sites

State one disadvantage of a green roof

— Green roofs are expensive to install. — Green roofs need more maintenance. — Green roofs might be too heavy for the building structure.

Describe one way humans have negatively influenced the ecosystem of the red ant

— Humans stopped cattle from feeding on the grass and the grass grew longer. — Farmers allowed pastures to get overgrown by grasses.

State one specific way in which humans might have caused the changes in atmospheric CO2 levels.

— Humans' burning of fossil fuels is increasing CO2 levels. — Increased industrialization is releasing more CO2 into the atmosphere. — deforestation — driving cars

State one positive effect the use of this MKS device has on the environment.

— It doesn't use or produce any harmful chemicals. — Mosquito remains are returned to the environment. — It does not harm beneficial insects. — It reduces the transmission of Wet Nile virus

State one reason why the ozone shield is important

— It shields living things from harmful radiation from the Sun. — protects us from UV radiation — protects us from DNA damage/mutation/skin cancer

State one possible reason why it will most likely take the bird populations more time to recover from this oil spill than it will mammal populations

— More birds were killed. — The breeding grounds were contaminated

Most varieties of Sedum are not native plants in Albany or New York City. State one reason why it may be dangerous to introduce a new species to an established ecosystem.

— New species might compete with native species for limited resources. — Native species can have their space, light, and water taken away by invasive plants. — New plant species could also have non-native insects/pathogens on them.

A town wants to buy a number of MKS devices to solve their mosquito problem. One individual is concerned that this device could have a negative effect on insects that are beneficial to the environment. Based on the information given, is this a valid concern? Support your answer.

— No. This is not a valid concern. The MKS device uses heat and carbon dioxide to attract only insects that prey on people and other warm-blooded animals. — No. Environmentally beneficial insects would not be attracted to the device. — Yes. Some beneficial insects might accidentally enter the device. — No. Beneficial insects use different hunting strategies.

Explain why not mowing the field allowed the ecosystem to undergo ecological succession.

— Not mowing allowed the natural progression of plant communities to occur. — Mowing was preventing the plant populations from modifying the environment, making it more suitable for others. — allowed other plants to grow

Explain how the original decision to drill for oil in the Gulf of Mexico could be considered a trade-off

— People could get oil to be used for energy, but they might damage the environment while doing it. — Oil companies provide many jobs for people, but there could be a negative effect on the environment.

Identify one population that will decrease in size after the lake sturgeon are added to the new ecosystems. Support your answer.

— Populations of insect larvae [or clams or worms] will decrease in size because they will be eaten by both lake sturgeon and bloater fish. — The bloater fish population will decrease in size because it will have to compete with the lake sturgeon for food resources. — clams because they are eaten by the sturgeon

If apex predators are so valuable to the ecological balance, state one possible reason why wolves were removed from the food web

— Ranchers were concerned that the wolves would eat the sheep. — People were afraid that wolves would attack people as well as livestock. — People didn't understand their importance.

Explain why these claims are valid. In your answer, be sure to: • explain why both plants and solar panels provide renewable energy, rather than nonrenewable energy • state how the widespread use of solar panels to generate electricity can help to reduce global warming • state how the energy-capturing process used by plants worldwide can help to reduce global warming

— The Sun provides energy for both solar panels and plants that is continually being released. — The Sun is the energy source for both solar panels and plants and the energy is renewable. — Fewer fossil fuels would be used, resulting in a decrease of global warming. — Using solar panels would decrease the amount of greenhouse gasses/carbon dioxide. — Carbon dioxide increases global warming and photosynthesis takes carbon dioxide out of the air. — Plants remove carbon dioxide from the air. — Photosynthesis removes carbon dioxide from the air

State one reason why the percent ice cover is important to the ability of eagles to obtain food.

— The access to fish is limited by the amount of ice cover. — They have to search for foods other than fish. — The ice cover might limit the number of organisms that are available for the eagles to eat.

Describe how this forest ecosystem would respond to a natural disaster, such as a flood, that resulted in the destruction of the plant community.

