DAT Ecology Practice Exam

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• Which principle states that no two species can sustain coexistence if they occupy the same niche?
• AKA warning coloration
• Which biogeochemical cycle has reservoirs in rocks and ocean sediments?
• Which biodiversity index accounts for both richness and evenness?
• Which term describes the relatively shallow areas at the edge of continents that transition to the deep ocean?
• Which can fix nitrogen gas (N2) into usable forms?
• Which field examines how populations grow, stay the same, or decline over time?
• Which of the following best describes the edge effect in fragmented habitats?
• What best defines a trophic (energy) pyramid?
• Which category refers specifically to animals that eat leaves of plants?
• In ecology, a niche is...
• Which biome is characterized by a dense canopy and very little light reaching the forest floor due to high temperature and high rainfall?
• Plants and animals that are first to colonize newly exposed habitats are called what?
• Which trait is commonly associated with pioneer species in ecological succession?
• Which option correctly differentiates autotrophs and heterotrophs with examples?
• Which of the following best describes primary producers?
• Which term represents the set of regions containing living things, including oceans and soil top layers?
• Toxic chemicals produced by plants that discourage herbivores are called what?
• Which is the correct equation for population growth (r)?
• The intrinsic rate of growth is defined as the maximum rate of population increase under ideal conditions.
• What is the difference between pioneer species and late-successional species?
• Which term refers to the niche shift, also known as character displacement, where species diverge to reduce overlap?
• In the logistic growth model, growth rate slows as population size approaches carrying capacity due to limiting factors.
• Which term best describes the study of distribution and abundance of organisms, their interactions with other organisms, and their interactions with their physical environment?
• Which concept describes the niche shift, also known as character displacement, where species diverge to reduce overlap?
• Which term describes the deep ocean, far from shore and surface disturbances?
• Primary productivity is defined as...
• Pioneer species tend to have which attribute when colonizing disturbed habitats?
• Ecological restoration goal: which statement is most accurate?
• What is the Shannon index and what does it measure?
• What is island biogeography theory?
• What is the term for the increasing concentration of toxins from prey to predator within a food web?
• Which category refers specifically to animals that eat grasses?
• Which type of species tends to exhibit exponential (J-shaped) growth due to many offspring and rapid maturation?
• What term describes the proportion of energy that is transferred to the next level?
• Which biome features deciduous trees that shed their leaves in winter?
• Competitive exclusion principle states that...
• Which process do primary producers primarily use to fix carbon into organic matter?
• Which process describes how species coexist by occupying slightly different niches and dividing resources?
• What factors influence the rate of ecological succession?
• In population ecology, carrying capacity K is defined as?
• Define alpha, beta, and gamma diversity.
• What term describes all biotic and abiotic resources in the environment used by an organism?
• Which term refers to the interrelationships between the organisms in a community and the environment?
• Which term describes animals that eat plants?
• Which term best describes the deep ocean, far from the shore?
• Which succession begins on bare rock, lacking soil?
• Change in the composition of species over time in a community is called what?
• Which group obtains energy by consuming dead plants and animals?
• Which organism is an autotroph?
• Limiting factors can be categorized as either density-dependent or density-independent.
• Which term describes how individuals in a population are distributed (clumped, random, uniform)?
• How does habitat fragmentation affect biodiversity?
• Which term refers to the group of individuals of the same species living in the same area?
• Which disturbance typically initiates secondary succession?
• In the phosphorus cycle, how is phosphorus reintroduced into soil after organisms die?
• Which statement best distinguishes logistic growth from exponential growth in population ecology?
• What is the term for coloration that allows an animal to blend into its environment?
• Habitats where communities were entirely or partially destroyed and previously supported life describe which process?
• Plants assimilate nitrogen primarily in which forms?
• Which species tend to keep population sizes near carrying capacity with relatively few large offspring requiring extensive parental care?
• Which cycle describes the movement of carbon through the atmosphere, biosphere, oceans, and rocks?
• Which biome is dominated by coniferous forests with cold winters and snowy precipitation?
• What is eutrophication and what typically causes it?
• Which trophic level is composed of organisms that eat primary producers and other consumers?
• Which term refers to nutrient enrichment of a lake that leads to algal blooms and oxygen depletion?
• The zone from the shoreline outward to where the continental shelf drops off is termed the
• Which process converts N2 gas to ammonia or nitrates?
• Which cycle describes the movement of water through the environment, including plant uptake and transpiration?
• Which organisms are best described as those that convert inorganic carbon into organic matter, often via photosynthesis?
• How is NEP calculated?
• Which coastal zone occurs where river water meets seawater?
• Which term refers to the hierarchical categorization of organisms based on their energy source?
• Which trophic level consists of organisms that eat primary consumers?
• Which term describes the open-water region of the ocean away from coastlines and the sea floor?
• Which species are characterized by many offspring, small size, rapid maturation, and little parental care?
• Which group includes fungi and bacteria that break down dead matter, returning nutrients to the environment?
• Which term describes the group of populations living in the same area?
• What is a biogeochemical cycle? Provide two examples.
• Two or more species resemble one another in appearance. This phenomenon is called what?
• How do consumers influence nutrient cycling besides transferring energy?
• How do parasitism and predation differ?
• Which of the following best defines the demographic transition?
• Which factor locally increases alpha diversity?
• Niche partitioning reduces competition by:
• What is niche overlap and what ecological outcomes can it lead to?
• An invasive species is best described as what?
• What is the term for the relationship between trophic levels in regards to energy?
• What is a common goal of ecological restoration?
• In a mutualistic relationship, both species benefit. Which term describes this interaction?
