APES - Chapter 7-9 Study Guide
Climate And Biodiversity
1. Describe the benefits and hazards of wind.
2. Distinguish between weather and climate. What key factors determine the Earth’s climate?
3. Describe the process of upwelling. What happens in an el Niño year?
4. Explain how the 6 major convection zones influence climate at various latitudes. How does this influence the
world’s biomes?
5. Define greenhouse effect. Name greenhouse gases. State the significance of the greenhouse effect.
6. Describe the general effects of the following microclimates: windward and leeward sides of a mountain,
forests, and cities.
7. Describe how climate affects the distribution of plant life on Earth. Draw connections between biomes and the
following plants, which are particularly adapted for different biomes: succulent plants, broadleaf evergreen
plants, broadleaf deciduous plants, and coniferous evergreen plants.
8. Compare the climate and adaptations of plants and animals in deserts, grasslands, and forests. Describe the
distinctive qualities of a chaparral ecosystem. Be sure to distinguish among the three major kinds of forests.
9. Compare the biodiversity and stratification in the three major kinds of forests.
10. Describe how a mountain ecosystem is like an “island of biodiversity.”
11. Describe the most significant human impacts associated with each of the major types of biomes.
12. Summarize the distribution of light, salt, and temperature in different aquatic life zones.
13. Evaluate the significance of the ecological contributions of the oceans.
14. Briefly describe the characteristics and ecological significance of coral reefs. Describe environmental and
economic problems of coral reefs.
15. Distinguish between coastal and inland wetlands. Describe the ecological functions performed by wetlands.
Describe environmental problems associated with coastal and inland wetlands.
16. List and compare the four zones of a lake. Distinguish between oligotrophic and eutrophic lakes. Describe
stratification and a turnover in a lake.
17. Define watershed. List and distinguish the three zones of a river system.
Chapter 8- Sustaining Biodiversity: The Species Approach
1. Explain how humans caused the premature extinction of the passenger pigeon.
2. Describe the 3 types of species extinction. Distinguish between background (natural) rate of extinction and
mass extinction. Evaluate if an extinction crisis currently exists. Distinguish between endangered species and
threatened species. Give three examples of each.
3. Describe the economic, medical, aesthetic, ecological, and ethical significance of wild species. Distinguish
between intrinsic value and instrumental value.
4. List eight characteristics that make species extinction prone.
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APES - Chapter 7-9 Study Guide
5. Describe how species become extinct. List and describe six ways that humans accelerate the extinction rate
(HIPPCO).
6. List some of the benefits of introduced species. List some of the economic and ecological problems associated
with introduced species. Provide examples. Describe the most common mechanisms of introduction.
7. Summarize the threat to biodiversity by poaching, climate change and exposure to pollution.
8. Summarize protection offered to wild species by CITES, CBD, and the Endangered Species Act. List five steps,
which would strengthen the Endangered Species Act. In your opinion, should the ESA be strengthened?
9. What is the sanctuary approach to protecting wild species. Provide examples. Evaluate the feasibility of
sanctuaries to preserve wild species.
10. What is reconciliation ecology? List three ways individuals can help protect wild species and preserve
biodiversity.
Chapter 9- Sustaining Biodiversity: The Ecosystem Approach
1. Identify and describe the three types of forest – old growth, second-growth, and tree plantation/tree farm.
2. Identify 7 ecological and economic services provided by forests
3. Describe the different methods of tree harvesting (selective cutting, clear cutting, and strip cutting), including
any negative impacts to forest biodiversity.
4. Why is fire important to many forest ecosystems? What is the difference between a surface fire and a crown
fire?
5. Describe the human impact on forest ecosystems regarding deforestation.
6. What is sustainable forestry? Identify and describe some of the solutions to our current forestry problems.
7. What are some of the problems of sustainably managing grasslands and rangelands?
8. What role do parks and nature reserves play in sustaining biodiversity?
9. What steps has Costa Rica taken to preserve its biodiversity?
10. What is ecological restoration? What is reconciliation ecology?
11. What are some of the human impacts on aquatic ecosystems?
12. Identify and describe different methods of fishing and how they impact aquatic ecosystems
13. What are some ways that humans can protect and sustain marine biodiversity?
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