Deck 4: Evolution, Biological Communities, and Species Interactions

Question 1

Red winged blackbirds chase away other red wings from the area around their nests. This behavior is called _______ and is an example of ___________ competition.

A) commensalism, intraspecific
B) territoriality, intraspecific
C) commensalism, interspecific
D) territoriality, interspecific

Answer 1

territoriality, intraspecific

Question 2

Diversity refers to

A) the number of populations.
B) the spatial distribution of organisms.
C) the amount of genetic diversity.
D) the number of individuals in a given area.

Answer 2

the amount of genetic diversity.

Question 3

Taxonomy is a branch of science which

A) describes relationships among species.
B) allocates public funds for conservation efforts.
C) attempts to create new species in laboratories.
D) labels the types of ecosystems.

Answer 3

describes relationships among species.

Question 4

In ecology, tolerance limits refer to the maximum amount of hassling an individual organism will take before it strikes back.

Question 5

Attributes of a broad niche could include an organism having

A) a wide range of foods eaten.
B) specific feeding times.
C) a narrow range of foods eaten.
D) living in one species of tree.

Question 6

Regular lawn mowing selects for short-headed rather than tall-headed dandelions because

A) Tall flowers spread their seeds farther
B) Tall flowers are cut before they can produce seeds
C) Short flowers can reproduce
D) Short flowers spread their seeds farther
E) Short flowers have less competition when the lawn is mowed often

Question 7

Which of the following would not be an act of predation?

A) A moose nibbling on aspen shoots
B) A crow feeding on a road-kill rabbit
C) A black bear eating blueberries
D) Disease-causing bacteria invading human lung tissue

Question 8

Succession can produce changes in soil, degree of shade, available moisture, and species membership of a community.

Question 9

Natural selection will ultimately make a species

A) More intelligent
B) Physically bigger
C) Better adapted to its environment
D) More aggressive
E) Less vulnerable to its predators

Question 10

Evolution occurs as a result of

A) The discovery of a desirable characteristic in a population
B) An individual's physiological modification
C) An environmental change that forces modification in a resident species
D) Better survival or reproduction rates by individuals with a particular characteristic
E) A population's physiological modification

Question 11

The finches of the Galapagos Islands were particularly interesting to Darwin because

A) the birds lived together on the same islands.
B) the birds were related but had been modified to survive under different conditions.
C) they were all the same species but their beaks were different.
D) they were more colorful than the mainland birds.

Question 12

An example of primary productivity would be

A) a wild raspberry plant growing 30 grams of new leaf mass during a day of photosynthesis.
B) a young oriole growing 10 more grams of muscle during a feeding trip to a raspberry bush.
C) a young hawk growing 10 more grams of body mass by killing and eating a young oriole.

Question 13

Cheetahs can run extremely fast because

A) They need to outrun lions
B) Their ancestors who were able to run fast had an advantage and passed those genes on to their offsprings
C) Over time, they gradually built up speed as they adapted to faster and faster prey species
D) They are competing with stronger lions and hyenas for their food, so they need to be fast
E) All of the options above

Question 14

Indicator species are important because

A) they suggest that a barren ecosystem will soon recover.
B) they suggest the level of resilience an ecosystem will have.
C) their presence indicates something about the ecosystem as a whole.
D) they suggest the health of the population.

Question 15

Species which are specialists

A) have narrowly specific habitat requirements.
B) tend to have higher reproductive rates than generalists.
C) are tolerant of environmental change.
D) do not have narrowly specific habitat requirements.

Question 16

Primary productivity is the direct result of

A) photosynthesis.
B) respiration.
C) grazers feeding on plants.
D) net primary productivity.

Question 17

Development of an ecological community on a site previously devoid of life is called secondary succession.

Question 18

An organism's ________ includes its ____________.

A) ecological niche, habitat
B) habitat, ecological niche

Question 19

Organisms commonly develop new traits because they desire them.

Question 20

Some communities are prevented from reaching a true climax stage by periodic disruption by events such as fire.

Question 21

Populations can be critically limited by

A) Available food
B) Suitable shelter from the elements
C) Available water
D) Suitable shelter from predators
E) Any of these, depending on the system

Question 22

A community that changes very little over time is said to have great

A) Renewal ability
B) Complexity
C) Diversity
D) Constancy
E) Connectedness

Question 23

What would you label the range of temperature from 95 $\degree$ F to 96 $\degree$ F for this particular species in the scenario?

