ALL UNITS

Which of the following trophic levels represents a primary producer in an aquatic food chain?

Phytoplankton

Which of the following biogeochemical cycles includes the processes of buffering ocean pH and photosynthesis?

The carbon cycle

The farming of fish such as salmon at aquaculture facilities poses a threat to marine ecosystems because

the farmed fish can escape and outcompete wild fish for food and territory

Conservation of matter

the principle stating that matter is not created or destroyed during a chemical reaction

Scientists are closely monitoring caribou populations to examine the effect of global climate change on habitat. The maximum population size for a herd of caribou based on the habitat was 500,000. A herd of caribou currently has a population size of 198,000 caribou as a result of habitat loss. Which of the following methods should be used to determine the percent change between the maximum population and the current population for the herd of caribous?

(198,000 caribou - 500,000 caribou)/500,000 caribou x 100

watterlogging is a result of

(I and II only) - I: over-irrigation by farmers to leach salts deeper into the soil - II: Water accumulating underground and gradually raising the water table

living organisms must acquired energy from their environment. examples of adaptions that help organisms acquire this energy must include which of the following?

(I and II) - the dark, heat absorbing coloration of a reptile, the fangs and claws of a cheetah

problems associated with the use of trees for biomass are...

(I and III only) - I: potential deforestation - III: potential soil erosion

viability is the capacity of living organisms to live, develop, or germinate under favorable conditions. which of the following factors decreases a population's viability.

(I only) - specialized niche

in which ways of the following ways did the green revolution increase food production?

(I, II, III) - I: the development of disease resistant and high yield crops; II: monocropping and widespread use of machinery; III: the application of fertilizers and the use of irrigation techniques.

biomass can be...

(I, II, and III) - solar energy converted to chemical energy, derived from living of recently living organisms, energy available for trophic levels

Replacement level fertility

2.1

A temperate grassland biome has a gross primary productivity of 3,480kilocalories/meter2/year and a net primary productivity of 2,000kilocalories/meter2/year. Which of the following is the approximate number of kilocalories/meter2/year available to herbivores in that biome?

200kilocalories/meter2/year

Human population growth in 2018 was 1.07%. If this growth rate remains constant, in what year will the human population double?

2083

Country population has a population of 100 million and an annual growth rate of 3.5%, growth rate is constant, what will the population of the country be in 40 years?

400 million

A rock formation is found 300 km from a matching formation. The continent on which it is part of a plate that is moving at a rate of 36 mm/year. Which answer most closely approximates how many years ago the matching rocks were separated?

8,300,000 years (1 km=1000000 mm)

Which of the following is a direct economic consequence that would likely occur if an area of forest was clear-cut so that a housing development can be built?

A decrease in the number of game hunting licenses purchased

Which of the following would be most helpful to determine the soil texture of a sample?

A density gradient tube and a soil triangle

Which of the following explanations best identifies the type of plate boundary and processes occurring at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, as shown in the diagram below?

A divergent plate boundary exists at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge where plates move away from one another, leading to seafloor spreading

Which of the following best explains why terrestrial trophic pyramids usually do not have levels higher than tertiary consumers?

A large proportion of energy is lost as heat as it is transferred up the pyramid, so there is not enough energy available to support another level.

The soil that is best for growing most plants is composed of?

A mixture of sand, silt, and clay that provides water drainage and retention

Which of the following statements about levels of biodiversity is correct?

A population with high genetic biodiversity is better able to respond to environmental stressors.

Which of the following identifies and describes the equipment needed to best determine the amount of water that infiltrated the soil?

A ruler should be used to measure the level of water above the pavers in both pallets immediately after pouring the water over the pavers and immediately after the one-hour wait time.

Venus fly traps grow best in nutrient-poor, acidic soil. They typically grow in longleaf pine savanna ecosystems in the Carolinas. What describes the species?

A specialist species, because it only thrives in soil with a low pH and nutrient levels

The hog-farming industry maintains production levels to satisfy the demand for pork. Which of the following methods of meat production would provide the most likely explanation for the information represented in the graph above?

Concentrated animal feeding operations

Which of the following aspects of the design for this new urban development will best help to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere?

Access to the mass transit train line will provide inhabitants an alternative to driving personal vehicles.

Which of the following procedures would be best for remediating the effects of soil salinization?

Addition of large amounts of water to leach out salts

What area is most susceptible to erosion, leading to increased suspended soils and increased turbidity downstream?

Agricultural Fields

The largest area of old-growth forest in the United States is located in ______?

Alaska

Which of the following best describes a transform boundary?

An area where two tectonic plates slide past each other

The demographic transition model describes population change over time as a country becomes more developed. Age-structure diagrams describe how populations are distributed across age ranges. Which of the following age-structure diagrams best displays the age ranges in a country that is in stage 2 of the demographic transition?

An expansive pyramid age-structure diagram

The Chesapeake Bay is a watershed that is located in six states and the District of Columbia. Which of the following can cause an increase in water pollution in the watershed?

An increase in stormwater runoff in urban areas

Hares are the prey for the lynx. The lynx is a little bit larger than the bobcat. Scientists plan to investigate the size of the lynx and hare populations over a 3 year period. What is a good hypothesis?

An increase in the lynx population will cause a decrease in the hare population.

Which of the following is an example of an ecosystem service that would provide protection from a hurricane storm surge?

An intact coastal wetland

Predation

An interaction in which one organism captures and feeds on another organism

Based on the theory of island biogeography, which of the following islands would most likely have the highest number of species living on it?

An island 30 hectares in size that is 10 kilometers off the coast of the mainland

Which of the following statements best describes an unintended environmental consequence of aquaculture fish-farm enclosures located in estuaries?

Aquaculture enclosures can harbor parasites that can negatively affect wild populations that breed in estuaries.

Which of the following is a direct economic advantage associated with aquaculture?

Aquaculture produces large amounts of seafood for human purchase and consumption year-round.

If the trend in total water withdrawal represented in the graph continues, which of the following is most likely to happen in the future? (graph is showing an increase)

Aquifers will be depleted if demand is higher than recharge rate.

An island off the coast of Africa contains a larger percentage of specialist species than generalist species. Which of the following describes the most immediate effect if an invasive generalist species is introduced to the island?

As competition for resources increases, the population size of the island's specialist species will decrease.

Which of the following would be considered an advantage of increased urban sprawl?

As individuals move out of urban areas to nearby suburbs, the population densities of cities will decrease, reducing the spread of infectious disease.

Based on current trends and patterns, which of the following statements best predicts how the human population will change over the next 50 years?

As the population density increases, there will be an increase in disease transmission, leading to increased mortality.

The following question(s) refer to the following processes. (A) Nitrification (B) Denitrification (C) Assimilation (D) Ammonification (E) Nitrogen fixation Plant roots absorb ammonium ions and nitrate ions for use in making molecules such as DNA, amino acids, and proteins.

Assimilation

Magma circulates in convection cells in the

Asthenosphere

Based on the diagram, which of the following describes why the summer solstice in Australia occurs in December and not in June?

At this time of year, the tilt of Earth causes Australia to receive highly concentrated solar radiation

Type 2 characteristic

Away from the colony, bees experience a constant probability of death per unit time as a foraging species.

Which of the following elements is most likely to limit primary production in freshwater lakes?

Phosphorus

Which of the following is an unintended environmental consequence of aquaculture?

Contamination of surrounding water by organic waste

Population momentum

Continued population growth after fertility drops to replacement level

What is a similarity between phosphorous and nitrgoen?

Phosphorus and nitrogen are both required for plant growth.

Which of the following types of organisms are required to complete the nitrogen cycle, including the process of denitrification?

Bacteria

A field is abandoned, and an invasive plant that can live in nutrient-poor soil moves into the field. If the land is later cleared of this invasive species and it is discovered that the soil has an abundance of nitrogen compounds, what conclusion can best be made?

