SCIENCE 9
BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY PRACTICE TEST
Section A: Multiple Choice
Use the following information to answer questions 1 and 2.
You are the editor of the local school newspaper and the following short article has been submitted to you.
The Importance of Biological Diversity
Biological diversity consists of a variety of ecosystems and species on Earth and the ecological processes
they are part of. There are three main components to biological diversity. All three are important for
Alberta's ecosystems.
The first component refers to diversity in all living and non-living things found on Earth. The second
component refers to the populations of species that live in certain communities. The third component refers
to the diversity found at the cellular level.
1.
As the editor, you notice a few problems with this short article. What is the correct order for the
biological diversity components referred to in the article?
A.
B.
C.
D.
2.
Community, ecosystem, and genetic
Community, genetic, and ecosystem
Ecosystem, community, and genetic
Genetic, ecosystem, and community
Which of the following statements is correct?
A. A community refers to the same species living in an area
B. A community consists of non-living things in the same area
C. A population refers to all living things in an area
D. A population consists of members of the same species
Use the following information to answer questions 3 and 4.
The following graph shows the populations of hares and lynx over an 8-year period.
3.
What is the peak population of hares and lynx?
A. 500 hares, 10 lynx
C. 50 hares, 3 lynx
4.
B. 10 hares, 500 lynx
D. 75 hares, 2 lynx
What type of interdependence between species is represented in this graph?
A. Symbiosis
C. Commensalism
B. Predator-prey
D. Mutualism
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Use the following information to answer questions 5& 6.
On a field trip to a provincial park located beside the Pacific Ocean, the park naturalist
shows you several interesting things.
*When a starfish loses an arm, it can grow it back and the lost arm has the ability to grow
into a new starfish.
*Salmon return every four years to spawn in the stream where they hatched.
*Sea anemones live in colonies along the shore. Some colonies consist of over 100
identical sea anemones. This means they are all clones.
*Sponges and sea slugs can reproduce asexually and sexually.
5.
Which animals described by the park naturalist are some examples of asexual reproduction?
A. Sponges and salmon
C. Starfish and sea anemones
B. Salmon and sea anemones
D. Sea slugs and salmon
6.
What is an advantage of asexual reproduction?
7.
A. It can reproduce by bringing specialized gametes together
B. It can reproduce without bringing specialized gametes together
C. It provides a large degree of variation
D. It produces a limited number of offspring
What is the advantage of being able to reproduce sexually and asexually?
A. Organisms can better respond to changes in amount of daylight
B. Organisms can better respond to changes in seasons
C. Organisms can better respond to changes in population size
D. Organisms can better respond to changes in environmental conditions
Use the following information to answer questions 8, 9, 10, and 11.
You have just made a presentation called DNA and the Genetic Code. During this presentation, you used a
PowerPoint presentation to talk about the structure of DNA, chromosomes, genes, chromosomes, and
heritable and non-heritable traits. During the question-and- answer period the following four questions
came from the audience.
8.
A.
B.
C.
D.
9.
What is the purpose of DNA?
To carry the genetic code for all living things
To carry the genetic code for animals
To carry the genetic code for non-heritable traits
To determine the number of chromosomes in a living thing
Which of the following is a heritable trait?
A. Ability to play the violin
C. Eye colour
B. Colour of dyed hair
D. Artistic skill
10. Which is not a characteristic of genes in humans?
A. Genes are 46 in number
B. Genes come in pairs
C. Genes are located in the chromosomes
D. Genes carry genetic information.
11. There are many different colours of cats with varying degrees of fur length. Generally, most cats are
dark and short haired. Which of the following inferences can be made from these observations?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Fur length is not genetically determined
Fur length and coat colour are examples of dominant genes.
Coat colour must involve three different chromosomes
Coat colour must involve many different chromosomes
2
Use the following information to answer questions 12, 13, 14, and 15.
A summer job at a plant research station requires you to identify pure and hybrid strains of flowers. Pure
strains can either be red or white. Seeds from the first generation of parents were planted. The following
observations were made.
A.
B.
C.
D.
Parent 1 and Parent 2
Parent 3 and Parent 4
Parent 5 and Parent 6
Parent 7 and Parent 8
Offspring: all red
Offspring: 3 red: 1 white
Offspring: 1 red: 2 pink: 1 white
Offspring: no flowers produced
12. Which set(s) of parents were purebred?
A. A
B. B
C. C
D. D
13. Which set(s) of parents were hybrid?
A. A and B
B. B and C
C. A and C
D. A and D
14. Your boss decides she wants to use artificial selection techniques to create identical
copies of one particular type of red flower. What would be the best method to use?
