Ecology Review
Multiple Choice: Choose the letter of the best answer.
1. Which of the following statements relating to “pyramids of energy” is true?
A. they are never inverted.
B. they show how energy is cycled in a given ecosystem.
C. they always have the same shape as the pyramid of numbers for the relationship being
studied.
D. they can be inverted (turned upside-down) for a highly productive ecosystem such as a
tropical rain forest.
2. The various microorganisms, plants and animals living in a pond form a (an)
A.
B.
C.
D.
ecological niche
community
population
ecosystem
3. A group of organisms of the same species occupying a given area at a given time may be
considered as
A.
B.
C.
D.
a biome
a population
an ecosystem
a community
4. Trees
sap-sucking insects
carnivorous insects
birds
bird parasites
is a food chain which might occur in a woodland. Which of the following pyramids of
numbers might best describe the food chain?
A.
B.
bird parasites
birds
birds
carnivorous insects
carnivorous insects
sap sucking insects
sap sucking insects
trees
C.
bird parasites
trees
bird parasites
D.
bird parasites
birds
birds
carnivorous insects
carnivorous insects
sap sucking insects
trees
sap sucking insects
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trees
5. Wolves and lions are said to occupy the same trophic level because they
A.
B.
C.
D.
are both terrestrial
are both large mammals
both eat primary consumers
use their food with about a 10% efficiency
6. Which of the following is a result of biological magnification?
A. many nutrients are being removed from agricultural lands and washed into aquatic
ecosystems
B. DDT has spread throughout every ecosystem and is found in almost every organism
C. the greenhouse effect (global warming) will be most significant at the poles
D. top-level predators may be most harmed by toxic environment chemicals
7. Energy passes along a food chain in the form of
A.
B.
C.
D.
chemical energy
kinetic energy
light energy
heat energy
8. In a pyramid of numbers, whatever stage is analyzed, a reduction in the number of organisms
can almost always be observed when there is an increase in
A.
B.
C.
D.
the size of the organism
temperature
energy loss
birth rate
9. When ecologists attempt to define where a particular organism lives they are describing its
A.
B.
C.
D.
habitat
ecosystem
community
trophic level
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The following food web shows some of the feeding relationships in a lake in Western Africa.
Perch
Tilapia Fishes
Alestid Fishes
Insects
Freshwater Sardine
Zooplankton
Phytoplankton
10. Which one of the following statements is correct?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Tilapia fishes and zooplankton are both secondary consumers.
There would most probably be more perch in the lake than sardines.
Alestid fishes and fresh water sardines are both primary consumers.
Perch can be third level or fourth level consumers depending upon the food chain
involved.
11. A biome with high temperature, high rainfall and poor soil is
A.
B.
C.
D.
grassland
desert
boreal forest
tropical rainforest
12. Compared to a eutrophic lake, an oligotrophic lake contains a greater concentration of
A.
B.
C.
D.
organic matter
plants
animals
oxygen
13. Nutrient cycles may involve
A. movement of the nutrient from the organism into the atmosphere
B. movement of nutrients into the soil
C. limitations on the number of organisms in the ecosystem due to shortage of some
nutrients
D. loss of the nutrients from the ecosystem
E. all of the above
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ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS USING FULL SENTENCES.
Use this information and the table below to answer the following question.
An ecological system was studied over a period of years and the energy
content (expressed as kilojoules) of several species was determined. You
may consider the “energy content” as equivalent to the total biomass
produced in that year.
SPECIES
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
KILOJOULE EQUIVALENTS OF BIOMASS
1997
1998
1999
19
23
18
438
450
420
103
120
130
111
110
141
1
0.5
0.1
28
34
37
600
705
713
113
75
141
2000
41
720
564
301
10.1
56
1065
138
1. A. State which organism is most likely a producer. Support your data.
/2
B.
State which organism is most likely a predator and explain why.
C.
Give an explanation for the events of 1999 to 2000.
/2
/2
4
2001
17
397
143
117
7.6
37
782
76
2. Using the information provided for Question 1 on the previous page, construct a food
pyramid of four trophic levels. Identify one species from the chart at each level along
with the correct name for that trophic level.
/7
/2
3.
a.
Explain how producers and consumers are different.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
/2
b.
What is the difference between a primary and a secondary consumer?
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
c.
/4
/2
Differentiate among the following types of consumers:
herbivores, carnivores, omnivores, and decomposers
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
4. Explain the difference between a food chain and a food web.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
5. Diagram and label the nitrogen cycle below.
/4
5
6. Using the food web shown below, identify four different food chains that make up
that food web.
/4
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
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7.
/1
a.
What is a niche?
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
8. Identify the problem and cause of the following environmental concerns:
/8
a.
ozone depletion
b.
acid rain
c.
greenhouse effect
d.
organic sewage
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Answer Key
Multiple Choice
1. A
2. B
3. B
4. A
5. C
6. D
7. A
8. A
9. A
10. D
11. D
12. D
13. E
Short Answer
1. A) Species #7 or 2 is most likely a producer because producers tend to have the greatest total
biomass in an ecological system.
B) Species 5 or 1 is most likely a predator because it has the lowest total biomass of the
ecological system.
C) Significant increase in the biomass of all of the species (except 8 which stayed about the
same). This is probably because producer biomass increased significantly.
2. 3° Consumer species 5
2° Consumer species 8, 4, or 3
1° Consumer species 6 or 1
Producer species 7 or 8
3. A) Producers create their organic molecules from inorganic compounds using radiant energy.
Consumers must eat other organisms (organic compounds to get their energy)\
B) Producer A primary consumer is a herbivore that feeds on a producer. A secondary
consumer is a carnivore that eats a herbivore.
C) Producer Herbivore – plant eater
Carnivore – meat eater
Omnivore – plant and animal eater
Decomposer – bacteria and fungi.
4. A food chain is a simple one to one feeding relationship. A food web incorporates many food
chains.
5. Must contain: atmospheric N2, legumes, bacteria in nodules, NO3-, decay,
6. Aquatic plant → midge → whitefish → osprey
aquatic plant → mayfly → stonefly → trout → osprey →
Algae → caddisfly → trout → osprey
Algae → mayfly → stonefly →whitefish → osprey
7. A summary of the role of an organism in its environment such as its trophic level, what it
eats and what feeds on it.
8. A) Breakdown of O3 → O2 due to chlorine atoms released from CFCs.
B) →SOX, COX and NOX, form the burning of fossil fuels lowers the pH of rain >5.6
C) →CO2, H2O vapour, methane and other gasses from fossil fuels trap energy in the Earth’s
atmosphere.
D) decomposition by bacteria reduces the [O2] of the water causing suffocation of some
animal species.
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