Bacteria in soil and in root nodules converted free nitrogen into nitrogen compounds.

Why are there seasons?

Because of the earths tilt and orbit, the location where the sun rays strike at 90 degrees changes throughout the year

Why does air sink at the poles?

Because the air is cool there and cool air sinks

Hadley Cell

Between 30 and 0 degrees

Biocapacity can be defined as the amount of resources available to individuals in a given country at a specific moment in time. Which of the following statements best explains the trends in the above data?

Biocapacity increased because of improved farming techniques on existing farmland, and the ecological deficit increased because of a growing population and more demand for goods.

La Niña

CREATES NORMAL BUT STRONGER WEATHER PATTERNS - opposite of El Niño; climactic fluctuation involving abnormal cooling of waters off of Peru and Ecuador; unusually cold ocean temperatures around equator, some consider it normal conditions - Central North America: increased storminess and precipitation, increased frequency of cold air outbreaks, colder than normal winters; Southeastern US: less stormy and less precipitation, warmer than normal conditions and winters -ex. SW desert = even drier, NE US = colder winters, strong tornadoes, long and dangerous Atlantic hurricane season

El Niño

CREATES OPPOSITE WEATHER PATTERNS -Trade winds are weakened, allowing warm western Pacific waters to move east and reach South American coasts that makes the thermocline (layer between surface water and deep water) deeper; nutrient rich waters on the coasts are depleted by warmer waters because thermocline is deeper -Ecuador and Peru = flooding when typically dry -droughts on eastern coast of Asia and in Australia (fires); marine life is reduced -western and central Canada and western/norther US = warmer than normal -portions of US Gulf Coast and Florida = wetter than normal -The southwestern United States experiences warmer and wetter seasonal climates during an El Niño event. A strong El Niño event can benefit the Southwest by moistening nutrient-rich soils

How does the burning of fossil fuels contribute to the net increase in atmospheric carbon?

Carbon that has been sequestered underground is added to the carbon cycling between the atmosphere and the biosphere.

A health impact associated with increasing ozone loss is...

Cataracts

This rate of reaction can be measured in the dark by determining the amount of oxygen gas consumed in a period of time.

Cellular respiration

The chart below illustrates how many liters of water are needed to produce some common foods. Which of the following foods is most suitable to cultivate to minimize water consumption per kilogram of food?

Cereals

The chart below illustrates how many liters of water are needed to produce some common foods. Which of the following statements is best supported by the data in the table?

Chicken meat requires less water per kilocalorie than cow meat does.

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

Clay-silt-sand

Difference between climate and weather

Climate is long term, weather is short term

Which dtm indicates population stability?

Column-shaped diagram

The following question(s) refer to the following possible relationships between organisms in an ecosystem. (A) Commensalism (B) Parasitism (C) Mutualism (D) Predation (E) Competition Exemplified by moss growing on a tree trunk in a forest

Commensalism

What boundaries result in in volcanoes, island arcs, and mountains?

Convergent

Volcanoes are readily formed along

Convergent boundaries and Divergent boundaries ONLY

What type of boundary could have produced the Aleutian Trench?

Convergent plate boundary

This biome is found in shallow waters off the coastline and is Earth's most biologically diverse marine biome.

Coral reefs

Circulating air and water patterns are affected by the Earth's rotation are known as the

Coriolis Effect

Which of the following statements best identifies the author's assumptions in terms of a new green revolution?

Current agricultural practices and strategies need to be evaluated in order to meet the demand for increased food production.

Which of the following is a positive effect likely to result from an El Niño event?

Fewer hurricanes forming in the Central Atlantic basin (why: El Niño results in cooler Atlantic water temperatures and strong winds, which reduce hurricane formation)

Which of the following scenarios best explains the concept of the tragedy of the commons?

Fish are shared resources, and as the fishing industry competes for the fish, the resource extraction is no longer sustainable.

Which soil layer is the least weathered horizon and contains rock that is starting to break down into soil?

D- Bedrock/parent material (4th and final layer on soil horizon diagram)

As progressing through dtm, what decreases first?

Death rate

The rapid rate of this process in tropical forests results in low-nutrient soils

Decompisition

Which process most directly results in the storage of carbon as coal and oil over millions of years?

Decomposition

Which of the following would be considered a positive feedback loop that not only results from greenhouse warming but also contributes to additional warming of the Earth?

Decreased size of snowpack

Which process in the nitrogen cycle releases nitrogen gas into the atmosphere?

Denitrification of soil nitrates by bacteria

Aquaculture or fish farming can be used to increase the availability of species like salmon and shrimp for consumption. Although fish farming can have a number of negative environmental effects, it does offer a number of advantages. Which of the following is a valid reason for promoting the use of fish farms?

Fish production is constant, and fish farming reduces pressure on wild stocks.

Farmers use various methods of irrigation on crops. Which of the following statements correctly pairs an irrigation method with an advantage or disadvantage?

Flood irrigation is often used in agricultural fields, however, it increases surface erosion and salinization of the soil.

Which of the following statements is true of aquatic biomes?

Freshwater biomes are a vital source of drinking water.

Based on the data in the graph, which of the following proposed solutions would have the greatest effect on reducing global water withdrawals?

Government grants to assist farmers with the up-front installation costs of drip irrigation systems.

Humans consume a variety of protein products, each with a different carbon footprint based on a variety of factors. Which of the following claims is best supported by the data in the graph?

Grass-fed beef has the highest carbon-equivalent footprint because of land-use changes to create pasture land combined with contributions from transportation, processing, manure treatment, making fertilizers, and digestive fermentation processes.

Green roofs offer many environmental advantages, including the removal of some pollutants from rainwater. The parameters in the table above were measured in water samples collected after rainfall had passed through green roofs and over traditional roofs (N=5)(N=5) in New York City. Mean levels of pHpH and pollutants in precipitation are shown in the table. Which of the following statements is best supported by the data shown in the table?

Green roofs reduced levels of ammonium because the vegetation absorbed the pollutant.

The total rate of photosynthesis in a given area.

Gross primary productivity

Which of the following best describes gross primary productivity in an ecosystem?

Gross primary productivity is the total amount of solar energy captured by producers through photosynthesis over time.

The global circulation pattern that dominates the tropics is called the

Hadley Cell

Which of the following density-independent factors can affect the size of a human population?

Heat waves

In oceans, upwellings generate areas of...

High primary productivity

Which of the following statements best summarizes the author's predictions for how humans will meet the future nutritional needs of a growing population using current agricultural technology?

Humans have maximized the crop yield with improving technology and the implementation of modern genetic techniques to further increase crop productivity and resilience in order to meet the demand.

As plates move, organisms must respond to changes such as...

I- Speciation, II- Extinction, III-Alterations in behavior of predators and prey

What is the part of the hydrologic cycle that is most directly affected by impervious building materials, such as concrete and asphalt?

Impervious materials directly decrease the amount of water infiltration and increase the amount of runoff.

What is something that moves a country to a higher stage in dtm?

Improvements in health-care services and medical research

Hhow does increased albedo affect the temperature on earth?

Increased albedo will cool the earth because sunlight will be reflected back into the atmosphere whereas it gets absorbed into surfaces of low albedo

Why are there high death rate in phase 1?

Infant and childhood mortality

Industrial logging threatens many forested ecosystems. Which of the following environmental consequences will most likely result from clear-cutting deciduous forests for logging?

More carbon dioxide will be added to the atmosphere and increase anthropogenic climate change.

On the windward side of a mountain range, one would expect

More clouds and more rain than on the leeward

Which of the following statements best identifies the author's perspective in terms of government funding for future agricultural research?

More funding is continually needed because the agricultural research programs have never been completely financially supported.

Based on the map (one of South America and Andes Mtns), which of the following best explains the area of the Andes Mountains that would have the greatest number of rivers?

