Intro to Environmental Science Quiz Review 7, 8, 9

Coral reefs occupy about __________ of the ocean floor

0.2%

The species-area relationship suggests that if 90% of the habitat of a terrestrial species is lost, then ____________.

50% of the species will go extinct

The ocean covers ________ of the earth's surface

71%

Which country pays landowners to restore tree cover?

Costa Rica

A(n) __________ is a partially enclosed body of water where seawater mixed with freshwater from a river.

Estuary

The organization that certifies forestry operations that use sustainable practices is the

Forest Stewardship Council

Which of the following is an example of an ecosystem service provided by forests?

Forests reduce soil erosion

Humans have which of the following major impacts on mountain biomes?

Hydroelectric dams and reservoirs

What is the best way to reduce threats from invasive species?

Prevention

What could governments do regarding deforestation to be consistent with the full-cost pricing principle of sustainability?

Replace subsides/tax breaks that encourage deforestation with forest-sustaining economic rewards.

When trees in an area have been removed by human activities. such as clear-cutting, or natural forces, such as fires and hurricanes, which type of forest develops naturally if there is no further human interference?

Second-growth forest

Which of the following is the best example of ecotourism?

Tourists explore tropical rainforests in Costa Rica to see the diverse animals, ranging from monkeys to poison dart frogs.

Which of the following are examples of greenhouse gases?

Water vapor, methane, and nitrous oxide

The abyssal zone of the ocean is characterized by

abundant living organisms despite the lack of sunlight for photosynthesis

In debt-for-nature swaps, participating countries

act as custodians of protected forest reserves in return for foreign aid or debt relief

Marine snow refers to ____________.

animal and plant plankton that die and drift downward

The term "biomagnification" means that a chemical _____ at each trophic level in a food chain or web

becomes more concentrated

Large terrestrial regions characterized by a particular type of climate and a certain combination of dominant plant life are called

biomes

The decline in approximately 70% of the world's bird species is particularly alarming to scientists because

birds are excellent environmental indicators

Large numbers of visitors to parks and protected areas

can result in damage from the use of facilities and recreational vehicles

The process of logging that removes all of the trees from an area is called

clear-cutting

When the algae in coral reefs die off due to environmental stresses, the coral subsequently dies because of lack of food. This process is referred to as

coral bleaching

An endangered species is best described as any species that

could soon become extinct

A(n) ________ is an extremely hot fire that leaps from treetop to treetop, burning whole trees.

crown fire

According to the National Park Service, air pollution is responsible for

degrading scenic views in many U.S. national parks over 90% of the time

The rain shadow effect refers to

drier conditions on the leeward (facing away from the wind) side of mountain ranges

Succulent plants are most likely to be found in

dry conditions, such as those in temperate deserts

Various plant species provide value as food crops, fuelwood, lumber, paper from trees, and useful scientific knowledge. Which term best describes this type of value?

economic services

The transition zone between two ecosystems or biomes is called a(n)

ecotone

About 40% of the earth's photosynthetic activity occurs in the ______ of the open ocean

euphotic zone

A biologist is most likely to say that the European honeybee is

experiencing colony collapse disorder

Examples of economic services that oceans provide are

food

Tropical forests in the Amazon and other South American countries are cleared or burned primarily

for cattle grazing and large soybean plantations

What is the cause of extinction and reduction in wild species that compete for resources with humans?

human population growth

The Endangered Species Act was designed to

identify and protect endangered species in the United States and abroad

The zone of a biosphere reserve where there would be little, if any, disturbance from human activities would be the

inner core

Establishing international treaties that bans the transfer of potentially harmful species from one country to another is a good way to control ___________.

invasive species

Strip cutting of lumber is a method of harvesting that _____

involves clearing trees along a contour of land within a narrow corridor

In the western United States, an area called the Great Basin contains many mountain ranges that are separated from each other by high desert. Because these mountain ranges provide sanctuary for some species, they could be called __________.

islands of biodiversity

Wolves were successfully reintroduced into Yellowstone National Park after being absent for almost 50 years. The reason that wolves were chosen for this effort was partly that they are a(n)

keystone species

What is currently the most important threat to the survival of polar bears?

limited hunting opportunities due to less floating ice.

The greatest threat to most species is

loss of habitat

In Indonesia, Malaysia, and other areas of Southeast Asia, tropical forests are being replaced by large ___________ plantations.

oil palm

At least half of the known species of terrestrial plants and animals are found

only in tropical forests

Natural ecological restoration of riparian areas can happen if

overgrazed land is protected through rotational grazing

Old-growth forests are also known as

primary forest

Strips of vegetation along streams or rivers are called

riparian zones

The process of __________ involves confining cattle with portable fencing to one area for a few days, then moving them to a new location.

rotational grazing

A grassland with widely scattered clumps of trees located near the equator would be called a ___________.

savanna

A tree harvesting method that involves cutting intermediate-aged or mature trees singly or in small groups called

selective cutting

Mountains

serve as sanctuaries for animals that are driven from lowland areas

There are _______ separate Hadley cells in which warm air rises and cools, then falls and heats up again in great rolling patterns.

six

Biologists warn that human activities might actually increase the _________for various weeds and pests

speciation rates

One explanation for why polar regions are colder than equatorial regions is that

sunlight strikes the polar regions at an angle and spread out over a much larger area.

Which type of fires usually burn only undergrowth and leaf litter on the forest floor?

surface fires

Recoveries after mass extinctions can

take several million years

Much of which biome has disappeared from the earth because it has been converted to farmland for growing crops and grazing cattle?

temperate grassland

In tropical rainforests, vegetation layers are structured according to

the plants' needs for sunlight

The equator is warmer than the poles because

the sun's rays strike directly at the equator

During El Nino conditions,

the thermocline in the eastern Pacific Ocean deepens, disrupting upwelling.

A forest that is known for its year-round uniformly warm temperature is the __________.

tropical rainforest

The current rate of extinction is _______________, compared to the historical background extinction rate.

up to 1,000 times higher

Coral bleaching occurs

when reefs become pale because algae leave and polyps die