— The ecosystem would undergo succession again and eventually return to its stable state. — The ecosystem would gradually change back to the climax community that was there before the flood. — The ecosystem would slowly change back to what it was before the flood. — Succession would begin from bare soil.

State one advantage of the fish larvae moving by ocean currents into a damaged reef ecosystem.

— The fish larvae could repair/repopulate the damaged reefs. — The reef might become more stable. — They might keep the seaweed under control/eat the seaweed. — It would provide the fish larvae with food/shelter. — The fish larvae would have less competition.

Even though both hawks and owls have two sources of food, explain why hawks would be less likely to survive if a disease wiped out the mice.

— The hawks eat mice and snakes, which also eat mice; while the owls eat mice and frogs, which eat crickets not mice. — The hawk's second food source also feeds on mice. — The owl's second food source is not dependent on mice. — Snakes also eat mice, but frogs do not.

Explain why coyotes were not in competition with the lynx prior to the presence of packed snow trails.

— The lynx is adapted to stay on top of the snow, while coyotes are not. — Coyotes could not prey on animals in the same area as the lynx. — Coyotes lack the foot design of the lynx, and could not chase hares where the snow is soft and deep. — Coyotes could not walk in the deep, soft snow.

Describe the niche that the lynx, coyote, and cougar are competing to fill

— The niche is to feed on snowshoe hares in a snowy environment. — The niche includes being a predator in an environment that has snow during the winter. — They're all predators/carnivores.

Explain why the change in ice mass is resulting in a decline in the penguin populations.

— The penguins' food source grows and develops under the ice masses. — less ice, fewer krill for the penguins to eat — loss of habitat for the penguins

Describe how the wolf population is controlled naturally in the environment without human intervention.

— The population is controlled by the amount of food available. — The population is controlled when too many small animals are eaten and there is a reduced amount of food for the wolves. — The population is limited by the carrying capacity of the environment. — Some die from disease/lack of food. — Severe winter may kill some of the wolves.

Describe one potential ecological effect, other than the loss of the hellbender from western New York State, of the hellbender population continuing to decline.

— The population size of organisms that feed on the hellbender will decline. — The population size of organisms that the hellbender feeds upon will increase. — The biodiversity of this western New York ecosystem will decrease, causing instability. — disruption of the food chain/web

State one possible negative impact of importing a natural predator to control a pest

— The predator might feed on beneficial organisms. — might outcompete other species of predators — might become a pest — They might overpopulate and wipe out prey species. — might bring in a disease — could alter the existing ecosystem

Researchers put three salamanders of each species in each of the two different artificial environments. Why would other scientists question the validity of the conclusions based on this setup?

— The sample size is small. — The environment is artificial. — The salamanders are not in their natural habitat. — The experiment was not repeated.

State one way that the use of pesticides to kill ticks could lead to the decline of the oxpecker population.

— The ticks could become toxic and the oxpeckers that eat them get sick and die. — Pesticides could kill the birds. — The ticks were the food source for the birds. — Without ticks for food, the bird population would die off. — biomagnification

State how the mesopredator population was most likely controlled before the wolves were removed from the food web.

— The wolves ate the mesopredators. — The "apex" or top predator was at the top of the food pyramid and fed on the levels below. — competition for food

Some people have argued for the removal of cormorants from the eastern shores of Lake Ontario because of their negative effects on the fishing industry. Describe the consequences of this action. In your answer, be sure to: • state one reason why removing the cormorants from the food web could have a positive impact on the fishing industry • state one possible effect of removing the cormorants on a species other than fish and support your answer • describe one action, other than removing a population of organisms from the environment, that humans could take to preserve the fishing industry in Lake Ontario

— There could be more lake trout/salmon available to be caught by fisherman. — There could be more fish available for fishing. — There would be more forage fish for the salmon/ lake trout to eat — The number of eagles will decrease because of fewer cormorants to eat. — The number of eagles will increase because there are more forage fish to eat. — The number of plankton will decrease because there are more forage fish eating them. — The number of invertebrates will decrease because there are more forage fish eating them. — Add more forage fish/food supply for the salmon/lake trout to eat. — Increase breeding programs for fish/Stock lakes. — Pass laws restricting fishing for forage fish. — Limit pollution by regulating industries on the Great Lakes. — Grow fish in fish farms.