More rivers would be located on the east side of the Andes Mountains because the trade winds are coming from the east (why: Trade winds come from the east, so the east side of the mountain will have air currents rising, cooling, and dropping precipitation before going over the mountain and descending on the other side, creating drier conditions. Increased precipitation on the eastern side supports the claim that more rivers would be expected on the eastern side of the mountain range)

In reef ecosystems, corals often have microalgae living inside them. The algae supply the corals with nutrients, and the coral give shelter to the algae. Which of the following interactions best describes the relationship between the corals and the algae?

Mutualism

Which of the following is the most abundant gas by volume in the atmosphere?

N2

Green roofs offer many environmental advantages, including the removal of some pollutants from rainwater. The parameters in the table above were measured in water samples collected after rainfall had passed through green roofs and over traditional roofs (N=5)(N=5) in New York City. Mean levels of pHpH and pollutants in precipitation are shown in the table. Assume that the rainwater from one of the green roofs ran off directly into a nearby lake. Water quality results from which of the following parameters show that the green roof would likely improve water quality in the lake?

Nitrate

The most abundant gas in Earth's atmosphere is

Nitrogen

The Mississippi watershed is the largest in North America, draining all or part of thirty-two states in the United States and two Canadian provinces. A new apartment complex is being built on a steep slope near the source of the Mississippi River outside of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Which of the following measures should be taken to best reduce erosion at the construction site to protect the Mississippi watershed?

Plant grass and shrubs on the slope (prevents erosion)

A group of farmers want to change their pest control methods to reduce the amount of pollution in a nearby river. The data on the cost and percent pest population reduction for several methods of pest control the farmers could consider are presented in the table below. Which of the following methods should the farmers choose to minimize the cost for efficient pest removal while still reaching their goal of reducing the amount of pollution in the river?

Planting genetically modified crops

Which of the following ecosystem services is categorized as regulating?

Pollination, decomposition, and water purification

The rule of 70 can be used to determine a population's doubling time. Doubling time is a measure of the

Population growth rate

Two bird species coexist by feeding on the same type of insects in different parts of a tree. One bird species hunts insects near the top of the tree. The other bird species hunts insects near the base of the tree. Which of the following concepts is demonstrated between the two bird species?

Resource partitioning

Five different species of warblers, seed-eating birds, live in the same species of conifer trees. All of the birds migrate to coniferous forests during the summer, and different species reside in different areas in the same tree. They feed on the seeds of the conifer trees, but the different species do not mate with each other.; Which of the following best explains why the different warbler species can all have habitats in the same conifer trees?

Resource partitioning of the seeds reduces competition, and the five different species can live in the same tree.

This freshwater biome is characterized by fast-flowing water that can originate from underground springs or runoff, which carries sediment and organic material.

Rivers

Demographic Transition Model

Stage 1=Low growth, Stage 2=High Growth, Stage 3=Moderate Growth, and Stage 4=Low Growth. A country moves from high birth and death rates to low birth and death rates through time. 1 and 2: birth rates are high and the population is growing rapidly 3: birth rates start to decline, death rates are already low, and the population is still growing, though not as rapidly as in the earlier stages. 4: birth and death rates are low and the population size stabilizes 5: declining popualtion

The vast majority of ozone (O3) is found in a thin layer due to a lack of circulation in which of the following atmospheric layers?

Stratosphere

Which soil horizon has very little organic matter and accumulates soluble metals and nutrients that are transported from other soil layers?

Substrata (3rd layer on soil horizon diagram)

Which of the following best identifies a key component of the hydrologic cycle that powers the movement of water?

Sun

Which of the following best describes why 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 is important to understand the flow of water through the watershed.

Albedo

The amount of sunlight reflected by a surface

Which of the following best describes the change in the carrying capacity of the human population if growth is limited by conditions set forth by the Malthusian theory?

The carrying capacity will decrease, and the human population size will experience a dieback.

In a fish species, the number of eggs that hatch and survive for one year varies depending on the number of eggs that were produced. As the number of eggs produced increases past a threshold number, the survival rate of the offspring decreases. Which of the following statements best explains why only a limited number of offspring can survive in a fish population?

The chance of survival decreases when there is intraspecific competition for resources among surviving yearlings.

Which of the following economic consequences to a provisioning ecosystem service will most likely result from increased global warming?

The collapse of local fisheries, because of the damage to coral reefs from ocean acidification

A country has a birth rate of 351,000351,000 individuals and a death rate of 131,000131,000 individuals. The death rate was 371,000371,000 individuals in 1950, 281,000281,000 individuals in 1970, and 211,000211,000 individuals in 1990. Which of the following statements best explains why the country has a declining death rate?

The country is in stage 2 of the demographic transition, and life expectancy has increased because of improvements in public health, sanitation, and access to food.

Which of the following best describes 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

Which of the following is the best example of an economic approach to reduce overfishing for a fish species with a declining population?

The federal government sets a catch limit (per person or per boat) for the species and imposes a tax on any extra fish that are caught.

A group of students want to increase the amount of water infiltration around the property of their urban high school by replacing all the existing impermeable walkway pavers with permeable ones. The school board will not move forward with any property changes unless the students conduct an experiment and collect evidence to help prove that their proposed suggestion to increase water infiltration will be effective. The students create two identical pallets using soil taken from the school's property and install impermeable pavers similar to those found on the school's property in one of the pallets. They install permeable pavers in the other pallet. The students pour exactly the same amount of water over both sets of pavers, leave both pallets in exactly the same environmental conditions, and after one hour measure the amount of water that infiltrated the soil. Which of the following is the dependent variable in the study?

The infiltration rate of the water

What best describes the most likely direct effect of a decline of the small fish population on the marine food web? (small fish eat jellyfish)

The jellyfish population will increase because of decreased predation.

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

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

The image shows two different islands and the relative distance to the nearest mainland. Based on the theory of island biogeography, which of the following best predicts the effect of the introduction of an invasive species on Easter Island compared to Madagascar?

The native species on Madagascar are more likely to survive because the island is larger and provides a greater diversity of habitats and resources.

Which of the following biogeochemical cycles is correctly paired with its largest reservoir?

The nitrogen cycle and the atmosphere

One of the major storage reservoirs of carbon, stored in the form of carbon dioxide is _______?

The ocean

Type 3 characteristic

The organism produces large numbers of offspring every time it reproduces.

Six white-tailed deer and six sika deer were enclosed in a pasture for observation during an eight-year study in central Texas. White-tailed deer are a native species to central Texas, while sika deer are a nonnative species to central Texas. White-tailed deer feed on flowering plants and the tips of trees and shrubs but do not eat grass. Sika deer feed on flowering plants, the tips of trees and shrubs, and grass. All other grazing animals were kept out of the pasture during the study. The number of sika deer more than doubled after the eight years, while the population of white-tailed deer decreased by 50 percent.; Which of the following statements best supports the results from the study?

The sika deer out competed the white-tailed deer in consuming flowering plants and shrubs.

Which of the following best describes environmental damage caused by slash-and-burn farming in tropical rain forests?

The soil loses fertility after a short period of time and will be ineffective for farming use.

A one-hectare pond is sampled in early September. The sample yields 1 small catfish as well as 17 benthic invertebrates that represent 10 species. Which of the following can be estimated from the sample for the invertebrates in the pond?

The species richness

Which of the following would be the best measure to use to determine the effectiveness of the rain gardens in reducing the impact of urban runoff?

The speed and volume of the water exiting the gardens

A student claims that soil sample B would be classified as a loam. Which of the following best describes the method used by the student to reach this conclusion?

The student used a soil triangle to determine where the lines intersect for sand, silt, and clay for the soil sample

Why does total fertility rate decrease?

The total fertility rate decreased as a result of a delay in age of first marriage and increased contraceptive use.

Based on the theory of island biogeography, which of the following is the most likely reason that an island in the ocean that is 5 kilometers from a continent would have a higher number of species than one that is 15 kilometers from a continent?

