II. Living World: Biomes
Biome
Climate
Soils
Dominant animals
Dominant plants
Deserts
Rainfall: Less
than 30 cm per
year, Hot days/
cold nights
rich, thin, and
permeable
arthropods, reptiles, mammals
(mainly rodents) and
numerous insects, many are
nocturnal or estivate
(hibernate when hot)
Plants known as
xerophytes: cactus, thorny
bushes, and shrubs, some
plants remain dormant
during droughts
Grasslands
Rainfall: 50-150
cm, From hot to
cold depending
on location
rich and
usually deep
tall grasses in areas where
there is more rainfall,
smaller grasses where less
rainfall occurs and small
woodlands in some
Temperate
Deciduous
Forest
Rainfall: 30”100” equal amt
all yr., Warm,
humid summers,
and freezing in
winter
Rainfall: >200
cm, frequent and
heavy, No
seasons, with
temps around 80°
F year round, and
humid
Rainfall: 50-150
cm, Long cold
winters, short
summer growing
season
well
developed,
with rich leaf
litter and lots
of humus
bison, pronghorn antelope,
wild horses, cattle, sheep,
rhinos, warthogs, lions,
hyenas, kangaroos, wolves,
cougars, foxes, eagles,
coyotes, and jackals
songbirds, ducks, raptors,
skunks, opossum, mice, deer,
raccoons, foxes, squirrels,
bears, snakes, and amphibians
rich thin and
low in
nutrients due
to leaching
after frequent
rains
Rainfall: < 10 cm.
Long bitter cold
winters with a 10
week annual
growing season
Tropical Rain
Forest
Taiga (Boreal
Forest)
Tundra
(polar
grassland)
Human
interference
Off road
vehicles,
overgrazing,
urbanization,
oil drilling,
mining
Agriculture,
livestock
grazing,
poaching
Supplementary
deciduous trees: oaks,
maples, sycamore, beech;
ferns; lichens; mosses
Logging,
agriculture, tree
farms,
urbanization
Much of the native
hardwood in eastern
US has been replaced
by marketable pines
Extremely high numbers off
birds, insects, frogs, fish,
monkeys, small mammals,
tigers, jaguars, ocelot, and
many other endemic and
colorful species
vast biodiversity of canopy
broadleaf evergreen trees,
vines, epiphytes (orchids
and bromeliads), little to
no understory except by
rivers and streams
Agriculture,
timber harvest,
livestock
grazing, some
mineral mining
numerous forms of
fungi and bacteria on
the forest floor
promotes rapid
decomposition
acid, with leaf
litter and
humus, slow
decomp
Large herbivores, moose, elk,
mule, hares, deer, and
carnivores such as lynx,
foxes, fishers, and martens.
Logging,
mining, fur
trade, dams
The coastal redwood
forest of CA and OR
provides nesting area
for ducks and other
birds, also timber.
Thin with
permafrost –
so no large
shrubs or
trees, nutrient
poor
lemmings, musk ox, lynx,
caribou, arctic hares, arctic
foxes, and great numbers of
insects in the summer
conifers such as spruce,
hemlock, fir, pine, and
deciduous trees such as
birch, popular, willow, and
maple with a poor
understory
small shrubs, lichens,
mosses, grasses and sedges
Oil and natural
gas drilling and
associated
transport issues,
global warming
breeding ground for
large numbers of
geese, shorebirds,
and ducks
seasonal torrential
rains cause flash
floods
maintained by
grazing animals and
fire
Lakes and Ponds: Fresh water bodies of standing water that have rooted littoral (shore), floating plants, lots of algae (older
eutrophic lakes) or few algae (newer eutrophic lakes). Northern lakes usually experience spring and fall turnovers (top and
bottom portions mix). Streams and Rivers: Flowing water with low levels of dissolved solids and high dissolved oxygen,
due to the water coming in contact with the air. Algae and insect larvae usually attach themselves to the bottom of rocks and
aquatic plants are strongly rooted. Inland Wetlands: Water levels vary from standing water in the wet season to none during
the dry season and during droughts. Water table is always near the surface. These include marshes, swamps, and bogs.
