Ecosystem Review
Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
1. Ecology is the study of
b. atmosphere
a. human impact on the environment
c. hydrosphere
b. the abiotic elements of the environment
d. geosphere
c. the biotic elements of the environment
e. biosphere
d. how organisms interact with each other and the
8. All physical forms of water (solid, liquid, and gas)
abiotic environment
make up the
e. how evolution formed populations
a. atmosphere
2. This is the total of all the different species that live in
b. lithosphere
a certain area.
c. biosphere
a. organism
d. hydrosphere
b. population
e. troposphere
c. community
9. Fossil fuels and minerals are found in the
d. ecosystem
a. unisphere
e. biosphere
b. atmosphere
3. These are the parts of the earth's air, water, and soil
c. hydrosphere
where organisms are found.
d. geosphere
a. organism
e. biosphere
b. population
10. Life on earth depends on interaction of gravity, the
c. community
cycling of matter, and
d. ecosystem
a. cycling of energy
e. biosphere
b. one-way flow of energy
4. These are the smallest and most fundamental
c. one-way flow of matter
structural and functional units of life.
d. the destruction of energy
a. atoms
e. the consumption of matter
b. molecules
11. Large ecological regions with characteristic types of
c. compounds
natural vegetation and distinctive animals are called
d. cells
a. communities
e. mitochondrion
b. ecosystems
5. This is the place where a population or an individual
c. biomes
organism normally lives.
d. ecospheres
a. community
e. populations
b. habitat
12. The most important factor in determining which
c. territory
biome is found in a particular area is
d. niche
a. soil type
e. zone
b. topography
6. The number of species already identified by
c. biogeography
biologists is approximately
d. climate
a. 45,000
e. longitude
b. 165,000
13. High quality energy is constantly
c. 1.75 million
a. being made
d. 4 million
b. being recycled
e. 100 million
c. being destroyed
7. Which of the following is not a major component of
d. becoming matter
the earth's life-support system?
e. becoming low quality energy
a. unisphere
14. Of the total amount of solar energy intercepted by
the earth, what percentage actually reaches the
earth's surface?
a. 33%
b. 20%
c. 1%
d. 67%
e. 90%
15. The amount of the earth's surface covered by the
combination of freshwater and salt water is
approximately
a. 3%
b. 29%
c. 51%
d. 74%
e. 97%
16. Which of the following would not be an abiotic
limiting factor?
a. too much water
b. too little potassium
c. too high temperature
d. insufficient nutrients
e. population overcrowding
17. In a range of tolerance, each population has a point
beyond which no member of the population can live.
This area beyond the ability to tolerate the
conditions is called the
a. zone of physiological stress
b. aquatic zone
c. zone of intolerance
d. zone of tolerance
e. optimum range
18. Which of the following is not a type of consumer?
a. decomposer
b. chemosynthetic
c. omnivore
d. carnivore
e. detritivore
19. Organisms that feed only on plants are called
a. detritivores
b. omnivores
c. carnivores
d. herbivores
e. decomposers
20. The very necessary process of breaking down the
dead bodies or wastes from organisms is a function
of
a. detritivores
b. omnivores
c. carnivores
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d. herbivores
e. decomposers
Organisms that complete the final breakdown and
recycling of organic materials from the remains of
all organisms are the
a. detritivores
b. omnivores
c. carnivores
d. herbivores
e. decomposers
Which of the following is not an end product of
anaerobic respiration?
a. acetic acid
b. methane
c. oxygen
d. ethyl alcohol
e. hydrogen sulfide
Which of the following about microorganisms is
false?
a. Bacteria and other microbes help purify the
water we drink.
b. Bacteria help produce the foods we eat.
c. Bacteria help break down food in our intestines.
d. Bacteria help speed up global warming.
e. Microbes help control diseases of plants.