There are more species that have the ability to travel 5 kilometers than can travel 15 kilometers.

In the desert regions of the southwestern United States, daily high and low temperatures will frequently fluctuate by 40°F (33°C) or more. Which statement below 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. (Humidity in the air tends to stabilize temperature and prevent large fluctuations)

Which of the following is the best explanation for why there is such a small amount of phosphorus that moves into aquatic systems?

There is not a gaseous phase of the phosphorus cycle, and therefore the movement of phosphorus into oceanic reservoirs is very slow.

Which of the following is the most likely result from clearing mature, forested land and converting it into agricultural land that would be used for cattle grazing?

There will be a reduction in the uptake of atmospheric carbon dioxide.

Which of the following environmental effects would most likely result from the clear-cutting of boreal forests by industrial logging operations?

There will be an increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration, which will contribute to climate change.

This biome has the highest net primary productivity, in part because of consistently warm temperatures and abundant sunlight.

Tropical Rainforest

This biome is warm and wet, with little seasonal variation in temperature and frequent precipitation.

Tropical rain forest

Which of the following terrestrial biomes has the highest net primary productivity?

Tropical rain forest

Which of the following terrestrial biomes has the highest primary productivity per unit area?

Tropical rain forest

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

Troposphere

Earth's atmospheric layers (increasing outward)

Troposphere- where weather occurs Stratosphere- where the ozone layer is Mesosphere- where shooting stars are Thermosphere- where temperature rises Exosphere- Farthest layer

The following question(s) refer to the qualities of water samples. Acidity Turbidity Hardness Dissolved oxygen Salinity Caused by suspended particulates

Turbidity

What is an indicator of soil erosion?

Turbidity- a decrease in water clarity would indicate an increase in soil erosion

Which of the following best describes an example of resource partitioning in an ecosystem?

Two different bird species feed from the same oak tree; one eats acorns, and the other eats insects in the bark.

Scientists studied the effects of three different ways to control household pests. They treated one group of pests with a conventional pesticide spray. A second group was treated using Integrated Pest Management ( IPMIPM ) techniques. A third group received no treatment method at all. The success of each treatment was measured based on the change in the number of pests in the traps over time. Fewer pests caught indicate fewer pests in the area after application of the technique. The results are shown in the graph above. Which of the following claims would be the best solution to the pest problem, based on the data in the graph?

Use of Integrated Pest Management techniques is the most successful method because the sources for food, water, and shelter for pests are disrupted, leading to a reduced number of pests in the area.

Which of the following solutions would help decrease flood frequencies and flood sizes that are caused by urbanization?

Using new, more permeable materials for roads and sidewalks

The chart below illustrates how many liters of water are needed to produce some common foods. Which foods are the most sustainable to produce in order to provide the most kilocalories to the world's growing population while still minimizing water usage?

Vegetables

What represents a carbon sink that holds carbon compounds for the shortest period of time?

Vegitation - Carbon dioxide can move into plants to be stored as glucose much more quickly than sedimentary rocks and fossil fuels can be stored. Carbon compounds are held for the shortest amount of time in vegetation

Which of the following 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

New crust is created at

a divergent plate boundary

which of the following threats to biodiversity would fall under the category of the introduction of an exotic or invasive species?

(II only) - sea lampreys swimming up the earie canal to enter the great lakes

spray irrigation...

(both a and b) - A: used technology that looks like giant sprinklers - B: is 75-95% efficient

use of water from the ogallala aquifer in the great plains region of the usa is not sustainable because...

(both c and d) - C: it is recharged at a rate that is slower than it is used - D: there is intense competition for water for household, industrial, and agricultural use.

r-selected vs K-selected species graph

**could not add on** --> r is a curve up above carrying capacity; K is a large increase then steady decrease, increase, decrease trying to maintain carrying capacity

At what latitude is the surface of the Earth moving at the highest velocity?

0 degrees

What region of the Earth does the sun hit at the most direct angle?

0 degrees

Based on the second law of thermodynamics, how much biomass of phytoplankton would be needed to produce 1 kilogram (kg) of large fish in this food web?

1,000 kg

In a given ecosystem, producers convert solar energy into 15,000kcal of chemical energy stored in organic compounds. Which of the following is the most likely amount of energy available to secondary consumers?

150 kcal

Based on the graph above, in which of the following periods did the human population first exceed Earth's biocapacity?

1975-1980

Thermohaline circulation

An oceanic circulation pattern that drives the mixing of surface water and deep water

Which of the following world regions contain the greatest area of rain forest?

Brazil and Indonesia

What represents a carbon source?

Burning fossil fuels - It is a source because it releases carbon that has been stored in coal, oil, or natural gas, which are carbon sinks.

Which of the following is an example of an industrial practice that contributes to the tragedy of the commons?

Burning fossil fuels for energy production

Which of the following pathways indicate how nitrogen is added to the largest nitrogen reservoir?

Denitrifying bacteria and volcanic activity

This biome contains plants that are adapted to prevent water loss due to the low average rainfall and high temperatures year-round.

Desert

Which of the following is a biome found at 30N and 30S as seen in the diagram (global wind patterns diagram)?

Deserts

At what boundary can seafloor spreading result in rifts and possible volcanoes?

Divergent

A farmer grows several crops on a farm that has mostly shallow, sandy soil. Which of the following irrigation methods would be the best suited for this farm?

Drip irrigation

This type of irrigation is often used by small-scale farming operations, and it requires extensive labor to set up individual irrigation lines.

Drip irrigation

Based on the data above, which of the following time periods are insect pests most detrimental to the soybean crops?

Early May through mid-Septembe

The theory of plate tectonics states the following:

Earth's lithosphere is divided into plates, which move

Which of the following statements correctly explains the tectonic plate activity on the West Coast of the United States?

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

Which of the following best explains how environmental stressors, such as wildfires, can affect biodiversity in an ecosystem?

Ecosystems with more species diversity are more likely to recover after a disturbance than ecosystems with low species diversity.

Which of the following best describes the movement of energy in an ecosystem?

Energy is harnessed by producers, and available energy decreases with each trophic level transfer.

Various nations have adopted policies designed to combat overfishing. Which of the following approaches is commonly used to combat the problem of overfishing?

Enforcing minimum-size requirements for the capture of some commercial species.

Which of the following changes to the local hydrologic cycle will result if large areas of land experienced clear-cutting?

Evaporation of water from the soil will increase.

Which of the following processes leads to precipitation?

Evaporation rate

Which of the following is a negative consequence of aquaculture?

Excessive amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus can leak from the location.

Which region of the atmosphere has the lowest atmospheric pressure?

Exosphere

Exceeded the carrying capacity of the island leads to?

Extreme resource depletion.

Based on the data provided, which of the following descriptions best identifies the types of farms that are being compared?

Farm A is a grass-fed pasture for beef production, whereas Farm B is a traditional concentrated animal feedlot for cattle.

Which of the following claims is best supported by the data in the graph?

Feedlots have high levels of pesticide use and energy consumption as a result high demands for grain production.

Plant selection is important for a rain garden. Which of the following best describes the types of plants that would be most effective to use in the rain garden in this experimental design to reduce the impact of urban runoff?

Flood-tolerant plant species so that the plants can withstand large pulses of water from storms

Scientists calculated the net primary productivity at two different forest sites. Both forests have the same gross primary productivity. Forest AA has a net primary productivity of 1,650kcal/m2/year, and forest BB has a net primary productivity of 1,110kcal/m2/year. Which of the following statements is best supported by the data?

Forest A producers have lower rates of cellular respiration than forest B producers.

This biome contains a nutrient-rich environment created by falling leaves and trapped organic materials from the large trees, and it provides the ecosystem service of filtering pollutants from water.

Freshwater wetlands

This type of irrigation, often used in orchards growing tree crops, distributes water to plants through small parallel channels between crop rows but often leads to increased soil erosion in the field.