Marine Ecosystems: Coastal: Occur near shore where tides and currents cause a mixing of nutrients. Found from the high
tide mark of shorelines out to the continental shelf. Corals (tropical zones), zooplankton, phytoplankton, crustaceans,
echinoderms, dolphins, sharks, whales, shellfish, turtle and eel grasses, benthos algae, gulls, sea lions, seals, marine turtles,
jellyfish, and terns. Estuaries: Occur where rives meet the oceans. Form bays, inlets, and form behind barrier islands.
Animals in these areas must be able to adapt to rapidly and constantly changing salinity. These areas are rich in nutrients
and provide excellent spawning and breeding grounds for numerous fish, crustaceans, and wading birds. Open Ocean:
These areas occur beyond the continental shelf in deep water up to 11,000 meters. The zones below 200 meters are dark,
cold and poor in nutrients. Open oceans cover 70% of the earth’s surface, and contain phytoplankton, zooplankton, whales,
tuna, sharks, squid, flying fish, and seabirds.
Questions:
a. desert b. tundra c. boreal forest d. temperate forest e. tropical rain forest
1. plants adapted for shallow nutrient poor soil; have buttresses
2. plants adapted for lack of water availability in winter; deciduous
3. plants adapted to short growing season; have needles to decrease transpiration in cold climate
4. plants take CO2 at night to reduce water loss; have needles; stem photosynthesizes
5. All of the following are adaptations of a desert animal except
a. copious amounts of urine b. nocturnal c. small size d. large ears to give off heat e. estivate
6. All of the following will affect how much light can penetrate into aquatic ecosystems except
a. turbidity b. sediment deposition c. tannins in the water d. depth e. temperature
7. The biome not found in the southern hemisphere is the
a. desert b. taiga c. temperate grassland d. temperate rainforest e. tropical rainforest
8. All of these are reasons why environmentalists oppose drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge except
a. area has very short growing season b. permafrost will make it difficult for the area to recover due to thin soil c.
area is a calving ground for caribou d. area has high biodiversity and it will be difficult to recover all of the species e.
area is thought to contain only a moderate amount of oil
9. Which of the following statements regarding inland wetlands is incorrect?
a. marshes are wetlands covered by trees b. may be used to grow cranberries or rice c. bogs contain Spahgnum moss
d. important breeding areas for waterfowl e. important in water cycle since they allow infiltration of water
10. Which of the following statements best describes the strata in a temperate lake in the summer?
a. the surface water layer is much cooler than the deeper layers of water b. the large number of decomposers in the
benthic zone of the lake increases the oxygen there c. the surface water layer is characterized by a thermocline d. the
upper stratum of the lake has the greatest amount of DO e. the deep water in the center of the lake is warm
II. The Living World: Energy Flow
Food chains, food webs, and trophic levels: producers/autotrophs, consumers/heterotrophs, productivity= amount of
biomass, Net Primary Productivity (NPP): rate at which photosynthetic organisms make sugars minus the sugars used in
cellular respiration for the producer, food chain (energy movement), food web (more realistic), herbivore, carnivore,
omnivore, detritivore, scavenger, decomposer. Ecological pyramids: pyramid of numbers, pyramid of biomass, pyramid of
energy (average transfer of energy between trophic levels is 10%). Biogeochemical cycles: hydrologic or water cycle,
carbon cycle, nitrogen cycle, phosphorous cycle, sulfur cycle
Questions:
1. In a pond, algae has 10,000 kcal of available energy. If zooplankton has 1000 kcal of available energy, what is the
available energy to the minnow?
a. 1000 J b. 100 J c. 200 J d. 10 J e. 1 J
2. Nitrogen in the atmosphere is converted into ammonia by the process called?
a. nitrification b. denitrification c. nitrogen fixation d. ammonification e. assimilation
3. A solution with a pH of 2 is ___ times more acidic than a solution with a pH of 5.
a. 10 b. 30 c. 100 d. 300 e. 1000
4. Which of the following organisms is an herbivore?
a. bobcat b. wolf c. rabbit d. eagle e. snake
5. Plants require phosphorous to form which compound?
a. simple sugars b. deoxyribonucleic acid c. proteins d. carbohydrates e. lipids
6. Which of the following is an example of kinetic energy?
a. water in a reservoir b. gasoline in a motor c. wind at the beach d. a stretched rubber band e. a rock on a hilltop
7. Cellular respiration produces which of the following gases?
a. CO2 b. CH4 c. O2 d. N2 e. H2
In the African savanna, Thompson’s gazelles consume short grasses. The gazelles are a food source for the cheetahs. The
gazelles remains are ingested by hyenas and vultures.