Aerobic respiration requires
a. glucose and carbon dioxide
b. glucose and oxygen
c. oxygen and water
d. carbon dioxide and water
e. carbon dioxide and oxygen
Anaerobic respiration may produce all of the
following except
a. methane gas
b. hydrogen sulfide
c. carbon dioxide and water
d. ethyl alcohol
e. lactic acid
The process that results in alcoholic beverages is
a. aerobic respiration
b. photosynthesis
c. anaerobic respiration
d. chemosynthesis
e. inspiration
An ecosystem can survive without
a. producers
b. consumers
c. decomposers
d. autotrophs
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e. detritivores
Complex feeding patterns for consumers in an
ecosystem are called
a. food webs
b. food chains
c. trophic levels
d. pyramids of energy
e. trophic chains
Each trophic level in a food chain or food web
contains a certain amount of organic matter, called
a. food
b. energy
c. biomass
d. organisms
e. decomposition
The typical percentage of loss of energy in transfers
from one trophic level to the next is about
a. 1%
b. 5%
c. 35%
d. 60%
e. 90%
If grass stores 1,000 energy units received from the
sun, the ecological efficiency of the ecosystem is
10%, and the trophic levels are grass  cow 
human, how many units of energy does the human
receive of the original 1,000 units?
a. 900
b. 200
c. 100
d. 10
e. 1
Which of the following has the least net primary
productivity (NPP)?
a. swamps and marshes
b. tropical rain forest
c. temperate forests
d. tundra
e. estuaries
Vitousek, Rojstaczer, and others estimate humans
now use, waste, or destroy what percentage of the
earth's total potential NPP?
a. 612%
b. 1518%
c. 2032%
d. 2535%
e. 90%
The hydrologic cycle is the movement of
a. carbon
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b. hydrogen
c. hydrocarbons
d. carbohydrates
e. water
How much of the earth's water supply is available as
accessible liquid freshwater?
a. 10%
b. 1%
c. 0.024%
d. 21%
e. 97%
The hydrologic cycle is driven primarily by
a. solar energy
b. lunar tides
c. solar tides
d. mechanical energy
e. chemical energy
Which of the following is not one of the major
processes of the water cycle?
a. lunar tides
b. evaporation
c. transpiration
d. precipitation
e. none of these
Precipitation can take several paths when it reaches
the earth's surface. Which of the following is not one
of those paths?
a. surface runoff into lakes, streams, and the ocean
b. storage as ice in glaciers
c. storage as groundwater in aquifers
d. permanent storage as part of rocks
e. storage in living components of ecosystems
Which of the following is a way that humans alter
the water cycle?
a. withdraw large quantities from streams, lakes,
and aquifers
b. increase runoff by clearing vegetation from the
land
c. alter weather patterns by clearing vegetation
d. increase flooding by disturbing natural flood
controls
e. all of these
Which of the following statements is false?
a. Water exists as a liquid over a wide temperature
range.
b. Water contracts when it freezes.
c. Water filters out wavelengths of UV radiation.
d. It takes a large amount of energy to evaporate
water.
e. Liquid water is a good solvent.
41. Which of the following is a primary link between
photosynthesis and aerobic respiration?
a. phosphorus
b. sulfur
c. hydrogen
d. carbon
e. nitrogen
42. Carbon is a major component of
a. water
b. the oceans
c. organic compounds
d. the atmosphere
e. hydrologic cycle
43. Humans intervene in the nitrogen cycle in several
ways. Which of the following is not one of those
ways?
a. Burning fossil fuels adds nitric oxide.
b. Agriculture releases nitrous oxides.
c. Destruction of forests releases nitrogen.
d. We store nitrogen in the topsoil when we harvest
nitrogen rich crops.
e. Agriculture using fertilizers adds nitrogen to
aquatic systems.
44. Nitrogen is a major component of all of the
following except
a. proteins
b. nucleic acids
c. groundwater
d. ammonia
e. DNA
45. The form of nitrogen most usable to plants is
a. ammonia
b. nitrogen gas
c. proteins
d. nitrites
e. nitrates
46. Which of the following is not a part of the
phosphorus cycle?
a. soil
b. atmosphere
c. organisms
d. rocks
e. marine sediments
47. The major limiting plant nutrient is
a. calcium
b. phosphorus
c. sulfur
d. nitrogen
e. potassium
48. Much of the earth's sulfur is stored in
a. plants and animals
b. the oceans
c. the atmosphere
d. underground rocks and minerals
e. soil
49. Sulfur is added to the atmosphere in all the following
ways except
a. from volcanoes
b. anaerobic decomposition in swamps
c. eating meat
d. sea spray
e. acid rain deposition
50. Humans add sulfur to the atmosphere through which
of the following?