Furrow irrigation

Which of the following irrigation methods is most likely to result in salinization of the soil, especially if the agricultural fields are located in a warm climate with consistent sunlight?

Furrow irrigation

A variety of plants and animals inhabit a forest ecosystem. Which statement correctly explains why certain organisms would be more likely to survive than others if a forest fire burned the area?

Generalist species are more likely to survive because they can thrive in a wide variety of environmental conditions and can make use of a variety of different resources.

Which of the following best describes a difference between generalist species and specialist species?

Generalists use a large range of resources, while specialists have a limited range of resources they use to survive.

A scientist is studying a biome that experiences large seasonal fluctuations in both temperature and precipitation patterns. Would generalists or specialists be better?

Generalists would be most abundant, because the resources available would be constantly changing.

Which of the following can be used to assess the biological diversity of an area?

Genetic variation within each species and number of species present

The harvesting of livestock for meat consumption affects the planet in various ways. Approximately 25% of the land area on Earth is used for raising livestock. One-third of all water used in meat production goes toward producing beef, and the demand for beef is projected to increase by 95% by 2050. The graph below shows the average meat consumption per capita from 2010 to 2012 and the forecasted meat consumption for 2022 for five different countries. Which of the following claims is best supported by the data in the graph?

Global meat consumption per capita will increase in all five countries between 2012 and 2022 as the countries move through the demographic transition and become more developed.

Which of the following combinations correctly identifies and explains the effects of the differences in the distribution of solar radiation on Earth as seen in the diagram above?

Global wind patterns are created because uneven solar radiation results in warm air at low latitudes and cool air at high latitudes, resulting in density differences between the air masses

After reviewing personal footprint data, Student 5 decides to take action to lower his or her overall footprint by reducing money spent on shoes and clothing. Land use in which of the following categories will be most affected by this change?

Goods and services

What factors are used to classify a biome?

I. Average temperature II. Average precipitation III. Distinctive plants adapted to area

Which of the following major reservoirs of freshwater are missing from the diagram?

Ice caps

Energy is transferred along food chains from one stage to the next. Which statement best explains how the energy is transferred?

If a primary producer stores 10,000kcal of energy, then a tertiary consumer will have 10kcal of energy available.

US fertility rate is declining and is under the replacement level; how is the population still growing?

Immigration

Which of the following describes an aspect of urbanization that would most increase the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere compared to rural and suburban areas?

Increased amounts of waste per unit area in urban areas that leads to higher rates of decay and decomposition

What is an environmental factor that would cause an increase in animal population?

Increased availability of food

The diagrams above show an area that was once a pasture that has since undergone changes to the vegetation over time. Which of the following changes in the hydrologic cycle is most likely to occur as a result of the change in vegetation in the area?

Increased infiltration

El Nino and La Nino 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 current patterns. Which of the following changes in the Eastern Pacific Ocean food webs is typically associated with La Nina events?

Increased phytoplankton populations

During a La Niña event, what environmental changes would the tropical Pacific Ocean and its surrounding landmasses most likely experience?

Increased upwelling off the coast of South America resulting in increased productivity of fisheries

Which of the following techniques could best reduce the harmful effects of overfishing if it were to be widely adopted by the fishing industry?

Increased use of large-mesh gill nets for harvesting salmon and trout

After intensive logging, most of the trees along a stream have been removed. Which of the following water quality changes would most likely occur downstream after logging?

Increased water temperature

Which of the following statements best describes why birth and death rates are changing in a country that is in Phase 2 of the demographic transition?

Individuals have better sanitation and access to clean drinking water.

Which of the following best describes an environmental advantage of urbanization?

Individuals living in cities usually have a lower transportation carbon footprint than individuals living in rural areas.

Which of the following biomes is best characterized as an area that forms the narrow band along the coast that experiences a range of environmental conditions (including daily changes in sunlight, temperature, and water) ?

Intertidal zones

Which of the following best describes a symbiotic relationship?

Intestinal bacteria inhabit the gut of humans.

Replacement level fertility

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

The many finch species of the Galápagos Islands evolved from a single species that immigrated to the islands from the coast of South America. These species differ primarily in beak shape, which is closely related to the type of food each species specializes in eating. Which of the following best explains why each of the finch species on the Galápagos Islands evolved to be specialists?

Islands have limited food resources, forcing species to feed on a small range of food items

How does total fertility of society change as a country goes through the demographic transition model (dtm)?

It decreases

Based on the diagram, which of the following days in Earth's yearly orbit would have the longest period of daylight in the Northern Hemisphere?

June solstice

Which trophic level has the least available energy in kilojoules in this food web?

Killer whale

Carrying capacity

Largest number of individuals of a population that a environment can support

Minerals are transported through the soil via a process called

Leaching

Peru's commercial anchovy industry would most likely be harmed during an El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) event. Which of the following is the most likely explanation for the decline in anchovy during an El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) event?

Less nutrient-rich water reaches surface waters (bc the upwelling of cold water is cut off), disrupting the food web

Earth's surface is part of the

Lithosphere

The layer that constitutes most of the earth's volume is the

Mantle

The following question(s) refer to the following possible relationships between organisms in an ecosystem. (A) Commensalism (B) Parasitism (C) Mutualism (D) Predation (E) Competition Exemplified by bees consuming nectar and carrying pollen from one flower to another

Mutualism

The energy available to consumers determined by subtracting the energy used by plants from the total energy transformed by the process of photosynthesis.

Net primary productivity

Which of the following best describes the net primary productivity of an ecosystem?

Net primary productivity is the amount of energy lost through respiration by producers subtracted from the gross primary productivity of an ecosystem.

Which of the following processes is illustrated by the downward arrows from the atmosphere that show the conversion of nitrogen gas into usable forms available to producers?

Nitrogen fixation

What is the best prediction for how long it will take for the population to double if growth rate of the world is 1.09%?

Number of years = 70/1.09

What soil horizon has greatest concentration of organic material?

O Horizon - (Organic Layer)

Consider a profile of soil horizons, which soil horizon contains the most nutrients for plant growth?

O horizon

A North Carolina timber company proposes to clear-cut 45 hectares of oak-hickory deciduous forest in the Appalachian Mountains. The company has said that the forest will regrow naturally, and 50 years after the clear-cutting the company plans to harvest again, cutting all the oaks and hickories that have at least a 40-centimeter diameter. A local citizens' group claims that this is not a realistic plan. Which of the following, if true, best supports the claim of the citizens' group?

Oak and hickory are late-successional species; pioneer species will dominate for many decades before the oaks and hickories are reestablished.

What is a density-independent factor that controls population size?

Occurrence of droughts and flooding

The city of London in the United Kingdom is found approximately at the same latitude at the same latitude as the city of Calgary in Canada. Calgary has an average high temperature in December of -4.6 degrees Celsius, while London has an average high temperature of 8.6 degrees Celsius. Which of the following statements BEST explains why the average temperature of London is warmer than that of Calgary in December?

Oceanic currents warm the atmosphere of London

Orchid mantis are highly camouflaged when standing on certain species of orchids. Tropical coachroaches can live anywhere it can find water and food. Why would the orchid mantis be more affected than the tropical coachroach by climate change?

Orchid mantises are advantaged in habitats that remain constant; the rain forest shifts beach of climate change globally

Which of the following best exemplifies how an action within the fishing industry could lead to a tragedy of the commons?

Overfishing of threatened fish species leading to the eventual depletion of the resource

Rainfall and streams on the east side of the Rocky Mountains drain to the Atlantic Ocean, while flowing water from the Rocky Mountain's western slopes run to the

Pacific Ocean

What reduces the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere?

Photosynthesis

The amount of open space between soil particles is called

Porosity

The deterioration of soil by human actions can be considered a

Positive feedback loop because once soil becomes degraded, further consequences occur as a result

Rain shadow effect

Precipitation falls on the windward side of a mountain range, resulting in lush vegetation & a warm, moist climate on one side, but a desert area on the leeward side

Which of the following best describes the flow of energy in most terrestrial and near-surface marine ecosystems?

