Download Ecology Unit Review Questions

Ecology Unit Review Questions
Ch. 3 Biosphere
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What are the 3 most common methods used in ecological studies? If giving an example, be able to identify
which method is being used.
What are producers and consumers? What is the importance of the roles each plays in an ecosystem?
How do producers make their own energy? Be able to describe the process.
What are the different categories of consumers? Be able to give an example of each.
What are the differences between a food chain and a food web?
What do pyramids of energy show? What is each level called? What are the 3 types of pyramids and what do
they show? How much energy is available at successive levels and how is the energy lost from one level to the
next?
What are biogeochemical cycles?
How does water cycle through the atmosphere?
What is a limiting nutrient?
Ch. 5 Populations
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What are the 4 characteristics of a population? Be able to explain each.
How is the density of a population calculated? You will be asked to be able to calculate the population density
of a specific population.
What factors affect population growth or decline? Don’t forget to define words like immigration vs. emigration.
Understand exponential and logistic growth curves. Can you identify which is which?
Why do some populations experience exponential growth but then taper off into a logistics growth model?
Identify the characteristics that contribute to each of the growth models. Given an example of population
growth identify what factors are contributing to the rapid or slowing growth of a population.
What are density-dependent limiting factors? Give examples and be able to answer questions about them given
scenarios in a population.
What are density-independent limiting factors? Give examples and be able to answer questions about them
given scenarios in a population.
What are some of the factors that contributed to the exponential growth of the human population over the last
two centuries?
What is the human population expected to reach in the year 2050?
Ch. 6 Humans in the Biosphere
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What is monoculture? How has it allowed our society to advance and grow?
What is the difference between a point source and non-point source pollution? Examples of each?
What is biomagnification? Using the example of DDT (an insecticide) explain how it’s levels change as it moves
through a food chain.
What were the causes of the Dust Bowl of the 1930’s?
What is the difference between a renewable and a non-renewable resource? Examples of each?
What affects the biodiversity in an ecosystem?
What is an ecological footprint?