a. making electricity
b. making gasoline
c. converting metallic minor ores to free metals
d. refining heating oil
e. all of these
51. Ecologists would make use of which of the
following in their study of nature?
a. field research
b. geographic information system software
c. controlled experiments
d. satellite digital images
e. all of these
52. Biodiversity includes all of the following
components except
a. functional diversity
b. genetic diversity
c. intellectual diversity
d. ecosystem diversity
e. species diversity
53. The diversity that enables life on earth to adapt and
survive environmental changes is called
a. functional diversity
b. genetic diversity
c. intellectual diversity
d. ecosystem diversity
e. species diversity
54. The variety of processes, including matter cycling
and energy flow within ecosystems, that result from
species interacting with one another in food webs is
called
a. functional diversity
b. genetic diversity
c. intellectual diversity
d. ecosystem diversity
e. species diversity
55. A change in the genetic characteristics of a
population from one generation to another is called
a. emigration
b. mutation
c. natural selection
d. evolution
e. genetic drift
56. Some individuals in a population have genetic traits
that enhance their ability to survive and produce
offspring, a process called
a. natural selection
b. adaptability
c. genetic drift
d. mutation
e. scientific theory
57. Mutations are
a. always helpful
b. always found in patterns
c. very common events
d. a source of new genetic material
e. always harmful
58. Mutations are not caused by which of the following?
a. ultraviolet light
b. a physical accident to a parent
c. radioactivity
d. certain chemicals
e. X rays
59. For natural selection to occur, an adaptive trait
a. must be to a physical trait
b. must be to a physiological trait
c. must be to a psychological trait
d. must be to a heritable trait
e. must not be to a heritable trait
60. Biological evolution by natural selection is when
genes ____, individuals ____, and populations ____.
a. evolve; mutate; are selected
b. are selected; mutate; evolve
c. mutate; evolve; are selected
d. evolve; are selected; mutate
e. mutate; are selected; evolve
61. Which of the following is not an adaptation that has
made humans so successful?
a. strong opposable thumbs
b. physical strength
c. upright walking
d. complex brain
e. All of these have made us successful.
62. From a scientific point of view, which of the
following is true?
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a. Evolution leads to survival of the strongest.
b. Evolution leads to survival of the most valuable.
c. Organisms develop traits because they need
them.
d. Fitness is a matter of reproductive success.
e. Evolution follows a plan of nature.
The movement of the continents influences
evolution in which of the following ways?
a. increases the level of carbon dioxide
b. changes the earth's climate
c. changes the spin of the earth
d. decreases soil nutrient richness
e. changes magnetic fields and disrupts migration
patterns
Geographic isolation may result from which of the
following?
a. volcanic eruption
b. earthquake
c. mountain range
d. road
e. all of these
Mass extinctions, with 2570% of species going
extinct, have occurred how many times in the history
of the earth?
a. 1
b. 3
c. 5
d. 7
e. 23
Biodiversity is believed to be the result of the
interaction between
a. geographic isolation and reproductive isolation
b. speciation and extinction
c. mass extinction and background extinction
d. speciation and genetic engineering
e. reproductive isolation and extinction
The number of different species an ecosystem
contains is its
a. speciation
b. species evenness
c. species niche
d. species richness
e. habitat
Which of the following is true?
a. The higher the species richness, the lower
productivity.
b. The high the species richness, the lower the
sustainability.
c. The lower the species richness, the more the
productivity.
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d. The lower the species richness, the more the
sustainability.
e. The higher the species richness, the more the
sustainability.
A species' way of life in a community is its
a. role
b. habitat
c. ecological niche
d. geographical location
e. ecological job
Which of the following is true of species richness on
islands?
a. Larger islands closer to a mainland have the
lowest number of species.
b. Smaller islands closer to a mainland have the
highest number of species.
c. Smaller islands farthest from a mainland have
the highest number of species.
d. Larger islands farthest from a mainland have the
highest number of species.
e. Larger islands closer to a mainland have the
highest number of species.
