Ecology and Ecosystems QBA Exam 1 Practice Test

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• Describe primary vs secondary succession.
• Which model represents how energy flows through an ecosystem with many pathways?
• A measure of how clear water is.
• Which zone in a lake is the nearshore area where light reaches the bottom?
• Which statement best explains the ecological implications of generalists and specialists when environmental change occurs?
• An organism that floats on the water is:
• Which of the following is a classic example of an ecosystem engineer?
• Explain what a BACI experimental design is and how it helps detect ecological effects of disturbances.
• Which term describes a freshwater wetland habitat that is saturated and supports wildlife?
• A material deposited by water, wind, or glaciers is called ...
• The narrow band of coastline between the levels of high tide and low tide is:
• In population dynamics, which measure is used to describe the number of deaths per year?
• Which statement about pioneer species is true?
• A long-term pattern of weather in a region is called:
• Which statement best distinguishes a food chain from a food web?
• Which term describes organisms that drift or float in the water column and form the base of many aquatic food webs?
• How do disturbance regimes influence ecosystem structure and species diversity?
• Which term best describes an organism that preys on other heterotrophs?
• What is the rule called that states only 10% of the energy in one trophic level is transferred to the next, with 90% lost as heat?
• What term is a synonym for an autotroph, an organism that makes energy using sunlight?
• Which term describes the living components of the environment that organisms interact with?
• Which statement about soils and oceans in carbon storage is most accurate?
• Which zone receives enough light for photosynthesis?
• Which term refers to the relative amount of energy available at each trophic level?
• Which term describes an organism that eats both plants and animals?
• An organism that eats both autotrophs and heterotrophs, such as a bear or human.
• An organism that eats secondary consumers is a ...
• Which abiotic factor directly affects visibility and decreases with ocean depth?
• Phenology is the timing of seasonal life cycle events; how does climate change influence it?
• Which of the following is NOT a regulator of aquatic primary productivity?
• What property quantifies the amount of dissolved salts in water?
• Which term describes an organism that collects energy from sunlight or inorganic substances to produce food?
• Transect/quadrat sampling is used to estimate population size by counts along fixed lines or plots and can account for detection probabilities.
• Pielou’s evenness J' = H'/log(S). What does a value near 1 imply?
• What is the unit of measurement used to represent energy in ecological contexts?
• Provide an example of temporal niche partitioning among birds.
• Which cycle has no gaseous phase and moves mainly via weathering and runoff?
• Which term refers to a period when the population does not increase because resources cap growth?
• If NEP is negative, what does it indicate about the ecosystem's carbon balance?
• What does a positive Net Ecosystem Production indicate regarding carbon balance?
• The prefixes 'a-' or 'an-' denote what meaning?
• Which zone is the deepest, dark, and experiences high pressure on the deep ocean floor?
• Which of the following is an example of a pioneer species?
• A lowland area, such as a marsh or swamp, that is saturated with moisture:
• An organism that eats producers is called a ...
• Define resource partitioning and give a terrestrial example.
• Beta diversity measures what aspect of biodiversity?
• What is biotic homogenization, and which processes contribute to it?
• What does the prefix 'bio-' mean?
• Which term refers to a rapid population increase caused by an abundance of resources?
• In a lake, the well-lit, open surface waters farther from shore are called:
• Outline the major steps of the carbon cycle in ecosystems and how human activities modify it.
• What term describes the total mass of living matter at each trophic level, which decreases as trophic level rises?
• Which of the following is a classic density-dependent factor?
• Provide an example of climate warming affecting phenology, distribution, and productivity.
• Differentiates density-dependent and density-independent population regulation with examples.
• What is the primary mechanism by which phosphorus moves through ecosystems?
• An organism that gets its energy requirements by consuming other organisms.
• According to island biogeography theory, what factors influence species richness on islands or fragments?
• Which of the following is an example of a density-independent factor?
• Which factor is a primary driver of terrestrial primary productivity?
• An organism that eats primary consumers is a ...
• The term for physical, nonliving factors that shape an ecosystem is:
• Succession following a disturbance that destroys a community without destroying the soil is called?