8. What role do the hyenas play in this ecosystem?
a. herbivore b. carnivore c. scavenger d. decomposer e. detritivore
9. The organisms described above make up a(n)
a. ecosystem b. community c. population d. species e. biosphere
10. Humans interfere in the hydrologic cycle in all of the following ways except
a. building dams b. channelizing rivers c. transpiration from leaves d. deforestation e. irrigation
11. An isotope differs from other elements of the same atomic number due to its different number of
a. protons b. atoms c. ions d. neutrons e. electrons
12. Organisms in trophic level II in the diagram would be classified as
IV
a. autotrophs b. decomposers c. scavengers d. herbivores e. carnivores
III
13. The organisms at level IV would most likely be classified as
II
a. primary consumers b. primary producers c. secondary consumers
d. herbivores e. top carnivores
I
14. Which of the following statements is true about the pyramid of energy is the diagram?
a. the energy from level IV will be passed back to level I b. the autotrophs would be found at level IV
c. the
biomass at level IV is greater than the biomass at level I d. the energy available to each subsequent trophic level
continues to increase e. the energy lost to the surrounding environment is thermal energy, which is unrecoverable
15. The energy available to trophic level IV in the absence of the second law of thermodynamics would be?
a. 0.1 % b. 10 % c. 50 % d. 75 % e. 100 %
16. Photosynthesis products used during cellular respiration include
a. CO2, water, sugars b. water, O2, sugars c. CO2, water, energy d. O2, sugars e. energy and O2
17. The only biogeochemical cycle with no atmospheric component is the ___________ cycle.
a. phosphorous b. nitrogen c. sulfur d. water e. carbon
18. Which of the following characteristics of water is correct.
a. low heat of vaporization b. contracts as it freezes c. nonpolar and is attracted to nonpolar substances d. exhibits
cohesion, the tendency to attach to other molecuules e. spontaneously ionizes into hydrogen and hydroxide ions
19. Humans interfere in the sulfur cycle by
a. burning wood for cooking b. using inorganic fertilizers c. burning coal to generate electricity d. using pesticides
on cotton farms e. deforestation of tropical forests
20. All of the following are carbon sinks except
a. coral reefs b. tropical rain forests c. coal seams d. mangrove swamps e. deserts
II. Living World: Ecosystem diversity
Law of tolerance: the factor in the lowest supply in an environment will be the factor that determines the survival of an
organism, optimal range, zone of physiological stress, zone of intolerance, Environmental indicators: species whose
presence indicates an environmental parameter is present, the presence of cattails in the Everglades is a sign of high levels of
phosphates, indicators of excellent water quality: mayfly, dobsonfly, and caddisfly larvae, indicators of poor water quality:
blood worms, leeches, and pouch snails. Natural selection and evolution: Darwin, organisms suited to their environment
survive and reproduce, fitness is an organisms ability to reproduce successfully, favorable adaptations are passed on, gene
mutation, adaptive radiation (Galapagos finches), divergent evolution vs. convergent evolution. Niches: ecological niche is
the role it fulfills in an ecosystem, fundamental niche vs. realized niche, generalist vs. specialist, resource partitioning.
Species interactions: predator and prey, Batesian mimicry (mimic a harmful or noxious species for protection), Mullerian
mimicry (two species resemble each other when both are toxic), symbiosis: parasitism, commensalism, an mutualism,
coevolution, keystone species, intraspecific vs, interspecific competition, exotic/nonnative/introduced species (fire ants,
zebra mussel, water hyacinth). Succession: change of species in an ecosystem over time, primary succession (lava flow
creating new bare rock), secondary succession (soil is present, after fire), pioneer species, climax community. Biodiversity
includes species diversity (species richness and species evenness), genetic diversity, and ecosystem diversity. Species can
interbreed and produce fertile offspring. DNA has helped with evolutionary relationships. 34 biodiversity hot spots (1500
native species, 70% habitat loss), organisms uses: medicines, clothing, waxes, fragrances, dyes, lumber, paper, (rosy
periwinkle provides a leukemia drug), ecotourism, pollination, photosynthesis.
