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What do you know about ECOLOGY? (50 pts., scaled down a bit)
Place the level of ecological organization next to its definition.
(Word Bank: ecosystem, population, community, biosphere, species, biome)
_____________________ 1. groups of individuals that belong to the same species and live
in the same area
_____________________ 2. the combined portion of the planet in which all life exists, including land,
water, and air
_____________________ 3. a group of ecosystems that have the same climate and dominant
communities
_____________________ 4. a group of organisms so similar to one another that they can breed and
produce fertile offspring
_____________________ 5. a collection of all the organisms that live in a particular place
_____________________ 6. assemblages of different populations that live together in a defined area
7. In the pond ecosystem, give 3 examples of biotic factors (1 pt. each):
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8. In the pond ecosystem, give 3 examples of abiotic factors (1 pt. each):
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9. Create a food chain documenting life in the Atlantic Ocean (2pts.)
_________ 10. What percent of energy is passed between trophic levels?
a. 1%
b. 10%
c. 50%
d. 100%
_________ 11. An organism that can produce its own energy is a(n)
a. autotroph.
b. consumer.
c. heterotroph.
d. decomposer.
_________ 12. Using our small quadrats to study the ecology of all of Rhode Island is an example of
a. experimenting.
b. modeling.
c. transfiguring.
d. assimilating.
13. Diagram a food web of the New England. (5 pts.)
Give at least one example of the following: producer, decomposer, scavenger, primary
consumer, secondary consumer, tertiary consumer , and label the organism as such.
14. Create a biomass pyramid representing life for Bruce, our resident large mouth bass. His mass is
about 5kg, he eats tadpoles, the tadpoles eat algae. (2pts.)
_________ 15. Which biogeochemical cycle doe NOT involve a stage where the chemical enters the
atomosphere?
a. the water cycle
b. the carbon cycle
c. the nitrogen cycle
d. the phosphorous cycle
_________ 16. Why are bacteria critical in a fish tank?
a. They produce heat for the fish
b. They produce ammonia that helps the fishes’ immune system
c. They convert ammonia into less harmful nitrogenous molecules
d. They keep the fish company during lonely weekends
_________ 17. From where do humans get the carbon they need to build themselves?
a. breathing
b. eating
c. genetics
d. defocating
18. Diagram and label the water cycle. (3 pts.)
19. Phosphorous is found in the ground in rocks. It is also an essential nutrient in our bodies as it is
found in DNA. Explain in a labeled diagram how it goes from a rock, into our bodies, and back
into the ground. (3 pts.)
20.
Explain what your personal niche is.
_________ 21. Two birds fighting for the same resource is known as
a. competition.
b. commenalism.
c. mutualism.
d. parasitism.
_________ 22. Living in a close relationship is known as
a. symbiosis.
b. competition.
c. predation.
d. the buddy system.
_________ 23. Remora live on sharks and eat off small bugs. The sharks benefit as well because
they are less likely to get sick from those bugs that the remora eat. The shark-remora relationship is
a. competition
b. predation.
c. mutualism.
d. parasitism.
_________ 24. Two people bidding at an auction is an example of
a. competition.
b. commensalism.
c. mutualism.
d. parasitism.
_________ 25. Fleas on the backs of dogs are irritating and harmful. This is an example of
a. competition.
b. commensalism.
c. mutualism.
d. parasitism.
_________ 26. Barnacles hitch a ride on the backs of whales, they don’t ham them whales, but they
do benefit from this one-way relationship. This an example of
a. competition.
b. commensalism.
c. mutualism.
d. parasitism.
Directions: for questions 30 - 35 write in the name of the biome most appropriate.
(savannah, temperate, tropical, and coniferous forests, tundra, desert)
___________________ 30. the climate is dry year-round and very hot
___________________ 31. dominant plants are cone-bearing evergreens
___________________ 32. there is little precipitation and it is very cold, dominated by
caribou, snowy owls, and short, shrubby plants
___________________ 33. our home
___________________ 34. hot year-round, but can have lots of moisture, great abundance
and diversity of life
___________________ 35. common to middle North America and Africa. Home to fast
animals. Moderate precipitation in late Spring.
36. Provide a PERFECT definition of ecology:
Bonus: Fill in table with the EXACT names of these local cohabitants
Exact Name
Common
critters to
pond
ecosystem