• Which scenario is an example of secondary succession?
• Which is an example of density-dependent population regulation?
• What does the 10% rule describe in ecological energy flow?
• Which biome is a grassland with scattered trees and relatively high temperatures but less rainfall than tropical rain forests?
• During the nitrogen cycle, which process converts ammonium (NH4+) into nitrite (NO2-)?
• Which survivorship pattern indicates that most individuals die young?
• When a species occupies only part of its fundamental niche due to competition, this is called...
• Liebig's law of the minimum states that growth is controlled by which resource?
• Which element cycles via weathering and uptake and is returned through decomposition and turnover?
• What is an ecotone and why is it often high in biodiversity?
• Ecological succession involves changes in species composition over time. What distinguishes primary from secondary succession?
• Eutrophication is typically driven by excess nutrients, especially which two elements?
• Which best describes mutualism and commensalism with examples?
• What survivorship curve describes large mammals with low juvenile mortality and high adult mortality?
• Which statement about NEP interpretation is correct?
• Which coastal zone extends from the shore to the continental slope, characterized by relatively shallow waters?
• Trophic cascade example: which option illustrates it?
• Which niche describes the full range of environmental conditions under which a species could survive in the absence of interactions with other species?
• Which description corresponds to a population with no growth where age classes are evenly represented (equal width tiers)?
• Carrying capacity is defined as what?
• Which term describes an organism that kills and eats animals?
• Which trait characterizes K-selected species?
• The reproductive rate at its maximum under ideal conditions is called what?
• What is the key difference between a food web and a food chain?
• In ecology, what is the difference between the fundamental niche and the realized niche?
• What is a keystone species?
• How is primary productivity measured in ecosystems?
• Which term describes nutrient enrichment in freshwater systems that stimulates excessive plant growth?
• Which biome has moderate rainfall and lower temperatures than savannas, typically dominated by grasses?
• Which biome is defined by extremely cold winters and a layer of permafrost beneath the surface?
• Which statement correctly differentiates gross primary productivity from net primary productivity?
• The open-water component of an aquatic system, away from the bottom, is called the
• The fundamental niche is defined as...
• In the phosphorus cycle, which form do plants assimilate?
• How does climate influence biomes and ecological processes?
• Which organism group is primarily responsible for recycling nutrients by breaking down dead organic matter?
• Which characteristic best describes r-selected species?
• Which statement about fungi in ecosystems is NOT correct?
• Which statement best defines a trophic cascade?
• In predator-prey dynamics, what is described by the Lotka-Volterra model?
• What term means the place where an organism lives?
• Which term describes an organism that lives off another organism and feeds on its tissues?
• Which survivorship pattern describes most organisms living to middle age with mortality high later in life?
• Which category refers specifically to animals that eat seeds?
• What term describes competition between different species?
• The final successional stage of a community featuring a relatively constant species composition is called what?
• Which pattern is associated with rapidly growing populations, bottom-heavy with many young?
• Which description best defines beta diversity?
• Which form of interaction occurs when one species benefits while the other is unaffected?
• What process describes toxin concentration increasing as it moves up the food chain?
• Which term denotes all biotic and abiotic resources in the environment used by an organism, determining its role in the ecosystem?
• Which of the following is an example of density-dependent population regulation?
• Which process releases CO2 back into the atmosphere in the carbon cycle?
• In the nitrogen cycle, which process releases nitrogen from organic matter as ammonium?
• Which trophic level consists of organisms that feed on primary producers?
• Which term describes an organism that lays eggs on a host and whose larvae feed by consuming host tissue?
• As population size increases, density-dependent factors tend to...
• Which biome is extreme, hot and dry, and hostile to many organisms?
• Which growth pattern is represented by a J-shaped curve?
• The term describing the open-water portion of the ocean that excludes the sea floor and shoreline is
• Which process is primarily responsible for returning nutrients to inorganic forms after death?
• What term refers to nutrient enrichment in lakes that leads to increased biomass?
• Which growth pattern is S-shaped and approaches carrying capacity?
• Which process converts atmospheric nitrogen (N2) into ammonium (NH4+), enabling biological nitrogen fixation?
• Which statement best describes edge effects in fragmented habitats?
• What term describes a close, long-term biological interaction between two different species?
• Which group is a decomposer in most ecosystems?
• Why is biodiversity important for ecosystems?
• Why do energy pyramids slope upward from producers to higher trophic levels?
• Which term is sometimes used to describe increasing toxin concentration across a food web, sometimes incorrectly leading to concern about individual organisms rather than populations?
• Which form of mimicry occurs when several species share a common warning coloration and defense?
• Which niche describes the actual niche a species occupies when competing species are present?
• Which process best describes turnover in nutrient cycles?
• Which term defines all regions containing living things (top few meters of soil, oceans; lower ten km of atmosphere)?
• Which statement best describes how temperature affects metabolic rates in ectotherms versus endotherms?
• The interaction of populations within a community is referred to as what?
• In which cycle does photosynthesis use CO2 from the atmosphere and respiration/decomposition release CO2 back?
• Which statement correctly describes the roles of producers, consumers, and decomposers in ecosystem energy flow?
• Substrate that has never previously supported living things is the starting point for which ecological process?
• What role do decomposers play in nutrient cycling?
• What is a constitutive defense in plants or animals? Provide an example.
• Which term describes organisms that convert solar energy into chemical energy for the ecosystem?
• Which survivorship curve is characterized by random probability of death at all ages?
• What role do consumers play in ecosystem energy flow?
• Which scenario describes a trophic cascade?
• Which term is defined as the study of growth, abundance, and distribution of populations?