A) Zone of intolerance
B) Tolerance limit range
C) Zone of physiological stress
D) Optimal range
E) Range of tolerance

Question 24

A climax community is one that

A) Is relatively stable and long lasting
B) Lasts forever
C) Contains oaks or white spruce
D) Is impervious to disruption
E) Is adapted to periodic disruption

Question 25

The most common reason that introduced species negatively impact an environment is because they

A) Are larger than native species
B) Disrupt preexisting niches
C) Are unusually efficient predators
D) None of these is correct

Question 26

Primary succession occurs when a community develops ____________ while secondary succession occurs when one ________.

A) Into a climax community; species replaces another
B) And replaces another; ecosystem becomes stable
C) On bare rock; biological community replaces another
D) And then fails; niche changes
E) Intraspecific competition; experiences interspecific competition

Question 27

Which of the following fish species would be the best indicator of clean, well-oxygenated water?

A) Carp
B) Largemouth bass
C) Catfish
D) Rainbow trout
E) Sunfish

Question 28

A species can withstand a wide range of pH as an adult but the juveniles can only withstand a narrow range of pH. The abiotic factor, pH, would best be described as a

A) Stress factor
B) Intolerance factor
C) Tolerance limit
D) Critical factor
E) Physical factor

Question 29

In a biological community where diversity is great, such as a tropical rainforest, the abundance of any one species is likely to be

A) Great
B) Small
C) Widely variable from year to year
D) The same from year to year
E) None of these, abundance does not depend on diversity

Question 30

In the coastal forest of Oregon an area was clear-cut for logging. Trees at the edge of the clearing and 200 meters into the forest died within a few months after the logging began. What is the best explanation for the death of the trees?

A) The trees at the edge of the forest were more prone to disease
B) Increased sunlight, wind and temperature negatively affected the trees
C) The roots of all of the trees were damaged
D) Nitrogen fixing bacteria in the roots of the trees were killed

Question 31

Indicator species, such as lichens, generally have a(n) ___________ tolerance range for a ____________.

A) Narrow; critical factor
B) Narrow; number of physical factors
C) Average; number of physical factors
D) Broad; number of critical factors
E) Broad; critical factor

Question 32

What would you label the range of temperature from 90 $\degree$ F to 94 $\degree$ F for this particular species?

A) Zone of intolerance
B) Zone of physiological stress
C) Tolerance limit range
D) Optimal range
E) Range of tolerance

Question 33

A "closed community" has a

A) Narrow ecotone
B) Gradual transition zone
C) Wide ecotone
D) Very small area
E) Large core area

Question 34

As a rule, near the Earth's north and south poles,

A) Diversity is high and abundance is low
B) Abundance is high and diversity is high
C) Neither abundance nor diversity is high
D) Abundance is high and diversity is low
E) Abundance and diversity are about the same

Question 35

Complexity in an ecological community has to do with the number of

A) Species in the population
B) Species at each trophic level
C) Genetic variations within a species
D) Primary producers available
E) Primary producers relative to the number of consumers

Question 36

A community with hundreds of different types of primary producers, a few herbivores and only one carnivore, has

A) Little complexity
B) Little diversity
C) A great deal of complexity
D) Low productivity
E) A great deal of productivity

Question 37

There are usually many tolerance limits responsible for limiting the number and location of a species. However, some organisms have ____________ that limit/limits their distribution.

A) a specific critical factor
B) other environmental conditions
C) many factors
D) nothing

Question 38

Tolerance limits are _______ that limit a species' survival.

A) Temperature ranges
B) Any environmental conditions
C) Population sizes
D) Narrow salinity levels
E) Undesirable toxin concentrations

Question 39

As ecological development proceeds, a biological community

A) Gradually stagnates
B) Becomes more diverse
C) Goes through repeated secondary succession stages
D) Goes through repeated primary succession stages
E) Becomes less complex

Question 40

Which of the following are pioneer species?

A) Wood warblers
B) Dandelions
C) Starlings
D) Lichens
E) Humans

Question 41

A viceroy butterfly that closely resembles the bad tasting monarch is an example of __________, and the example of beetles that look like stinging wasps is an example of __________.

A) Batesian mimicry; Batesian mimicry
B) Batesian mimicry; Muellerian mimicry
C) Muellerian mimicry; Muellerian mimicry
D) Muellerian mimicry; Batesian mimicry
E) Commensalism; symbiosis

Question 42

Which of the following is NOT a strategy for successfully avoiding interspecific competition?

A) Eating fruit before it is ripe for other species
B) Trees spreading seeds or offspring far and fast
C) Producing substances that are toxic to competitors
D) All of these are strategies for successful interspecific competition

Question 43

Epiphytes growing on tropical trees exemplify

A) Mutualism
B) Predation
C) Parasitism
D) Commensalism
E) Intraspecific competition

Question 44

Two birds, a titmouse and a chickadee are living in the same territory and are using some of the same resources. This interaction can be best classified as

A) Mutualism
B) Intraspecific competition
C) Interspecific competition
D) Symbiosis
E) Commensalism

Question 45

In a commensal relationship,

A) One species benefits while the other neither suffers nor benefits
B) One species benefits while the other suffers
C) Two species live together and both suffer
D) Two species live together and neither benefits nor suffers
E) Two species live together and both benefit

Question 46

Intraspecific competition is competition among ________ for resources.