Producers use energy from the sun to make organic matter, such as sugars, from carbon dioxide and water and are then consumed by organisms higher in the food chain.

In a typical forest ecosystem, dead trees and fallen trees are most important because of their role in which of the following?

Providing habitats for wildlife

Which of the following correctly describes the disruption of an ecosystem service by an anthropogenic activity?

Provisioning services are disrupted by increased combustion of fossil fuels, which leads to an increase in air pollution.

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.

Carbon dioxide equivalent ( CO2eCO2e ) is used to compare contributions to climate change of various greenhouse gases. A study at a farm calculated the carbon dioxide equivalent for different production stages for beef and chicken production. Which of the following statements is best supported by the data in the graph?

Raising beef contributes more to greenhouse gases than raising chickens does, primarily as a result of fermentation in cows' digestive tracts, which releases methane gas.

Which of the following is an example of an environmental benefit of aquaculture?

Raising fish using aquaculture and feeding human populations with the harvest reduces the number of fish caught from the ocean.

The movement of phosphorus between biological organisms and soil is in a steady state in an undisturbed system, why?

Readily available organic phosphorus in the soil is assimilated by plants.

Which of the following would be categorized as a cultural ecosystem service of forests?

Recreation and scenic areas for tourism

Which of the following would decrease with the manufacture, application, and use of synthetic fertilizers rather than organic fertilizers?

Recycling of organic matter

What is associated with the transition from rural to urban?

Reduced birth rates

If Student 2 wanted to change his or her footprint to be more similar to that of Student 1, which of the following actions would he or she choose based on the data given in table 1?

Reducing the amount of meat in his or her diet

A developer wants to develop a large tract of land near a watershed, which will require the removal of several large trees. Which of the following statements best describes the impact that the development would have on the watershed?

Removing large trees would cause an increase in temperature and keep the surrounding water and soil warmer (less shade)

When rain has no time to evaporate, transpire, or move into groundwater reserves, it becomes

Runoff

The following question(s) refer to the following. (A) Safe Drinking Water Act (B) Clean Water Act (C) Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) (D) Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (E) Toxic Substances Control Act Requires minimum safety standards for community water supplies

Safe Drinking Water Act

Salamanders lay eggs in small freshwater pools and feeds on insects; Osprey habitats include rivers, bays, and swamps and the birds feed on animals in the water or on land; Snapping turtles live in fresh or brackish water and feed on plants, fish, frogs, snakes; Beavers build lodges, pond banks, and lake shores and eat many shrubs, grasses, and crops --> which is a specialist?

Salamanders

Poor nutrient holding capacity, good creation properties, and good water infiltration capacity are examples of what type of particle found in soil?

Sand

This biome is characterized by long dry seasons and is dominated by grasses, shrubs, and grazing animals.

Savanna

For which of the following reasons do small isolated islands have a greater rate of species extinction than larger, less isolated islands?

Small isolated islands have a lower availability of resources.

Which of the following is the source of energy driving the circulation pattern labeled C (Hadley cell) in the diagram?

Solar Radiation

What continent greatest remaining natural biodiversity?

South America

Soybean crops are generally planted in early or mid-May and harvested in August. The table below shows the times of peak damage to soybean crops from various agricultural pests. Farmers use this type of data calendar to track pests and plan integrated pest management strategies to maximize crop yields. Based on the data above, which of the following pests is a concern to farmers for the longest period of time?

Soybean rust

K-selected species

Species that produce a few, often fairly large offspring but invest a great deal of time and energy to ensure that most of those offspring reach reproductive age. --humans and elephants -- Type 1 and Type 2

r-selected species

Species that reproduce early in their life span and produce large numbers of usually small and short-lived offspring in a short period. --rats -- Type 3

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 stages of the demographic transition?

Stage 1

Which of the following abiotic factors, when graphed on the x-axis, leads to the curved line in the graph due to variation in the different layers of the atmosphere?

Temperature gradients

Which of the following best describes legislation that could be used to address problems with overfishing?

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora ( CITESCITES ) uses trade rules to protect commercially valuable species.

Based on the diagram (Ocean current diagram), which of the following changes are most likely to occur in the central and eastern tropical Pacific during El Nino?

The Peruvian Current weakens, leading to warmer-than-average- sea-surface temperatures?

When the Northern Hemisphere is tilted toward the Sun...

The Southern Hemisphere is tilted away from the Sun, vise versa

Which of the following is the best explanation for the formation of Hadley cells in the tropics, as seen in the diagram, between 30°N and 30°S latitude?

The Sun warms the moist air at the equator and causes it to rise because of its lower density. As the warm air moves away from the equator, it cools, becomes denser, and then sinks

On December 21st (the winter solstice)...

The Tropic of Cancer has a shorter day and lower solar radiation intensity because there is a direct relationship between day length and radiation intensity (LOWER solar radiation intensity= SHORTER day)

Which of the following best describes the concept of the tragedy of the commons?

The aim of large logging operations in tropical rain forests is economic gain, rather than sustainability. Therefore, the shared resources in the forest could become depleted.

Which of the following is an assumption made by the author regarding the use of genetically modified crops?

The amount of arable land will remain relatively constant, and the growing human population will have enough food if more crops can be harvested from the same amount of land.

The majority of the nitrogen on Earth can be found in which of the following reservoirs?

The atmosphere

Which of the following is the BEST description of a region's climate?

The average temperature and precipitation over several decades

A country is currently in the second stage of the demographic transition. Currently the country has a birth rate of 37.9 births per 1,000 individuals and a death rate of 13.4 deaths per 1,000 individuals.; Which of the following changes would indicate that the country is moving from the second stage into the third stage of the demographic transition?

The birth rate declines to 25.3 births per 1,000 individuals.

Which of the following aspects in the design for this new urban development would most likely have the greatest negative environmental impact?

The five apartment buildings

Which of the following best describes what is represented by the arrows in the food web?

The flow of energy

Which of the following is a limitation of using only the data in the table to complete an ecological footprint analysis of the different students?

The footprint is a static analysis and does not include all environmental impacts of an individual.

Which of the following describes the most likely change to terrestrial biomes resulting from warmer average global temperatures?

The global distribution of midlatitude biomes, such as grasslands and temperate rain forests, would increase.

In a rural region of India, scientists collected data of different pesticide residue levels from closely located farming plots. Some of these plots used integrated pest management biopesticides, while others used chemical pesticides to control pests. The data below show levels of four pesticide residues found in tomato and cucumber crops in the two treatment plots. Which of the following statements is best supported by the data in the table?

The greatest effect of integrated pest management was seen in lower levels of endosulfan in both tomatoes and cucumbers.

The green revolution has improved global agricultural output. Which of the following best describes the author's perspective on the beginning of the green revolution in the 1970s and 1980s?

The green revolution was successful because of selective breeding, which improved nutritional value and crop yield to increase food production.

Which of the following statements best identifies the author's perspective in terms of utilizing science technology for future agricultural advances?

The only way to meet the global demand for more food is to fully utilize new science technologies to advance agriculture.

What happens to phosphates in the phosphorous cycle?

The phosphates absorbed by animal tissue through consumption eventually return to the soil.

Which of the following describes an unintended consequence that results from large-scale agricultural use of water from an aquifer?

The rate of water use likely exceeds the rate of recharge, leading to lowering the water table.

What can be interpreted from an age-structure diagram?

The relative population growth of the population

Which statement is best illustrated in the diagram above regarding how the Sun's energy affects the Earth's surface from June through September in the Northern Hemisphere?