A. artificial insemination
C. genetic engineering
B. cloning
D. in vitro fertilization
15. The Rocky Mountain Natural Region covers a vast area of land. The area described as the montane
sub-region is located in the lower elevations of mountain valleys and into the foothills of Alberta. The
vegetation consists of white spruce, aspen, Douglas fir, and lodgepole pine trees as well as juniper and
wild rose shrubs. Some of the animals that live in the area are grizzly bears, woodland caribou,
Cooper's hawk, and the great grey owl. Some abiotic factors in this ecosystem include
A.
B.
C.
D.
air, water, rocks
rocks, snow, white spruce
white spruce, Douglas fir, lodgepole pine
rose shrubs, water, grizzly bears
16. An aquarium containing rocks, fish, a snail, water, and algae is called a(n)
A.
B.
C.
D.
community
ecosystem
population
biological diversity
17. Which of the following does NOT represent diversity within a species?
A.
B.
c.
d.
Individuals have blood types A, B, AB, or O.
Some individuals have grey fur, some have black fur, and some have red fur.
Individual plants are 6 inches high, are yellow, and produce 12 seeds.
Individuals have red flowers, white flowers, or pink flowers.
3
Use the following information to answer the next question.
1.
2.
The tundra is located in the North Pole in the Arctic Circle. The average winter temperature is
-24C and the average summer temperature is 8C. Some of the species that inhabit this area
are polar bears, caribou, and small plants like rhododendron and betulas.
The weather in the chaparral biome is very dry with winter temperatures averaging 10 C and
summer temperatures averaging 40C. Some of the species in the area include fairy duster
shrub, grasses and jackals.
18. What are both statements 1 and 2 referring to?
A.
B.
C.
D.
23.
biological diversity
adaptation
communities
species
There is a huge variety of bird species in North America. Which of the following
describes the bird species distribution on the continent?
statements best
A. There are fewer species in the southerly regions than in northerly regions.
B. The number of species is evenly distributed across North America.
C. There are three times as many species in southern North America than in northern North
America.
D. There tends to be fewer species in the northerly regions than in southerly regions.
24.
When female donkeys are bred to stallions, hinnies are produced. All three belong to the same
species
A.
B.
C.
D.
if they are found to live in the same area
if they are able to reproduce with one another and produce offspring
if they have at least three common physical characteristics
if they are mammals
Use the following information to answer the next 2 questions.
A population of mice live on a mountain slope. A sudden rockslide produces a barrier that permanently
separates the mice on the lower slope from mice on the upper slope. After many thousands of years, the
mice on the upper slope are significantly different from those living on the lower slope.
25. What accounted for this change in the mice?
A. genetic diversity
B. variability
C. species distribution
D. natural selection
26. An earthquake then moves the rock barrier, allowing the two populations to mix. Would they mate?
Why or why not?
A. Yes they would because at one point they were the same species.
B. No they would not because the two groups of mice have changed so much because of their need
to survive in their environments that they do not recognize each other as individuals from their
species.
C. Yes they would because the mice would not have changed over thousands years just because
their environment has been slightly altered by the rock slide.
D. No they would not because the group of mice on the lower slope would have died off because
their environment changed significantly.
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27. A population of white-tailed jackrabbits lives in an area of prairie. A disease-causing virus is
introduced into the jackrabbit population. This is an example of
A.
B.
C.
D.
an environmental change
variability
natural selection
survival
Use the following graph to answer the next 2 questions.
28. The graph best describes
A.
B.
C.
D.
discrete variations
continuous variations
the role of the environment
the role of the environment and heritable characteristics
29. What is the difference in the number of "short" ears of corn compared to the number of the "tallest"
ears of corn?
A.
B.
C.
D.
2
3
5
0
Use the following diagram to answer the next 2 questions.
30. What processes are occurring in picture 1 and in picture 2?
A.
B.
C.
D.
cleavage and embryo formation
embryo formation and cleavage
zygote formation and fertilization
fertilization and zygote formation
31. What processes are occurring in picture 3 and in picture 4?
A.
B.
C.
D.
cleavage and embryo formation
embryo formation and cleavage
zygote formation and fertilization
fertilization and zygote formation
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32. What would happen if we crossed a dominant purebred tall tree with a recessive purebred small tree?
A.
B.
C.
D.
All the trees produced would be small.
The trees produced would be of various sizes.
All the trees produced would be tall.
More taller trees than smaller trees would be produced.