An ecological niche includes all of the following
except
a. the place where the species lives
b. how much water the species needs
c. how much sunlight the species needs
d. how much space the species needs
e. temperatures the species can tolerate
A species with a broad niche is considered a(n)
a. endemic species
b. endangered species
c. specialist species
d. native species
e. generalist species
Which of the following would not be considered a
generalist species?
a. humans
b. cockroaches
c. pandas
d. raccoons
e. white-tailed deer
Which of the following is not a specific role found in
a niche?
a. native species
b. indicator species
c. keystone species
d. specialist species
e. foundation species
75. Which of the following is not an example of an
indicator species?
a. trout in water with a specific temperature
requirement
b. birds that need a large forested area
c. butterflies that use a specific plant as food
d. frogs that take in water and air through their skin
e. All are examples of indicator species.
76. Which of the following is not an example of a cause
for the decline of amphibians?
a. habitat loss
b. prolonged rainy periods
c. pollution
d. increases in UV radiation
e. parasites
77. A species in an ecosystem that plays a central role in
the health of that ecosystem, and whose removal
may cause the collapse of the ecosystem, is called
a(n)
a. foundation species
b. indicator species
c. native species
d. keystone species
e. specialist species
78. A species in an ecosystem that shapes communities
by creating and enhancing habitats in ways that
benefit other species is called
a. foundation species
b. indicator species
c. native species
d. keystone species
e. specialist species
79. Which of the following is not a reason we should be
concerned about the southern sea otter going
extinct?
a. They increase tourism.
b. They have thick, luxurious fur.
c. There are ethical reasons for causing premature
extinction of a species.
d. They help maintain kelp beds.
e. They are classified as a keystone species.
80. Which of the following is said to occur when an
interaction benefits one species but has little, if any,
effect on the other?
a. interspecific competition
b. predation
c. parasitism
d. mutualism
e. commensalism
81. Which of the following is said to occur when
members of two or more species interact to gain
access to the same limited resources?
a. interspecific competition
b. predation
c. parasitism
d. mutualism
e. commensalism
82. Which of the following is said to occur when one
organism feeds on the body of, or the energy used
by, another organism?
a. interspecific competition
b. predation
c. parasitism
d. mutualism
e. commensalism
83. The concept that two or more species cannot share
the exact same ecological niche for an extended
period is called
a. law of conservation of mass
b. principle of sustainability
c. interspecific competition
d. competitive exclusion principle
e. commensalism
84. Which of the following are not considered
predators?
a. omnivores
b. herbivores
c. detritivores
d. carnivores
e. All of these are predators.
85. Which of the following is not a method predators use
to capture prey?
a. pursuit
b. ambush
c. camouflage
d. chemical warfare
e. protective shells
86. Which of the following is not a method prey species
use to avoid capture?
a. highly developed sense of sight or smell
b. pines and thorns
c. chemical warfare
d. ambush
e. camouflage
87. Parasites
a. rarely kill their hosts
b. are usually larger than their hosts
c. must be internal to their hosts
d. may strengthen their hosts over a long period of
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time
e. are usually microscopic
The non-poisonous ____ butterfly gains protection
by looking like the bad-tasting ____ butterfly, which
is a protective device known as ____.
a. monarch; viceroy; camouflage
b. monarch; zebra swallowtail; camouflage
c. viceroy; zebra swallowtail; mimicry
d. viceroy; monarch; mimicry
e. viceroy; monarch; camouflage
When populations of two different species interact
over long periods of time, changes in the gene pool
of one species can lead to changes in the gene pool
of the other. This is called
a. competition
b. coevolution
c. coincidence
d. commensalism
e. predation
The relationship between clownfish and sea
anemone is
a. interspecific competition
b. predation
c. parasitism
d. mutualism
e. commensalism
Plants such as bromeliads share a commensalism
interaction with large trees in tropical and
subtropical forests. The bromeliads are an example
of
a. parasites
b. opportunistic parasites
c. epiphytes
d. prey
e. herbivores
All of the following are forms of nondestructive
behavior between species except
a. reducing competition by foraging at different
times
b. reducing competition by foraging in different
places
c. orchids attached to branches of forest trees
d. using the energy or body of another organisms
as a food source
e. bacteria breaking down food for a host and
having a sheltered habitat
Kelp forests are a very important ecosystem in
marine waters by supporting important biodiversity.
