Deck 47: Conservation Biology and Biodiversty

Question 1

What was the name of the first international agreement on climate change?

A) Red List
B) Montreal Protocol
C) International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
D) Kyoto Protocol

Answer 1

Climate change is the instability of the weather patterns which is a result of careless human activities such as deforestation, oil spills, carbon emission from industries, use of fertilizers and emission of greenhouse gases. Since climate change has brought about various species extinction and life threats to humans, international agreements have been enacted in order to keep a check on the climate change.
Red list is a data of species which are threatened to be extinct. It was first created by IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) in 1994 which has about 6000 species under threat of getting extinct
Montreal protocol was first signed in Vienna convention in order to protect the depletion of ozone layer by phasing out those substances that leads to its depletion.
IUCN which stands for The International Union for Conservation of Nature is an organization on the international scale which works in the field of using natural resources in a sustainable manner and conservation of nature.
Hence, the options a., b. and c. are incorrect.
The Kyoto protocol is a treaty on the international level first signed in 1992 under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) whose objective is to reduce the emission of carbon dioxide. It was signed in Kyoto, Japan and presently 192 parties are a part of it.
Hence, the correct answer is option

Question 2

About what percentage of land on the planet is set aside as a preserve of some type?

A) 1 percent
B) 6 percent
C) 11 percent
D) 15 percent

Answer 2

A preserve is a land area which has been set aside with different degrees of protection to the organisms which exist in the boundaries of the particular preserve. Ecosystem preserves and establishment of wildlife are the key tools in the efforts of conservation.
A fixed amount of land has been set aside as a preserve in order to do conservation. 1 and 6 percent is too less to keep aside as a preserve. 15 percent is more than the amount of land area that has been kept aside as a preserve.
Hence, the options a., b. and d. are incorrect.
According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) World Parks Congress, around 11.5 percent (which can be taken as 11 percent) of the land on Earth has been covered and kept aside as a preserve of different kinds. Although this area represents only around 9 of the total 14 recognized biomes.
Hence, the correct answer is option

Question 3

Figure 47.6 Scientists measured the relative abundance of fern spores above and below the KPg boundary in this rock sample. Which of the following statements most likely represents their findings?

A) An abundance of fern spores from several species was found below the KPg boundary, but none was found above.
B) An abundance of fern spores from several species was found above the KPg boundary, but none was found below.
C) An abundance of fern spores was found both above and below the K-Pg boundary, but only one species was found below the boundary , and many species were found above the boundary.
D) Many species of fern spores were found both above and below the boundary, but the total number of spores was greater below the boundary.

Answer 3

The Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) extinction was the most recent mass extinction which wiped out about three quarters of plants and animal species from the earth. It marks the beginning of Cenozoic Era and the end of Cretaceous and Mesozoic Era. The Cenozoic Era continues till today.
The K-Pg extinction is marked by a thin layer of sediments called the K-Pg boundary in the geological period. This boundary can be observed throughout rocks of both terrestrial and marine ecosystem. The boundary showed a high level of metal iridium which is a characteristic feature of asteroids and not the earth's surface. Thus, it is believed that asteroids were the reason of mass extinction that happened 66 million years ago.
There are evidences that showed the mass extinctions of the plant community as well. The pollen and leaves provided enormous evidence of its extinction. After the destruction of plants, many fungi started to proliferate as there were huge amount of organic matter from the dead plants and animals.
The fungi being saprophytic in nature feed on them and thrive for several years. The atmosphere after recovery got dominated by photosynthetic organisms like ferns due to which it showed a fern spike in the geological time scale.
The fern spores were found below the K-Pg boundary along with several other angiosperm pollen grains. The fern spore dominated the below boundary than the other plants because it dominated the Paleogene era.
Several species of ferns spore were present below the K-Pg boundary. It wiped out the whole species and not only one species of ferns.
Many species of fern spores were found below the boundary of K-Pg.
Hence, the options b, c and d are incorrect.
The ferns dominated the Paleocene epoch of Paleogene era which was formed right after the recovery from the mass extinction. This is probably because of the efficiency of spore dispersal of ferns which allowed them to dominate the area. They were found in abundance in the Paleogene era. But because of the mass extinction, the ferns were eliminated however its spores formed a thin boundary below the K-Pg boundary thus indicating its abundance in that era.
Hence, the correct answer is option

Question 4

Describe the evidence for the cause of the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) mass extinction.

Question 5

Figure 47.9 The Svalbard Global Seed Vault is located on Spitsbergen island in Norway, which has an arctic climate. Why might an arctic climate be good for seed storage?

Question 6

Describe the two methods used to calculate contemporary extinction rates.

Question 7

Converting a prairie to a farm field is an example of ________.

A) overharvesting
B) habitat loss
C) exotic species
D) climate change

Question 8

Explain how biodiversity loss can impact crop diversity.

Question 9

Figure 47.16 Which of the following statements is not supported by this graph?

A) There are more vulnerable fishes than critically endangered and endangered fishes combined.
B) There are more critically endangered amphibians than vulnerable, endangered and critically endangered reptiles combined.
C) Within each group, there are more critically endangered species than vulnerable species.
D) A greater percentage of bird species are critically endangered than mollusk species.

Question 10

Describe two types of compounds from living things that are used as medications.

Question 11

With an extinction rate of 100 E/MSY and an estimated 10 million species, how many extinctions are expected to occur in a century?

A) 100
B) 10, 000
C) 100, 000
D) 1, 000, 000

Question 12

Describe the mechanisms by which human population growth and resource use causes increased extinction rates.

Question 13

An adaptive radiation is________.

A) a burst of speciation
B) a healthy level of UV radiation
C) a hypothesized cause of a mass extinction
D) evidence of an asteroid impact

Question 14

Explain what extinction threats a frog living on a mountainside in Costa Rica might face.

Question 15

The number of currently described species on the planet is about ________.

A) 17,000
B) 150,000
C) 1.5 million
D) 10 million

Question 16

Describe two considerations in conservation preserve design.

Question 17

A mass extinction is defined as ________.

A) a loss of 95 percent of species
B) an asteroid impact
C) a boundary between geological periods
D) a loss of 50 percent of species

Question 18

Describe what happens to an ecosystem when a keystone species is removed.

Question 19

A secondary plant compound might be used for which of the following?

A) a new crop variety
B) a new drug
C) a soil nutrient
D) a pest of a crop pest

Question 20

Pollination is an example of ________.

A) a possible source of new drugs
B) chemical diversity
C) an ecosystem service
D) crop pest control

Question 21

What is an ecosystem service that performs the same function as a pesticide?

A) pollination
B) secondary plant compounds
C) crop diversity
D) predators of pests

Question 22

Which two extinction risks may be a direct result of the pet trade?

A) climate change and exotic species introduction
B) habitat loss and overharvesting
C) overharvesting and exotic species introduction
D) habitat loss and climate change

Question 23

Exotic species are especially threatening to what kind of ecosystem?

A) deserts
B) marine ecosystems
C) islands
D) tropical forests

Question 24

Certain parrot species cannot be brought to the United States to be sold as pets. What is the name of the legislation that makes this illegal?

A) Red List
B) Migratory Bird Act
C) CITES
D) Endangered Species Act (ESA)