33. If two different purebreds, such as a purebred tall tree and a purebred small tree, were crossed, the
offspring would be called
A. recessive traits
B. purebreds
C. hybrids
D. traits
34. The grizzly bear has totally disappeared from the prairies but remains in the foothills, and northern
parts of Alberta. The status of the grizzly bear on the prairies is
A. endangered
B. extirpated
C. threatened
D. special concern
35. When the DNA of living things is altered to make medicinal, agricultural, or industrial products the
process is called
A. cloning
B. in vitro fertilization
C. genetic engineering
D. selective breeding
Use the following graph to answer the next question.
40.What is this graph depicting?
A. the variation in oil content produced by a corn plant
B. the difference in oil content in kernels from artificially selected types of corn plant
C. the amount of cholesterol produced in two kernels of corn
D. the number of generations that it takes to produce high and low oil content in a kernel of corn
41. Many weeds that never previously existed in Canada were brought over by the early European settlers
who started wheat farming in the prairies. This is an example of
A. habitat destruction
B. pollution
C. introduction of non-native species
D. agricultural over-development
42. The process whereby the sperm of a winning race-horse is inserted into female horses to breed fast
running colts is called
A. cloning
B. in vitro fertilization
C. artificial insemination
D. genetic engineering
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43. In 1927, the Thelon Game Sanctuary was established in the Northwest Territories to bring musk-oxen
back from the brink of extinction. This process worked so well that populations of musk-oxen have
migrated from this protected area. The biodiversity strategy used in this situation is
A.
B.
C.
D.
restoration of ecosystems and species
controlling the spread of exotic species
conservation of genetic resources
the sustainable use of resources
44. Maria and Tom purchased a 120 ha farm. They noticed that the previous owners had started to build on
the southern portion of the property, which was inhabited by some endangered burrowing owls. Tom
and Maria converted the southern location back to its natural state. The biodiversity strategy used in
this situation is
A.
B.
C.
D.
restoration of ecosystems and species
controlling the spread of exotic species
conservation of genetic resources
the sustainable use of resources
45. Why is it important that Banff National Park, Jasper National Park, and the Willmore Wilderness Park
in Alberta are linked directly to one another?
A.
B.
C.
D.
It helps control the spread of exotic species.
It is easier to monitor the parks and enforce federal laws that protect species.
It allows animals to roam larger areas freely and exchange genetic materials.
It provides a larger area for ex-situ conservation to take place.
SCIENCE IN ACTION 9
UNIT A-BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY UNIT TEST
NAME:
Section B: Written Response
Answer the following questions in the space provided.
3.
Create a flowchart using the following terms to illustrate the process of sexual
reproduction:
cleavage, embryo, egg cell, fertilization, sperm cell and zygote. (3 marks)
4. Kathy made the following observations on her trip to the forest:
1. An owl, a woodpecker, and a song sparrow were nesting in different parts of a
tree.
2. Dogs look very similar to coyotes and wolves.
3. The birds were eating the caterpillars off the leaves of trees.
4. A squirrel was hiding nuts in a tree.
Match each observation, as numbered above, with the science term given below. Use
each number only once. (1 mark)
_______
________
________
________
Predator prey
resource
speciation
commensalism
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5. Read the following statements.
A. The best-adapted organisms survive in an environment.
B. Differences among individuals exist in a population.
C. Animals that could run the fastest survived the introduction of a swift predator
into their habitat.
D. Tigers have coats that range from white with brown stripes to orange with
black stripes.
If the statement is referring to variability, put the number 1 in the correct spot below
If the statement is referring to natural selection, put the number 2 in the correct spot
below. (1 mark)
____
_____
_____
_____
A
B
C
D
6. Different snapdragon plants produce different colours of flowers. Snapdragons show
incomplete dominance. When two plants are crossed, the offspring can be any of the
following colours.
1: white
2: red
3: yellow
4: pink
Using the numbers above, what colour(s) of flower will four offspring plants be when
a purebred red snapdragon is crossed with a purebred white snapdragon? (Put the
colour(s) in any order.) (1 mark)
_____ _____
_____
_____
7. Theresa noted the following events.
1. construction of new housing developments on grassland
2. gypsy moths attacking all the elm trees
3. the Karner blue butterfly feeding only on one kind of plant in its caterpillar
stage
4. coyotes being shot when they disturb chicken coops on farms
Write the number of the event over the proper category below. (1 mark)
______
______
______
______
Generalist
habitat
natural changes
specialization
destruction
that happen too
quickly for a species
to survive
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