These kelp forests are threatened by all of the
following except
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a. water pollution containing herbicides
b. sea urchins
c. southern sea otters
d. humans
e. water pollution containing fertilizers
One way that species evolve over time to reduce
niche overlap is called
a. competitive exclusion principle
b. resource partitioning
c. population distribution
d. interspecific competition
e. mimicry
Population dynamics examine changes to a
population as a result of changing environmental
conditions. Those conditions include all of the
following except
a. increasing commensalism
b. temperature
c. presence of disease organisms
d. arrival or disappearance of competing species
e. resource availability
Population dynamics is the study of the way
populations differ from one another in certain
characteristics. Which of the following is not one of
those characteristics?
a. density
b. age structure
c. numbers
d. distribution
e. viability
The biotic potential of a population is
a. the maximum reproductive rate of a population
b. the current rate of growth of a population
c. an expression of how many offspring survive to
reproduce
d. determined by subtracting immigration minus
emigration
e. the future growth rate of a population
Emigration is
a. the one-way movement of individuals into an
established population
b. the one-way movement of individuals out of an
uninhabited area
c. the one-way movement of individuals out of a
population to another area
d. the repeated movement into and out of an area
e. the lack of immigration into an area
Which of the following is not one of the age
structure categories?
a. postreproductive
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b. prereproductive
c. reproductive
d. nonreproductive
e. All of these answers are categories.
The intrinsic rate of increase (r) is
a. the rate at which a population will reach its
carrying capacity
b. the rate at which a population would grow with
unlimited resources
c. determined by subtracting deaths from births
and emigration from immigration
d. not influenced by environmental resistance
e. highest in large animals such as elephants and
humans
"The maximum population of a given species that a
particular habitat can sustain indefinitely without
being degraded" is the definition of
a. logistic growth
b. environmental resistance
c. exponential growth
d. carrying capacity
e. biotic potential
Exponential growth followed by a steady decrease in
population growth until the population size levels
off is typical of
a. logistic growth
b. environmental resistance
c. exponential growth
d. carrying capacity
e. biotic potential
When plotting the number of individuals in a
population against time the data yield a J-shaped
curve, which indicates which of the following?
a. logistic growth
b. environmental resistance
c. exponential growth
d. carrying capacity
e. biotic potential
Which of the following would cause a population to
overshoot its carrying capacity?
a. an increase in predators
b. a decrease in birth rates
c. an increase in emigration
d. a decrease in environmental pressures
e. a reproductive time lag between birth and death
rates
Which of the following is not true of an r-selected
species?
a. They have a high rate of population increase.
b. Offspring are large in individual size.
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c. They are opportunists.
d. They provide little or no parental care.
e. Offspring are large in number.
K-strategists
a. have high genetic diversity
b. are more response to environmental changes
than r-strategists
c. exhibit fast rates of evolution
d. are generally less adaptable to change than
r-strategists
e. reach reproductive age rapidly
Which of the following is an r-strategist?
a. human
b. cockroach
c. rhinoceros
d. saguaro cactus
e. whale
Small, isolated populations are vulnerable to loss of
genetic diversity because of four of the following
genetic factors. Choose the answer that is not one of
these factors.
a. inbreeding
b. demographic bottleneck
c. gene flow
d. founder effect
e. genetic drift
Which of the following is an example of a
density-independent population control?
a. infectious disease
b. habitat destruction
c. parasitism
d. predation
e. competition for resources
Which of the following is an example of a
density-dependent population control?
a. habitat destruction
b. fire
c. pollution
d. floods
e. competition for resources
Some species experience an explosion of population
growth to a high peak followed by a crash to a more
stable lower level. This is called which of the
following?
a. stable
b. irruptive
c. cyclic
d. irregular
e. regular
112. Which of the following would exhibit primary
succession?
a. a rock exposed by a retreating glacier
b. an abandoned farm
c. a clear-cut forest
d. newly flooded land
e. a recently burned forest
113. Soil formation in primary succession is encouraged
by all of the following except
a. physical weathering
b. releasing of nutrients from rock
c. arrival of pioneer species
d. trapping of wind-blown soil
e. acid rain
114. On a field trip for a university class you observe an
area filled with herbs, grasses, and low shrubs.
These are examples of which of the following?
a. pioneer species
b. early successional plant species
c. midsuccessional plant species
d. late successional plant species
e. climax plant species
115. Which of the following refers to the ability of a
living system to be restored after a period of
moderate disturbance?
a. stability
b. inertia
c. constancy
d. tipping point
e. resilience
Ecosystem Review
Answer Section
MULTIPLE CHOICE
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C
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B
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