APES Unit Test

Producers convert solar energy into 15,000 kcal of chemical energy stored in organic compounds. Which is the most likely amount of energy available to secondary consumers?

150 kcal

Algae in aquatic food chains convert solar energy into 93,000 kcal of plant tissue. Which best represents the amount of energy available for primary consumers?

9,300 kcal

Algae in aquatic food chains convert solar energy into 93,000 kcal of plant tissue. Which best represents the amount of energy available for secondary consumers?

930 kcal

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

Because so much energy is lost as heat is transferred up the pyramid, there is not enough energy available to support another level.

Table shows chemical equations that represent 3 processes that are part of the nitrogen cycle. Which of the following is exemplified by the equations above?

Each biogeochemical cycle demonstrates the conservation of matter.

Which categories of organisms which are required for the cycling of matter in an ecosystem is missing from the table?

Decomposers

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

Decomposition

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

Denitrifying bacteria and volcanic activity.

Biome that contains plants that are adapted to prevent water loss due to the low avg rainfall and high temps. year-round.

Deserts

Which best describes the movement of energy in an ecosystem?

Energy is harnessed by producers and available energy decreases with each trophic level transfer. (90%)

Which correctly identifies the process in the hydrologic cycle where water is changed from a liquid to a gas.

Evaporation

Which of the following is true of aquatic biomes?

Freshwater biomes are a vital source of drinking water.

Which of the following pairs of organisms has ecological relationships, both competition and predation?

Hawks and snakes

Where is the majority of freshwater found on Earth?

Ice caps and glaciers

Which identifies the part of the hydorlogic cycle that is most directly affected by impervious building materials such as concrete and asphalt.

Impervious material decrease water infiltration and increase runoff.

If the number of snakes were to suddenly decrease, which of the following changes would most likely occur in the food web of this ecosystem?

Increase in shrews, decrease in hawks.

Which of the following best explains why only a limited number of offspring can survive in a fish population?

Increased fish--> more competition

Which changes in the hydrologic cycle is most likely to occur as a result of the change in vegetation in the area?

Increased infiltration

Which of the following biomes is best characterized as an area that forms the narrow band along the coast?

Intertidal zones

Which of the following describes a symbiotic relationship?

Intestinal bacteria inhabiting the gut of humans.

Which of the following major storage reservoirs of carbon, stored in form of CO2 is not represented in diagram?

Ocean

Which of the following would best describe the x in the diagram above?

Phosphorus and nitrogen are both required for plant growth.

Which of the following processes reduces the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere?

Photosynthesis

Two forests have equal Primary Productivity. Forest A has NPP of 1,650 kcal/m^2/year and forest B has NPP of 1,110 kcal/m^2/year. Which statement best supports data?

Producers have lower rates of cellular respiration than forest B.

Primary Productivity

Rate at which solar energy is converted into organic compounds via photosynthesis.

Net Productivity

Rate of energy stored by plants in a given area minus loss to respiration. NPP=GPP-respiration

Movement of phosphorus between biological organisms and soil in a steady state is an undisturbed system. What best explains this steady movement?

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

Which of the following best explains why the different warbler species can all have habitants in the same conifer tree?

Resource Partitioning

Biome characterized by long dry seasons and dominated by grasses, shrubs and grazing animals.

Savanna

Based on the diagram which of the following reservoirs contains the most phosphorus?

Sediments

In the nitrogen cycle, nitrification occur in which of the following steps?

Step 3: Nitrification is production of nitrates and nitrites by various species of bacteria.

Which best describes the net primary productivity of an ecosystem?

The amount of energy lost through respiration by producers subtracted from the gross primary productivity of an ecosystem. GPP-Respiration=NPP

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

There is no gaseous phase in the phosphorus cycle therefore the movement of phosphorus into oceanic reservoirs is slow.

Which best describes gross primary productivity in an ecosystem?

Total amount of solar energy captured by producers through photosynthesis over time.

Gross Productivity

Total rate of photosynthesis in an area

Biome that is warm and wet with little seasonal variation in temp. and frequent precipitation.

Tropical Rainforest