Download AP Environmental Science Exam

AP Environmental Science Exam
Unit Two: Ecology, Evolution, Climate, Biomes
Name____________________
1. In Yellowstone National Park, the return of the wolf to the park has probably NOT caused which of the
following impacts: _______
a. Willow trees are growing larger
b. Elk population have decreased
c. Rodent and fox populations have decreased
d. The overall park has a healthier ecosystem
2. Of the following organisms, which occupies the lowest trophic level? _______
a. spider
b. deer
c. lion
d. hawk
e. snake
3. Which of the following best shows the process of evolution? _______
a. a lizard color becomes brown as it sits on a log
b. a bear goes into hibernation
c. a plant loses its leaves in a drought
d. a population of mosquitoes develop resistance to a pesticide
e. a population of foxes increase as more prey becomes available
4. In general which of the following is the best long-term method of preventing extinctions? _______
a. breeding endangered species in captivity
b. protecting the habitats of endangered species
c. paying people not kill endangered species
d. providing food to endangered species in the wild
e. removing predators from areas that contain endangered species
5. El Nino, a periodic warming of the ocean surface waters, occurs in which of the following regions?
_______
a. Tropical East Pacific
b. Gulf of Mexico
c. Arctic Pacific Waters
d. Temperate West Atlantic
e. Tropical Indian Ocean
6. Two major process that involve the carbon cycle are: _______
a. Weathering and erosion
b. Photosynthesis and respiration
c. Evaporation and transpiration
d. Erosion and deposition
e. Fixation and denitrification
7. Elements that cycle in the environment and that also have a gaseous phase at some point in their cycle
include which of the following? _______
I.
Carbon
II.
Phosphorus
III.
Sulfur
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
I only
III only
I and II only
I and III only
I, II, and III
8. Energy enters a system as sunlight and a producer is able to produce 10 kilograms of body tissue. If
eaten, the producer would pass on about ____ kilograms in the consumer tissue that would then provide
about ___ kilograms for a secondary consumer. _______
a. 100, 10
b. 10,1
c. 100, 1
d. 1,0.1
e. 10,0.1
9. Living vegetation and the ocean are known as “carbon sinks” because they _______
a. are made of carbon
b. create carbon
c. destroy carbon
d. store carbon
10. Phosphorus cycles through the Earth’s ecosystems: _______
a. extremely quickly
b. very slowly
c. only when activated by humans
d. very rarely
11. Resource partitioning leads species to: ________
a. Feed at different times
b. Migrate to other regions
c. Develop physiological adaptations
d. All of these would be the result of resource partitioning
12. A certain species can withstand a narrow range of temperature. Above 100 degrees F, there are no
individuals present. Between 100-97 degrees F, there are very few individuals present and below 90
degrees F there are no individuals present. Most of the individuals are found between 90-94 degrees F.
What would label the range of 90-94 degrees F? _______
a. zone of intolerance
b. zone of physiological stress
c. zone of tolerance
d. optimal range
13. Which of the following is physiological modification used to adapt to environmental conditions?
_______
a. Young saguaro cactus seedlings sprouting in the shade of mesquite plants
b. Leaves become think and leathery on plant growing in the desert sun
c. Locoweed growing only where selenium is in the soil
d. Desert pupfish finding the right temperature of mud to lay their eggs
14. How does the burning of fossil fuels contribute to the net increase in atmospheric carbon? _______
a. Photosynthesis is reduced by virtue of increased smoke and haze.
b. Carbon released by the burning is not in a form that can be readily absorbed by plants, leaving
residual carbon in the atmosphere.
c. Carbon that has been sequestered underground is added to the carbon cycling between the
atmosphere and biosphere.
d. Carbon released by the burning is more easily absorbed in the atmosphere than that produced by
natural means.
e. Carbon released by burning increases plants growth, producing more carbon for the atmosphere.
Use the following to answer the next three questions.
A. Photosynthesis
B. Eutrophication
C. Denitrification
D. Decomposition
E. Transpiration
15. The rapid rate of this process in tropical forests results in low-nutrient soils. _______
16. The process in which glucose is synthesized by plants. _______
17. The process in which a soil nutrient is reduced and released into the atmosphere. _______
18. Which of the following statements about genetic diversity is true? _______
a. Genetic uniformity of a crop will increase the crop’s overall resistance to pest and disease
b. Genetic resistance to pest and disease can be increased when crossing a crop plant with ancestral
varieties
c. Genetic engineering technology is used to increase the genetic diversity by creating a species
with synthetic genes.
d. Genetic diversity within a population such as corn is typically high
e. Genetic diversity is typically high in endangered species.
19. Which of the following factors is fundamentally responsible for the seasons on the Earth? _______
a. the varying distances from the Earth to the Sun
b. the tilt of the Earth on its axis
c. the latitudinal variation of temperature and precipitation
d. the tidal pull of the sun and moon
e. the anthropogenic greenhouse effect
Match the following temperature and precipitation graphs with the appropriate biomes.