• Define limnology and differentiate the epilimnion, metalimnion, and hypolimnion.
• Which term describes the pattern of spacing among individuals within the population's boundaries?
• Compare stochastic disturbances and deterministic disturbances and their ecological consequences.
• An organism that eats secondary consumers is called a ...
• What term refers to the maximum population size that an ecosystem can sustain indefinitely?
• Which ecosystem service category includes provisioning goods like food and water?
• Explain a keystone species and provide an example and its ecological role.
• A model most often used to represent the feeding relationships in an ecosystem because there are many pathways, it shows a complex flow of energy through an ecosystem.
• What does carrying capacity represent in ecological models?
• Which type of limiting factor is abiotic and tends to be independent of population size (examples include forest fires and hurricanes)?
• What measure describes how hot or cold water is, generally decreasing with depth?
• How does fragmentation influence species richness according to the island biogeography framework?
• Define a biome and identify primary factors that determine its distribution.
• The death rate is best described as the...
• Which soil horizon is primarily associated with leaching of minerals?
• What is the difference between resistance and resilience in an ecological system?
• Which statement correctly matches alpha, beta, and gamma diversity?
• In a stratified lake, which layer contains the cold, deep water with the least light penetration?
• Which growth pattern arises when resources are plentiful and unlimited, leading to rapid increases?
• An organism that eats primary consumers is called a ...
• Which term best describes population growth that increases as population size increases, producing an exponential pattern?
• An organism that eats dead matter to return nutrients to the soil, air and water to be used.
• Which process oxidizes NH4+ to NO3-?
• Which term refers to the shallow freshwater zone where light reaches the bottom and supports aquatic plants?
• Which statement best distinguishes a generalist from a specialist in ecology?
• Net Ecosystem Production (NEP) equals what?
• Which type of limiting factor is often biotic and density-dependent (examples include predation, disease, parasites, and competition)?
• The largest population that an environment can support at any given time is known as:
• Portion of the marine biome shallow enough for sunlight to penetrate:
• If a community has S = 8 species and Shannon index H' = 2.0, what is Pielou’s evenness J' = H'/log(S)?
• Which measure indicates how clear water is and can affect light penetration?
• Which nutrient is often the limiting factor in freshwater ecosystems?
• Permanently dark layer of the oceans below the photic zone:
• What term describes the number of deaths that occur in a population during a given time period?
• Which organism would live in the intertidal zone as it can survive both in water and outside of the ocean?
• This organism would live in the photic zone of the open ocean
• What remote sensing metric is commonly used to proxy chlorophyll and vegetation health?
• Which of the following is an example of a density-dependent factor?
• Movement of individuals into a population is called:
• Which process returns nitrogen to the atmosphere as N2?
• The portion of the ocean floor where light does not penetrate and where temperatures are cold and pressures intense. Although it touches the bottom of the ocean, it does not include sediment or the benthic zone:
• Which of the following pairs correctly describe two common methods to estimate animal population size?
• Which zone has little to no light and organisms adapted to darkness?
• The living components of an environment that affect organisms are called:
• All the different populations that live together in an area
• Which term describes a population that remains unchanged for long periods, with births and deaths balancing each other?
• The term that means life is:
• What term describes a change in an ecosystem that occurs when one community replaces another due to changing abiotic and biotic factors?
• Which term describes the living components of the environment that interact with organisms?
• Which prefix means life?
• Each step in a food web or chain.
• Which set of factors best describes the drivers of biotic homogenization across landscapes?
• What term denotes the maximum population size that an environment can sustain indefinitely?
• Which process involves uptake of nitrogen by plants from the soil?
• The phrase 'It's raining or snowing outside' is an example of which atmospheric concept?
• Define ecosystem respiration and how it differs from photosynthesis.
• Which methods are used to estimate GPP and NEP at the ecosystem scale?
• If a population grows quickly and then levels off as resources become scarce, this growth is described as?
• Co-limitation means what in ecological growth?
• Which term describes a constant population size despite changes in births and deaths, often due to limits from resources?
• Which item is not a type of ecological succession?
• In mark-recapture studies, what do these methods estimate?
