Download Station 1: Photosynthesis and Respiration

Station 1: Photosynthesis
and Respiration
1) Describe, in words, what photosynthesis allows plants to do.
Photosynthesis allows plants to use the power of sunlight to combine water and
carbon dioxide into sugar.
2) Where in the plant cells does photosynthesis take place?
Chloroplasts
3) You observe that a plant is wilting and dying. It is in the open air, with plenty of
sunlight and nutrients. What substance must it be lacking?
Water
4) If you were to supply the missing substance in question #3 what would the plant
begin to produce?
Glucose (sugar) and oxygen
5) What is the relationship between photosynthesis and cellular respiration?
They are opposites of each other
6) Do plants use cellular respiration?
Yes
7) The early atmosphere of the Earth had nearly no oxygen. Based on this
information, which had to evolve first: photosynthesis or cellular respiration?
Explain.
Photosynthesis. Because without oxygen you can’t have cellular respiration.
Station 2: Food Chains and
Food Webs
8) Use the following information to construct a food web:
Organism
Caterpillar
Ladybird beetle
Field mouse
Dandelion
Owl
Sparrow
Aphid
Sunflower
See page below for web.
What it consumes
Sunflower, dandelion
Aphid
Dandelion, caterpillar
(nothing)
Sparrow, field mouse
Ladybird beetle, caterpillar
Sunflower, dandelion
(nothing)
9) Which organisms in your web are primary producers?
Dandelion, sunflower
10) Which organisms in your web are primary consumers?
Caterpillar, aphid, field mouse
11) Which organism would be the apex predator?
Owl
12) Are there any species that occupy more than one trophic level? Which species?
(You do not have to list their trophic levels)
Yes. Field mouse, owl
13) Why are food webs considered superior to food chains in ecology?
They show all the connections, not just one (they are more accurate)
Owl
Sparrow
Field mouse
Ladybird Beetle
Caterpillar
Aphid
Sunflower
Dandelion
Station 3: Energy Flow in
Ecosystems
14) In the previous station sunflowers and dandelions are said to consume “nothing.”
However, this is not completely true. Where do they get their energy from?
The sun
15) Is there more energy available at the bottom or top of a food chain?
Bottom
16) About what percentage of energy is transferred from one trophic level to
another?
10%
17) Place the organisms in a suitable location on the energy pyramid (think of it like a
food chain; what goes on bottom?):





Wheat
Hawk
Snake
Mouse
Grasshopper
Hawk
Snake
Hawk
Mouse
Grasshopper
Wheat
18) If you have 50 kilograms of hawks in the ecosystem from #17, about what mass
of snakes would you need to support them?
500 kilograms
19) If you had 293,901 kilograms of wheat in the ecosystem from #17, about what
mass of mice could be supported?
2,939 kilograms
20) How many hawks could be supported on 293, 901 kilograms of wheat?
29 kilograms
21) Review: what form does most waste energy take?
Heat
Station 4: Organism
Relationships
22) What does the term “symbiosis” translate to?
“Together life”
23) Cockroaches have adapted to live around humans. Humans aren’t hurt by this,
but the cockroaches have become very successful. How would you classify this
type of relationship?
Commensalism
24) Leeches are a water-dwelling organism that attach to animals and suck their
blood. How would you classify this type of relationship?
Parasitism
25) Termites have special bacteria that live in their gut. These bacteria are able to
digest cellulose, allowing the termites to eat wood when most organisms cannot.
How would you classify this relationship?
Mutualism
26) Wildebeest are large herbivores that are common in Africa. They live in large
herds, allowing them to watch out for dangers by having many pairs of eyes all at
once. Would this count as symbiosis?
No; it doesn’t involve more than one species
27) Wildebeest are commonly eaten by crocodiles. How would you classify this type
of relationship?
Predator/prey
28) Discuss briefly why it might be beneficial for two organisms to cooperate in a
mutualism.
Answers vary
29) The public is often worried about saving certain charismatic species (save the
whales!) but conservationists often emphasize the need to preserve the whole
ecosystem. Why would it be necessary to save many species at once rather than
just one?
Because many species rely on others to survive. A single species can’t survive
without the support of many others
Station 5: Population
30) What are the three criteria for a population in biology?
Same species, same area, interbreeding
31) What are two common restrictions on population growth? (We talked about
several)
Food, water, shelter, parasites, disease, predators, space
32) Which duck has the highest fitness? Explain your answer.
Individual
# of eggs laid
# of eggs
hatched
# of chicks
survive to
adulthood
# of chicks # of chicks
that have that die of
offspring
old age
Duck #1
9
8
7
2
2
Duck #2
10
4
3
2
1
Duck #3
4
4
3
1
0
Duck #4
6
4
3
3
0
Duck #4; because it had the most offspring that lived to adulthood and reproduced.
33) What is the carrying capacity of a population?
How many individuals an area can support
34) What happens to a population if it exceeds its carrying capacity?
It will crash back down below it
35) What type of growth does a population undergo if restrictions are lifted? Draw a
simple graph of what it would look like.
Exponential (graph curves upward)
36) Which of the graphs below is a reasonable depiction of a regular population looks
like over time? Explain. C. Because populations don’t settle down to just one
value.
A
B
C
Station 6: Human Impact
37) What is the greenhouse effect?
When light energy from the sun is trapped by the atmosphere.
38) Which gas is most responsible for the greenhouse effect?
Carbon dioxide (CO2)
39) Is this gas considered a pollutant?
No.
40) What is the name of the phenomenon that is occurring right now that has caused
us to have a great deal of interest in the greenhouse effect?
Global warming
41) How can energy act as a pollutant? Specifically, what negative effects do types of
energy have on organisms?
Light and sound can disrupt behaviors, heat can interfere with the temperature
balance of an ecosystem
42) We are currently undergoing a mass extinction on this planet. As you talk to a
friend about this they say, “This type of thing has never happened before. It’s
unprecedented to have so many species go extinct.” As an ecological scientist,
how would you respond? Support your answer.
Your friend is not correct because mass extinctions are not new. At least five
have happened in the history of the Earth. (Not that having a mass extinction is a
good thing, mind you)
43) (Not on test): Why specifically is dumping sewage and fertilizer with excess
nitrogen bad for waterways?
It creates algal blooms which choke the ecosystem, first by blocking light from
the plants and then eliminating all the oxygen as they decay
44) Review (not on test): Classify the following as either renewable or nonrenewable.
i. Petroleum Non-renewable
ii. Wheat Renewable
iii. Sunlight Renewable
iv. Coal Non-renewable
v. Fish Renewable
vi. Diamonds Non-renewable