Multiple Choice Ecology Questions, Quiz Example

1. One level of the biodiversity crisis is the potential loss of ecosystems. The most likely serious consequence of a loss in ecosystem diversity would be
a)increase in global warming and thinning of the ozone layer
b)loss of ecosystem services on which humans depend
c)increase in the dominance of edge-adapted species
d)loss of a source of genetic diversity to preserve endangered species

2. Small areas with exceptionally high species diversity are termed
a)exotic hot spots
b)biologically magnified
c)biodiversity hot spots
d)endemic environments
e)biodiverse environments

3. About one third of all animal and plant species are concentrated onto ____of Earth’s land
a)20%
b)50%
c)10%
d)1.5%
e)5%

4. Movement corridors
a)can be harmful because they allow for the spread of disease
b)reduce dispersal
c)increase inbreeding
d)generally increase the mutation rate of connected populations
e)can be harmful because they allow for gene flow

5. Fragmented populations
a)are more vulnerable to the greenhouse effect than are non-fragmented populations
b)result from the introduction of endemic species
c)are likely to exhibit low levels of genetic diversity
d)are at little risk of extinction
e)are composed of endemic species

6. Using living organisms to clean up polluted ecosystems is known as
a)landscaping
b)biological demagnification
c)PVA
d)bioremediation
e)augmentation

7. The declining-population approach to studying endangered populations
a)uses bioengineering to increase genetic diversity in populations
b)seeks to merge small populations into larger populations
c)is no longer considered valid, since populations are already too small
d)tries to boost declining populations through captive breeding
e)seeks to detect, diagnose, and halt population declines

8. The primary goal of conservation biology is to
a)maximize the land set aside for wildlife
b)estimate the total number of species that exist
c)integrate human culture back into nature
d)catalogue species
e)counter the loss of biodiversity

9. With limited resources, conservation biologists need to prioritize their efforts. Of the following choices, which should receive the greatest attention for the goal of conserving biodiversity?
a)the northern spotted owl
b)a commercially important species
c)threatened and endangered vertebrate species
d)a declining keystone species in a community
e)all endangered species

10. Adding iron to a lake to increase the population of plankton as part of an effort to restore the lake community is an example of
a)biological magnification
b)succession
c)bioremediation
d)habitat turnover
e)biological augmentation

11. The application of ecological principles to return a degraded ecosystem to its natural state is specifically characteristic of
a)population viability analysis
b)landscape ecology
c)conservation ecology
d)restoration ecology
e)resource conservation

12. According to the small-population approach, what would be the best strategy for saving a population that is in an extinction vortex?
a)determining the minimum population size
b)establishing a nature reserve to protect its habitat
c)introducing individuals from another population to increase genetic variation
d)sterilizing the least fit individuals
e)reducing the population size of its predators and competitors

Short Answer Questions:

13. Why is it important to conserve biodiversity?

There are two reasons to preserve biodiversity. The first is its intrinsic value and the second is because biodiversity performs a number of services for humans that have economic, aesthetic, or recreational value.

14. What is an MVP?

MVP stands for minimum viable population.

15. What is a zoned reserve?

A large area of undisturbed land that is surrounded by land used by humans for economic gain.

16. What does sustainable development aim to do?

Sustainable development is economic development that meets human needs while attempting to preserve the environment and resources for future generational use.

17. What is the difference between biological augmentation and bioremediation?

Bioremediation is an environmental clean-up technique using certain organisms to purge the environment of harmful chemicals. Biological augmentation uses certain organisms to add needed chemicals to an environment.

18. Contrast traditional and industrialized agricultural methods. What are the major inputs of energy for production, in each?

Traditional agriculture uses animal and manpower, hand tools and simple machines that do not use fossil fuels. Industrial agriculture uses genetic engineering, biotechnology, chemicals, and machinery. The major input of energy for traditional agriculture is animal and manpower, for industrial agriculture it is machinery.

19. Identify and discuss two sources of nutrient loss during forest harvest and management?

During forest harvest and management, calcium is lost from forest products and causes leaching of calcium from forest soils. Whole tree harvests have the greatest nutrient impact.

20. Why do economists discount future benefits? What is the consequence of discounting on sustainable management of resources?

Discounting translates future dollars into their current equivalent value; future benefits are discounted to account for a positive time preferences. It can result in over-exploitation of resources.

Question 2)
Scientific information is of little value in resolving environmental issues in our society. Please write two paragraph arguing for and two paragraph arguing against this statement.

Rather than being a question of hard science, our society’s environmental issues are of a sociological nature. It is the behavior of humans that is to blame for many environmental issues. Behavior is not something that hard scientific information will likely influence.

One environmental issue in question is global population size. Large population sizes put increased demands on resources. This is an issue better addressed with identifying the reasons for increased population in some areas, as well as imparting better health information and higher education levels for women in these areas.

Unsustainable development is a large factor influencing the environmental issue of resource availability. While scientific information may provide us with a timeframe for renewal and availability of resources, that information does little to tell us how to sustain the resources we have until they are renewed.

Economic policies, and political directions and policies, are critical factors influencing environmental issues. Economic policies affect the decisions on how to use available resources, while political directions and policies affect the purposes resources are slated for. The areas of economics and politics are often influenced by corporations and any scientific information used in these decisions is often spun to show use of resources in the corporation’s best interest, making any relevant data of no real use.

Question 3)

Please read the “Quantifying Ecology 28.2: Effective Population Size” section on page 607 of your textbook. I am posting page 607 of my text book under this for your viewing.

1) What is the effective population size of a population of 80 breeding females and only 20 breeding males?

The effective population size is 64.

2) How could the effective population size differ for the same population size of 100, but with 50 breeding females and 50 breeding males (monogamous)?

The effective population size increases to 100.