• How do invasive species affect ecosystem processes and resilience?
• Which statement best describes a real-world example of a trophic cascade?
• Which formula defines the Shannon diversity index, and what does a higher value indicate?
• Which of the following is an example of secondary succession?
• An organism that breaks down wastes and dead organisms.
• This organism would live in the aphotic zone, has large eyes to see better with and is able to survive with limited availability of nutrients
• Which density-dependent factor involves the struggle between organisms to survive in a habitat with limited resources and often leads to population decline due to starvation?
• Which statement best distinguishes species richness from species evenness?
• Why are wetlands important for carbon storage and biodiversity?
• Which type of succession occurs after a disturbance that destroys a community but leaves the soil intact?
• An organism that preys on other heterotrophs, such as wolves, lions and lynxes.
• Ecological stoichiometry studies the balance of energy and multiple chemical elements in organisms; why are C:N:P ratios important in ecosystems?
• Bottom of an aquatic ecosystem; consists of sand and sediment and supports its own community of organisms--includes both freshwater and marine ecosystems:
• Define energy transfer among trophic levels and the implications of the 10% rule.
• Define a limiting factor in population growth.
• Which term describes a period of the year characterized by particular weather and temperature conditions?
• Movement of individuals out of a population is called:
• In ecosystem carbon budgeting, which statement best describes GPP?
• Compare exponential and logistic population growth models, and define carrying capacity and density dependence.
• Which type of succession would occur after the melting of a glacier or a volcanic eruption?
• How is NPP defined?
• What are the main goals and approaches of restoration ecology?
• What drives a detrital (saprotrophic) food web?
• What is the first species to populate an area during primary succession?
• The term for any living part of the environment with which an organism might interact is:
• Which statement correctly matches the four major types of species interactions with an example?
• In a lake, which zone is defined by light reaching the bottom and supporting rooted aquatic plants?
• Which processes are part of the hydrological cycle, and how do infiltration vs runoff influence nutrient transport?
• Which unit is used to quantify energy in ecological studies?
• A stable, mature community that undergoes little or no change in species over time, a true climax community is unlikely to occur due to ongoing disturbances in communities is called what?
• An organism that eats only plants, such as a cow or a rabbit.
• Which parameter indicates how acidic or basic a solution is?
• A change in season from winter to spring is an example of:
• Which term best describes a population whose size stays about the same because births equal deaths?
• A simple model that shows how energy flows through an ecosystem.
• An organism that feeds on producers and occupies the second trophic level is called a ...
• Which zone is characterized by regular immersion and exposure due to tides?
• Which of the following is an example of a density-independent factor?
• Overall weather in an area over a long period of time is referred to as what?
• What is a trophic cascade?
• Which statement best describes gamma diversity?
• Which term best describes organisms that break down wastes and dead organisms?
• An organism that uses sunlight or inorganic substances to produce food?
• Which process converts N2 to bioavailable NH4+?
• Which type of succession occurs on surfaces where no soil previously existed?
• The condition of Earth's atmosphere at a particular time and place is known as what?
• Which horizon is typically characterized by the accumulation of clay and other minerals, forming the subsoil?
• Conditions in the environment that put limits on where an organism can live are called:
• Why are there typically only a few trophic levels in ecosystems?
• Which density-dependent factor tends to occur when population size is high, such as disease?
• State the competitive exclusion principle and one ecological implication.
• NEP is defined as?
• Explain how carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus cycles are integrated in ecosystems.
• Which term is used to describe the number of individuals born in a given time period?
• What is the term for the number of individual organisms per defined unit area?
• What word best describes a period with no net change in population size?
• What habitat occurs where freshwater meets seawater?
• Which term describes all populations living together in a given area?
• Which principle states that energy cannot be created nor destroyed?
• Which term describes nonliving environmental factors like temperature and light?
• In a stable population where births equal deaths, the population is in which state?
• Which of the following is not a type of ecological succession?
• What term describes a number that explains how fast a given population grows, positive or negative, and is calculated using immigration and emigration fluctuations?
• Approximately what percentage of energy is transferred from one trophic level to the next?
• Which term describes the long-term average pattern of weather in a region?