20. Tropical Rainforest _______
21. Coniferous (boreal) Forest _______
22. Deciduous Forest _______
23. Tundra _______
24. The most productive terrestrial ecosystem by net primary productivity per unit area is: _______
a. Tropical Rainforest
b. Temperate Forest
c. Swamps and marshes
d. Desert Scrub
e. Tundra
25. In a soil profile the horizon that is MAINLY topsoil is: _______
a. O horizon
b. A horizon
c. B horizon
d. C horizon
26. Going from the equator to the pole, which of the two biomes are in the right order? _______
a. Desert to Tropical Rainforest
b. Coniferous Forest to Tundra
c. Temperate Deciduous Forest to Desert
d. Tundra to Deciduous Forest
e. None of the above are in the right order
Questions 27-28. A one hectare pond is sampled in early September. The sample yields 1 small catfish as well
as 17 benthic invertebrates that represent 10 species.
27. Which of the following can be estimated from the sample for the invertebrates in the pond? ________
a. The species richness
b. The ponds productivity
c. The uniformity of species distribution in the pond
d. The degree of disturbance
e. The stability of the ecosystem
28. If the pond is resampled a year later, which of the following would best indicate that the pond had been
adversely affected by adjacent development? ________
a. An uncommon species has become more numerous
b. An increase in low tolerance species has occurred
c. A decrease in high tolerance species has occurred
d. Phylogenic diversity has increased
e. The biodiversity of the pond has decreased
29. Which of the following is considered a generalist species? ________
a. Giant panda
b. humans
c. tiger salamanders
d. koalas
e. None of the above
30. The 2 most important factors in determining a biome are (select 2) ________
a. temperature
b. latitude
c. soil composition
d. elevation
e. precipitation
Questions 31-34 refer to the layers of Earth’s atmosphere in the temperature profile shown below.
31. Region where the protective ozone layer is located. ________
32. Region that contains the majority of molecules in the atmosphere. ________
33. Region largely responsible for the weather experienced at the Earth’s surface. ________
34. Region with the lowest atmospheric pressure. ________
35. What is the reason for phosphorus not being found in the atmosphere? ________
a. it is a uniform solid and cannot be converted to a gas
b. It is only found on the ocean floor and therefore cannot be released into the atmosphere
c. Soil conditions do not allow bacteria to convert chemical forms of phosphorus to gaseous forms.
d. Phosphorus is a nearly undetectable element in a gaseous state.
e. Phosphorus is found as a gas.
36. Which biome is the most stable (least fragile)? ________
a. coniferous (boreal) forest
b. desert
c. chaparral
d. tropical rain forest
e. tundra
37. Carbon cycles through the biosphere in all of the following processes EXCEPT: ________
a. photosynthesis
b. transpiration
c. burning of fossil fuels
d. decomposition of plants and animals
38. Several species of warblers (birds) can live in the same spruce tree only because they ________
a. have different habitats within the tree
b. eat different foods within the tree
c. occupy different niches within the tree
d. can find different temperatures within the tree
39. Speciation ________
a. is a process by which populations of one species diverge genetically and producing one or more new
subspecies or species
b. is the results of minor extinction events
c. only results from interspecific hybridization
d. is completed when two different species are able to interbreed
e. always takes millions of years
40. The theory of natural selection suggests that ________
a. in each generation, individuals well adapted for their environment are more likely to live longer and
tend to produce more offspring than the less well adapted individuals
b. the death of individuals occur completely at random with respect to their genotypes
c. the death of individuals occur completely at random with respect to their phenotypes
d. the survival and reproductive success of individuals depend to a limited extent upon their genetic
adaptations to their environment
e. most deaths of individual organisms occur soon after fertilization, as a result of hereditary deficiencies
Free Response
Matter is continually recycled between the biotic and abiotic components of Earth’s ecosystems in
biogeochemical cycles. The various cycles different from one another in several key aspects of their storage,
conversation and modes of transport. (4 points)
(a)
Describe the critical processes by which nitrogen is cycled through the biotic and abiotic components of
Earth’s ecosystems.
(b)
Describe ONE way in which humans have disrupted the natural cycling of carbon and TWO major
environmental consequences of that disruption.
2. Shannon Weiner Index (4 points)
A. Complete the data below.
Species
Whip mud worm
Mussels
Barnacles
White anemones
Dusky sea slug
Isopods
Total
i
pi
Ln(pi)
Piln(pi)
8
20
15
5
2
6
B. Calculate H and discuss the meaning of the number you find.
3. Why do most species living at high latitudes and high altitudes tend to be ecological generalists while
those living in the tropics tend to be ecological specialists? (4 points)