A) Predators and prey
B) Plants and animals
C) Producers, consumers and detritivores
D) Members of different species
E) Members of a single species

Question 47

"Abundance" describes the total number of _________ while "diversity" describes the number of _________.

A) Species in a community; individual organisms in a community
B) Organisms in a community; species in a community
C) Individuals in a niche; niches available to a given species
D) Species in a bioregion; trophic levels in a community
E) Biomes; habitats available for different species

Question 48

Symbiosis means

A) A relationship in which both species benefit
B) A parasitic relationship
C) Commensalism
D) Living together
E) A relationship in which one species benefits and the other does not benefit

Question 49

____________________ is the term used to describe two species that look alike and are both danergous or unpalatable.

A) Mullerian mimicry
B) Batesian mimicry
C) Symbiosis
D) Commensalism

Question 50

Resource partitioning tends to lead to a high degree of _______ in species.

A) Specialization
B) Evolution
C) Convergent evolution
D) Generalization
E) Divergent evolution

Question 51

Most organisms' niches are controlled by

A) Genetic trait for adaptive characteristics
B) Lessons learned from parents
C) Behavior learned from others in their social groups
D) Luck
E) The predators and competitors they encounter

Question 52

A tone species is a species whose presence

A) Is the main reason a community exists
B) Provides food for all other species in a community
C) Is an indicator of environmental health
D) Influences the population size of many other species in its community
E) Is always at the top of the trophic levels as a top predator

Question 53

In the partnership of a lichen, the fungus provides _________ and the relationship is best described as _______.

A) Most of the photosynthesis; symbiosis
B) Poisons that deter predation; commensalism
C) Structure and moisture-holding ability; mutualism
D) Very little to the algal partner; parasitism
E) Some of the photosynthesis; commensalism

Question 54

Territoriality is an important form of _________ for many animal species.

A) Symbiotic behavior
B) Interspecific competition
C) Intraspecific competition
D) Commensalism
E) Resource partitioning

Question 55

Resource partitioning leads species to

A) Feed at different times
B) Utilize slightly different prey
C) Develop different physiological adaptations
D) Live in slightly different regions
E) All of these would be a result of resource partitioning

Question 56

An especially effective strategy for reducing intraspecific competition is

A) Assigning different ecological niches for juveniles and adults of the same species
B) Rapid reproduction
C) Eating fruit before it is ripe for other species
D) Resource partitioning

Question 57

Predation influences evolution when

A) Prey species develop defensive characteristics over generations
B) An individual predator adapts and becomes more efficient in catching its prey
C) Predators kill off all of their prey
D) A population of predators develop defensive characteristics
E) Prey species change their reproductive rate to match predation in the local ecosystem

Question 58

Which of the following statements is true?

A) In a mutualistic relationship one partner benefits and the other is neither harmed nor helped
B) In a mutualistic relationship both partners benefit from the relationship
C) In a commensalistic relationship one partner benefits and the other is adversely affected
D) In a commensalistic relationship both partners benefit equally
E) In a parasitic relationship both partners are adversely affected

Question 59

In some species, young individuals float freely as plankton while mature members are fixed on the seafloor. This is an effective strategy because

A) The different life phases of these species do not compete for food
B) Fixed adults are more likely to survive
C) Predators cannot catch plankton
D) The adults can find mates more readily

Question 60

A biological community's productivity is a measure of

A) Its number of species
B) The number of individuals in the community
C) Available solar energy that can be converted to biomass
D) The amount of biomass produced in the community
E) All of these are combined in measuring a community's productivity

Question 61

Certain night-active moths and day-active birds are specialized nectar feeders. How do these species coexist if they are using the same resource for food?

A) Because they both use the nectar, eventually one of the two species will need to move to a new area
B) They do not compete for the nectar because they feed at different times of the day
C) There is enough nectar to supply both the birds and the moths with their feeding needs
D) Eventually the niche breadth will increase and there will be less competition
E) None of the choices is correct

Question 62

A generalist is a species that

A) Occupies a large habitat range
B) Occupies a wide range of ecological niches
C) Can reproduce under highly variable conditions
D) Can reproduce only under specific conditions
E) None of these are characteristics of a generalist species

Question 63

Humans can best be described as

A) Occupying a narrow niche
B) An example of convergent evolution
C) Outside the rules of natural selection
D) Specialists
E) Generalists