Questions:
a. commensalism b. mutualism c. competition d. predation e. parasitism
1. aphids make a secretion called honeydew that ants feed upon, and the ants protect the aphids from predators
2. an epiphytic orchid living on an oak tree
3. dolphins chasing mullet in a bay
4. schistosoma worms in a humans blood vessels
5. Primary productivity is highest in which of the following ecosystems?
a. desert b. grassland c. open ocean d. boreal forest e. estuary
6. A glacier has retreated from a valley in Glacier National Park, leaving a pile of rocks known as moraine. The type of
succession expected in this ecosystem would be
a. primary b. secondary c. transitional d. equilibrium e. introduced
7. Which of the following is an example of Mullerian mimicry?
a. monarch and viceroy butterflies look alike b. a moth resembles a wasp c. all species of poion dart frogs have vivid
color with black markings d. a fly that looks like a honeybee e. a kingsnake looks like a coral snake
8. Yellow-headed and red-winged blackbirds live in marshes, and both can nest in the emergent vegetation in the marsh. If
both species are present, the red-winged blackbirds are pushed into the shallower, drier areas on the outer limits of the
marsh, when this occurs what niche are they occupying?
a. classical b. fundamental c. competitive d. realized e. ecological
9. All of the following are adaptive responses to decrease intraspecific competition except
a. tadpoles are aquatic herbivores and frogs are semiterrestrial carnivores b. maple seeds use their flat wings to move
away from the parent plant c. butterflies consume nectar whereas caterpillars ingest leaves d. floating crab larvae and
benthic adult crab e. tigers marking their territory
10. Nocturnal owls minimize competition with diurnal hawks even though they share the same food resource by using
a. parasitism b. resource partitioning c. coevolution d. intraspecific evolution e. commensalisms
11. The peppered moths of England underwent directional selection from a light version to a much darker version after the
industrial revolution caused tree bark to darken. Which of the following explains the shift?
a. the presence of the pollutants induced a mutation in the moths making them darker b. the organisms were able to
mutate to adapt to the new environment c. the new environment caused the darker moths to dominate because the ligter
ones were consumed by birds d. natural selection caused the dark moths to outcompete the light moths for resources e.
the competition for mates caused the light moths to become less common
12. Which of the following is true of vegetation during succession?
a. grasses predominate in the midsuccessional stages b. plant biodiversity is greatest in the early successional stages
c. the pine forest community facilitates the growth of the hardwoods because they acidify the soil d. hardwoods will
tolerate a few scattered cedars in a late successional forest e. lichens hinder the growth of grasses as they prevent soil
formation when they thickly cover the rocks
13. The flying phalanger, an Australian marsupial, and the North American flying squirrel, a placental mammal, both
possess flaps between their front and rear legs to glide for short distances between trees, this is an example of
a. coevolution b. homologous structures c. convergent evolution d. adaptive radiation e. analogous structures
For 14-17 use the chaparral food web
coyote
14. Which animal occupies the highest trophic level?
hawk
snake
a. hawk b. snake c. roadrunner d. coyote e. lizard
15. The available energy will be the highest in
roadrunner
a. grasses and shrubs b. voles c. grasshopper
vole
cicada
d. roadrunner e. hawk
lizard
16. If the population of lizards were to increase, what might happen?
a. snakes and hawks would decline b. voles increase
Grasses & shrubs
grasshopper
c. cicada increase d. increase in grasshoppers e. roadrunners decline
17. The organisms shown form a(n)
a. ecosystem b. biome c. tolerance range d. community e. population
18. The African elephant is known to push over trees in the African savanna. The trees would outcompete the native grasses
that many species rely upon without the elephant’s intervention. It role in the ecosystem is as a(n)
a. keystone species b. exotic species c. predator d. top competitor e. parasite
19. Which of the following would you expect to be the pioneer species on an abandoned farm?
a. hardwood trees b. pine trees c. lichens d. grasses and weeds e. shrubs
20. Exotic species damage ecosystems because they
a. are specialists that die easily b. compete with native species for the same resources c. have numerous predators
d. carry diseases that infect native species e. engage in mutualistic relationships with native species