The season changes from summer to autumn, daylight hours decrease, and infrared radiation is the strongest during the June solstice

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

The seasonal development of temperature inversions in geographical basins

A group of students want to increase the amount of water infiltration around the property of their urban high school by replacing all the existing impermeable walkway pavers with permeable ones. The school board will not move forward with any property changes unless the students conduct an experiment and collect evidence to help prove that their proposed suggestion to increase water infiltration will be effective. The students create two identical pallets using soil taken from the school's property and install impermeable pavers similar to those found on the school's property in one of the pallets. They install permeable pavers in the other pallet. The students pour exactly the same amount of water over both sets of pavers, leave both pallets in exactly the same environmental conditions, and after one hour measure the amount of water that infiltrated the soil. Which of the following is the independent variable in the study?

The type of pavers used in the pallets

What is the best explanation for the high amounts of rain that occur at the equator?

The warm air rises at the equator which condenses at a high altitude, leading to rain

Which of the following is the best explanation for the deflection of the trade winds in both hemispheres, as seen in the diagram above?

The wind is deflected west because of Earth's rotation (Earth rotates faster near the equator than at the poles)

Which of the following statements correctly describes the trend of ecological footprint compared to biocapacity from 1961 to 2014 ?

The world's ecological footprint has risen above its capacity to sustainably provide for the human population.

Farmers in a suburban coastal town started using no-till agriculture, a practice that reduces soil erosion from their farmland. Which of the following long-term effects no-till agriculture will have on the ecosystem surrounding the farmland.

There will be less algal growth in the nearby ocean.

The Aurora Borealis and Aurora Austrails are found in which atmospheric layer?

Thermosphere

Oceanic circulation patterns

They are a result of differential heating, gravity, prevailing winds, the Coriolis effect, and the locations of continents. Each of the five major ocean basins contains a gyre driven by the trade winds in the tropics and thewesterlies at mid-latitudes. The result is a clockwise circulation pattern in the Northern Hemisphere and a counterclockwise circulation pattern in the Southern Hemisphere. Along the west coasts of many continents, currents diverge and cause the up welling of deeper and more fertile water.

Which of the following best describes soil in many tropical rain forests?

They are quickly depleted nutrients when the forest is removed.

Which of the following best describes the advantages and disadvantages of drip irrigation?

This method most efficiently delivers water directly to plant roots compared with other methods, and wastes less water, but it may be too costly for farmers in developing countries to use.

The thick forest of this biome tends to be well adapted to short growing seasons.

Tiaga

One example of the tragedy of the commons occurs when trees are harvested from tropical rain forests without any regulations. Which of the following best describes why this is an example of the tragedy of the commons?

Timber producers remove as much timber as possible as cheaply as possible.

Which of the following best describes the trends seen in the total fertility rates for the world population from 1950 to the projected rates in 2040 ?

Total fertility rates declined rapidly from 1960 to 2000 because women had children later in life as a result of increased educational opportunities.

Green roofs offer many environmental advantages, including the removal of some pollutants from rainwater. The parameters in the table above were measured in water samples collected after rainfall had passed through green roofs and over traditional roofs (N=5)(N=5) in New York City. Mean levels of pHpH and pollutants in precipitation are shown in the table. The data in the table show mean concentrations (mg/L)(mg/L) of pollutants in rainwater leaving either green or conventional roofs. Which of the following data would be needed to calculate the total amount of a pollutant leaving the roof during and following a rainstorm?

Total volume of rainfall

The greatest rate of population growth happens in what stage of the dtm?

Transitional

Which of the following best helps to explain why phosphorus is often a limiting factor in many ecosystems?

Under many conditions, phosphorus forms stable insoluble compounds.

The Brazil Current

Warm ocean current flowing from the tropics southward along Brazilian coast

Which of the following best describes a terrestrial ecosystem that will have the highest net primary productivity?

Warm temperatures, high rainfall, and consistent sunlight

Which of the following causes air to rise high into the atmosphere?

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

One part of the hydraulic cycle includes _____?

Water from the ocean evaporates and condenses in the atmosphere.

An environmental agency wants to evaluate the effectiveness of rain gardens in reducing the impact of urban runoff from an impervious parking lot and from the roof of the building. The parking lot is slightly sloped so the rainwater flows toward the gardens. The runoff from the roof is collected by various downspouts and directed toward the gardens. Scientists at the agency plan to monitor the effectiveness by measuring the water quality of the storm water as it moves through the gardens during and after storm events. Which of the following would be the best control in this experimental design?

Water samples collected from the roof or parking lot before they passed through the gardens

When you consider thermohaline circulation in the North Atlantic Region, what would you expect to occur as a consequence of Northern glaciers melting in the region?

Water would become less salty, preventing sinking

The difference between weathering and erosion is that

Weathering refers to the breakdown of rock; erosion refers to the removal of the rock from its landscape

During an El Niño event, farmers in the southwestern United Stated often benefit from which of the following climatic changes?

Wetter and warmer weather that increases soil moisture

Overshoot

When a population becomes larger than the environment's carrying capacity (too much competition for resources)

Wolves were reintroduced into Yellowstone National Park in 1995. In addition to tracking changes in the wolf population, scientists were interested in how the wolves would affect other parts of the Yellowstone ecosystem. In particular, they were interested in changes to the population of elk, the wolves' primary prey. The graph below shows the population size of the wolf and elk populations over time.; Which of the following is a potential disadvantage of reintroducing wolves to Yellowstone?

Wolves leaving the park may prey on livestock in grazing land outside the park.

In 1950, a country had a total fertility rate of 5.9. In 2010, the total fertility rate of the country was 2.3. Which of the following is most likely the reason for the change in total fertility rate?

Women had increased educational opportunities and had children later in life.

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. --> Stressed water supplies will negatively affect agriculture as availability of clean fresh water decreases, and food shortages will be more prevalent.

The Hawaiian islands are an example of...

a hotspot

an important environmental safety feature of manure lagoons is...

a liner to prevent leakage into groundwater

which of the following best shows the process of evolution?

a population of mosquitos develops resistance to a pesticide.

the properties of a community are influenced by...

all of the above - geochemical and climatic processes, the amounts and kinds of resources, adaptation of individuals for exploiting resources, interspecific competition

the best forest management techniques mimic natural processes. this is most likely to include...

allowing prescribed burns to remove accumulated dead biomass

which of the following best describes why aquaculture has grown considerably in several parts of the world?

aquaculture fisheries provide a larger and more consistent quantity of fish year-round than do wild fisheries

which areas of the world are most susceptible to desertification?

areas adjacent to existing deserts

which of the following would be considered an advantage of increased urban sprawl?

as individuals move out of urban areas to nearby suburbs, the population densities of cities will decrease, reducing the spread of infectious disease.

All of the following are negative externalities EXCEPT

bees pollinating vegetables in addition to creating honey

which of the following best explains why DDT has been found in penguins eggs in the Antarctic?

chemicals used in one region of Earth can circulate in the biosphere and affect organisms in a distant region.

which of the following is a commercially used method for harvesting trees and is most likely to head to a fragmented landscape with serious impacts on biodiversity?

clear-cutting

the table below represents the number of individuals of a different species that were counted in three forest communities. which of the following statements best interprets these data?

community c has greater species richness than community b

which category of ecosystem cervices best details the awarding of a grant to research the breeding patterns of a snail population along the headwaters of the brazos river which results in a literary publication in an invertebrate scientific journal?

cultural

two branches of a river have different sediment loads. based on the diagram, which of the following most likely led of the difference in the amount of sediment in the two branches of the river?

deforestation from clear cutting

per capita carbon emissions tend to be highest in

developed nations

Many communities experience the tragedy of the commons. One way a local community might regulate a shared and limited resource and reduce the tragedy of the commons is to

divide the resources into parcels and assign them to individuals

Hot and low precipitation leads to ____?

dry scrub with frequent fires

which of the following is NOT a result of urban sprawl?

due to larger parcel size, suburban populations use twice as much land area as similarly sized urban populations.

which of the following best explains why many different species can live together within an ecosystem with limited resources?

each species occupies a different niche

One way that consumers can help prevent a decrease in the number of fish species that are experiencing population declines is to

eat fish that are caught using sustainable harvesting methods, therefore ensuring fish populations remain stable and reducing the amount bycatch harvested

based on the provided data, which ecosystem, is considered a climax community?

ecosystem c

(orange roughy catch graph) based on the graph, which of the following fishing practice solution would be promote the sustainability of the orange roughy catch population?

establishment of quotas on the number of orange roughy catch caught.