Researcher Austin Penner of the University of Alberta has noted that climate change and deforestation in the habitat of the strawberry poison dart frog could have "drastic effects" as the habitat required for the development of the tadpoles [young] of these frogs is extremely specific. Explain why it is important to protect these poisonous frog species and the habitat that supports them.

— These frogs are important to maintaining biodiversity in the rainforest environment. — They are prey for the birds and consume other organisms for food. — The frogs could be a valuable source of medicines that might be developed from the toxins that they produce. — The destruction of the habitat could have unintended consequences that could disrupt the entire food web. — so the frog species does not become extinct

State one reason why Plasmodium is considered a parasite of humans.

— They live in and harm the host. — They cause red blood cells to explode, which causes harm to the host. — They interfere with normal life functions

Why are the accidentally introduced zebra mussels referred to as an invasive species?

— They outcompete native species. — They harm/negatively affect native species. — They were introduced to the Great Lakes by humans. — They interfere with the ability of other organisms to function in the environment. — They are not native to the Great Lakes

Explain why some ecologists are concerned about removing wolves from federal protection.

— Without federal protection, too many wolves would be killed. — They need 17,000 to benefit the Rocky Mountain region. Killing them would keep the number of wolves far below this. — The elk number would increase, killing too many trees. — may upset the ecosystem

Explain how increasing the wolf population caused an increase in birds and beavers.

— Wolves ate the elk that fed on the trees. The trees supply shelter for birds and food for beavers. — An increase in wolves resulted in more trees growing for birds/beavers to use.

State the role of the decomposers in this food web.

— break down organic compounds and return nutrients to the environment — break down dead plants and animals and release nutrients to the environment — prevent the build-up of dead organisms — recycle nutrients

State one reason why it is important to maintain the stability of the coral reefs.

— in order to maintain the food webs that exist there — because many organisms depend on them for food or shelter — to maintain biodiversity — keep oceans healthy — to prevent extinction of reef species

State one specific benefit increased recycling efforts would have on the environment in New York State.

— less trash put in landfills — less use of raw materials/limited resources — reduced use of nonrenewable resources — less litter in the environment

Identify one abiotic factor that most likely affects the size of the acacia shrub population

— light — minerals/nutrients — water/rainfall — temperature

In the space below, construct a food chain consisting of at least three organisms, including a producer, that would be present in the ant ecosystem.

— plants → ants (grubs) → caterpillars — plants → insects → red ants — grasses → insects → birds — grasses → cattle → humans

Identify one renewable alternative to natural gas as an energy source that New York State could use and describe the advantage of using this source, other than it is renewable.

— solar energy - Energy from the Sun is free. — wind energy - no air pollution — geothermal - no carbon dioxide released — hydroelectricity - Energy is generated locally

Identify one abiotic factor that is affecting the stability of the coral reef ecosystems and state how the factor identified is important to the coral reef ecosystems.

— temperature: causes a change in currents — light: used by plants for photosynthesis — ocean currents: carry organisms from one reef to another — carbon dioxide: used by plants for photosynthesis

Explain why researchers would put the salamanders in an artificial environment, as opposed to conducting the experiment in their natural habitat.

— too hard to track in natural habitat — The salamanders are easier to watch. — The conditions the salamanders are kept in can be better controlled. — to eliminate the possibility of them becoming an invasive species — to avoid predators

State one specific way humans can help decrease the exposure of animals to bisphenol-A

— use reusable water bottles not made with BPA — pass legislation that outlaws the manufacturing of products with BPA — ensure that water bottles are not littered in the environment — recycle disposable water bottles — use metal/glass containers — control the disposal of industrial waste