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

eutrophication from excessive fertilizer use

the northern elephant seal was once hunted to near extinction. only 20 animals remained alive in 1890. after the species was protected from hunting, its population grew to nearly 30,000 animals, but the large population possesses very low genetic variation. which of the following processes in the BEST interpretation of this scenario?

evolution by the bottleneck effect

r-selected are generally

generalists

which of the following best describes a disadvantage of using genetically engineered crops over crops that are not genetically modified?

genetically engineered plants can decrease the genetic diversity of the crop.

For a primary producer, the main function of photosynthesis is to manufacture

glucose

Growth rate equation

growth rate = birth rate - death rate

in north america, native pollinators often increase the quantity and quality of crops of native plants that are insect pollinated more effectively than european honeybees do. the most likely reason for the phenomenon is that native pollinators...

have coevolved with native plant species

Stage 1 has a _____ fertility rate?

high

Based on the theory of island biogeography, you would predict that large islands near the mainland would have relatively...

high immigration and low extinction rates

The rate of water use likely exceeds the rate of recharge, leading to lowering the water table.

high water tables

Steady climate and lots of precipitation leads to ____?

highest diversity of tree species

A species of malaria-carrying mosquito lives in a forest in which two species of monkeys, A and B, coexist. Species A is immune to malaria, but species B is not. The malaria-carrying mosquito is the chief food for a particular kind of bird in the forest. If all these birds were suddenly eliminated by hunters, which of the following would be an immediately observable consequence?

increased mortality in monkey species B

which of the following is most likely to be the direct result of lack of genetic diversity in a food crop such as corn?

increased susceptibility to plant disease

A research team monitoring a local freshwater ecosystem noticed that over the past few years the otter population had declined significantly, while the populations of other species remained fairly constant. After running tests, the research team determined that mercury levels in invertebrates and small fish in the ecosystem were very high. In this ecosystem, what role did the otters occupy?

indicator species

species that serves as early warnings of environmental damage are called...

indicator species

r-selected are most likely to be a

invasive species --> have very large numbers of offspring and can quickly colonize a new area as a result of being able to outcompete other species

why is overfishing detrimental to the environment?

it creates less recovery time for population recovery

anthropogenic source of methane include...

landfills

which of the following is often considered a pioneer species?

lichen

2 factors that indicate the quality of life include

life expectancy and infant mortality rate

the biggest threat to a species is...

loss of habitat

Open oceans produce the largest share of Earth's biomass because the net primary productivity (NPP) of the oceans is

low, but the large expanse of the oceans supports enormous numbers of producers such as phytoplankton

in which of the following ecosystems do tree roots serve as important havens for biodiversity?

mangrove forests

what is the general relationship between meat consumption and affluence?

more affluent nations tend to consume more meat products.

Birth rates drop in the dtm because

more women enter the workforce in developing nations

A soil sample with a high clay content is...

most prone to becoming waterlogged (since its porosity would be low)

Rainforests are usually located

near the equator

the green revolution brought which of the following to modern society.

new farming techniques, new crop varieties, and increased food production

Percent change equation

new-old/old x 100

which pollutant or pollutants are most likely to create eutrophic areas?

nitrates and phosphates

there are various stages in the formation of coal as heat and pressure are increased and moisture content is dismissed. These stages, in order, are...

peat, lignite, bituminous, anthracite

which of the following elements is most likely to limit primary production in freshwater lakes?

phosphorus

The major biological source of dissolved oxygen in the ocean comes from

photosynthesis by phytoplankton

which of the following ecosystem services it categorized as regulating?

pollination, decomposition, and purification

in the global temperature warmed for any reason, atmospheric water vapor would increase due to evaporation. this would increase the greenhouse effect and thereby further raise the temperature. as a result, the ice caps would melt back, making the planet less reflective so that it would warm further. this process is an example of...

positive feedback loop

which of the following techniques is a realistic solution for farmers to decrease the amount of fertilizer and sediment runoff into aquatic ecosystems?

practicing crop rotation

chemical weapons, mimicry, and camouflage are adaptations that...

predators and prey use for capture and escape

which of the following practices would have the biggest impact on achieving global sustainability?

reducing human population size

fragmenting one large park or preserve into many small parks with human habitation in between them is most likely to lead to which of the following?

reduction in species diversity

based on the diagram above (forested vs. urban area), which of the following best explains how urban runoff could be decreased?

replace tradition pavement with more porous pavement to increased ground infiltration.

the excessive pumping of groundwater from wells can influence the water levels below ground. which of the following is more likely to occur in aquifers in coastal areas than in aquifers in other regions?

saltwater intrusion into the aquifers

which of the following is the best example of a keystone species?

sea otter

which of the following best achieves the goal of providing wood products for humans while preserving biodiversity?

selective cutting of large areas of old-growth forest

K-selected are generally

specialists

Why is the earth hot at the equator?

sun hits at a 90 degree angle

Phytoplankton are most abundant in the upper few hundred feet of most bodies of water because

sunlight does not penetrate to great depths in water

the process of using resources to meet the needs of both current and future generation is referred to as...

sustainability

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

in which of the following pairs of items would biodiversity be more likely to be LESS in the first area than the second?

temperate area; tropical area

environmentalists oppose the mining of antarctic mineral resources because...

the antarctic environment is fragile and extremely vulnerable to the disturbance that would accompany development.

If the pond is resampled a year later, which of the following would best indicate that the pond had been adversely affected by adjacent development?

the biodiversity of the pond has decreased

the greatest species diversity would be found in...

the community composed primarily of established balsam fir, white spruce, and paper birch trees

which of the following is most likely to occur in a forested region that has been recently clear cut?

the concentration of nitrates in streams running through the region will increase.

which of the following is the most likely unintended consequence of using pesticides in agriculture

the continual use of pesticides can cause organisms to build a resistance through genetic mutation that then requires more or stronger pesticides.

population biologists are concerned about introduced species such as zebra mussel in north america because...

the introduced species compete for resources more effectively than native species.

Primary productivity

the rate at which energy is converted by photosynthetic and chemosynthetic autotrophs to organic substances

Competition

the struggle between organisms to survive in a habitat with limited resources

the water table is...

the uppermost level at which water fully saturates rock or soil

IPM uses a variety of techniques to reduce pest populations while reducing the economic damage caused by pests. which of the following is a mechanical IPM method for reducing pests?

the use of screens or traps to prevent pests from entering the crop area.

as a pong goes form an early successional stage to late succession, it acquires all of the following characteristics EXCEPT...

the water quality decreased in organic matter

Small populations of animals, such as those typically found on islands, are prone to extinction because

they are more vulnerable to unpredictable events

Which of the following agricultural practices results in soil degradation and most contributes to erosion?

tillling

the us government has created a section of marine protected areas off the coast of california that extends from santa barbara to mexico. what is the major goal of creating protected areas?

to reduce stress on fishery population and increase biodiversity

highway congestion is considered an example of...

tragedy of the commons

The San Andreas Fault occurs at a

transform boundary

what type of commercial fishing practice causes devastating damage to coral reefs and seamounts due to the use of weighted nets that drag along the ocean bottom

trawling fishing

Transform boundary

two plates move past each other in opposite directions

Based on the data above, which of the following pests is most likely to affect mature plants ready for harvest?

white mold

Soils that have low permeability...

would best help protect groundwater because the soil traps pollutants so that chemical and biological breakdown can occur