Campbell Biology, 10e (Reece)
Chapter 55 Ecosystems and Restoration Ecology
1) If the sun were to suddenly stop providing energy to Earth, most ecosystems would vanish.
Which of the following ecosystems would likely survive the longest after this hypothetical
disaster?
A) tropical rain forest
B) tundra
C) benthic ocean
D) desert
2) Which of the following terms encompasses all of the others?
A) heterotrophs
B) herbivores
C) carnivores
D) primary consumers
3) To recycle nutrients, an ecosystem must have, at a minimum, _____.
A) producers
B) producers and decomposers
C) producers, primary consumers, and decomposers
D) producers, primary consumers, secondary consumers, and decomposers
4) Which of the following is an example of an ecosystem?
A) all of the brook trout in a 500-square-hectare river drainage system
B) the plants, animals, and decomposers that inhabit an alpine meadow
C) the intricate interactions of the various plant and animal species on a savanna during a
drought
D) all of the organisms and their physical environment in a tropical rain forest
Food web for a particular terrestrial ecosystem
(arrows represent energy flow and letters represent species)
5) Examine this food web for a particular terrestrial ecosystem. Which species is autotrophic?
A) A
B) C
C) D
D) E
6) Examine this food web for a particular terrestrial ecosystem. Which species is most likely a
decomposer on this food web?
A) A
B) B
C) C
D) E
7) Examine this food web for a particular terrestrial ecosystem. Species C is toxic to predators.
Which species is most likely to benefit from being a mimic of C?
A) A
B) B
C) C
D) E
8) Examine this food web for a particular terrestrial ecosystem. Which pair of species could be
omnivores?
A) A and D
B) B and C
C) C and D
Diagram of a food web (arrows represent energy flow and letters represent species)
9) If the figure above represents a marine food web, the smallest organism might be _____.
A) A
B) C
C) I
D) E
10) Which of the following organisms is INCORRECTLY paired with its trophic level?
A) cyanobacterium — primary producer
B) grasshopper — primary consumer
C) zooplankton — primary producer
D) fungus — detritivore
11) Which of the following has the greatest effect on the rate of chemical cycling in an
ecosystem?
A) the ecosystem’s rate of primary production
B) the production efficiency of the ecosystem’s consumers
C) the rate of decomposition in the ecosystem
D) the trophic efficiency of the ecosystem
12) Matter is gained or lost in ecosystems. How does this occur?
A) Chemoautotrophic organisms can convert matter to energy.
B) Matter can be moved from one ecosystem to another.
C) Photosynthetic organisms convert solar energy to sugars.
D) Heterotrophs convert heat to energy.
13) Which habitat types in the figure above cover the largest area?
A) tropical wet forest plus the ocean neritic zone
B) open ocean
C) algal beds and reefs plus the ocean neritic zone
D) wetlands plus the ocean neritic zone
14) Which habitat type in the figure above makes available the most new tissue to consumers?
A) tropical wet forest
B) open ocean
C) algal beds and reefs
D) wetlands
15) Which category in the figure above makes available the highest productivity per square
meter?
A) tropical wet forest
B) open ocean
C) algal beds and reefs
D) wetlands
16) Considering its total area covered, which ecosystem type represented in the figure above has
a very low level of economic impact on Earth’s ecosystem?
A) tropical wet forest
B) rock, sand, and ice
C) tropical seasonal forest
D) ocean neritic zone
17) Why is terrestrial productivity higher in equatorial climates?
A) Productivity increases with temperature.
B) Productivity increases with water availability.
C) Productivity increases with available sunlight.
D) The answer is most likely a combination of the other responses.
18) After looking at the experiment in the figure above, what can be said about productivity in
marine ecosystems?
A) Nothing can be said based on this information.
B) Marine organisms break down iron for energy and thus for productivity.
C) Iron can be a limiting nutrient in productivity.
D) Productivity increases when chlorophyll a is added.
19) During a year, plants never use 100% of the incoming solar radiation for photosynthesis.
What is a reasonable explanation for this?
I) Plants cannot photosynthesize as well during winter (in cold winter climates).
II) Plants cannot photosynthesize as well on cloudy days.
III) The pigments that drive photosynthesis respond to only a fraction of the wavelengths that are
available.
A) only I
B) only II
C) only III
D) I, II, and III
20) You own three hundred acres of patchy temperate forest. Which one of the following actions
would increase the net primary productivity of the area the most?
A) adding fertilizer to the entire area
B) introducing one hundred rabbits into the area
C) planting five hundred new trees
D) relocating all of the deer found in the area
Use the following information to answer the question(s) below.
Abstract:
Increased radiative forcing is an inevitable part of global climate change, yet little is known of its
potential effects on the energy fluxes in natural ecosystems. To simulate the conditions of global
warming, we exposed peat monoliths (depth, 0.6 cm; surface area, 2.1 m2) from a bog and fen in
northern Minnesota, USA, to three infrared (IR) loading (ambient, +45, and +90 W m-2) and
three water table (-16, -20, and -29 cm in bog and -1, -10 and -18 cm in fen) treatments, each
replicated in three mesocosm plots. Net radiation (Rn) and soil energy fluxes at the top, bottom,
and sides of the mesocosms were measured in 1999, five years after the treatments had begun.
Soil heat flux (G) increased proportionately with IR loading, comprising about 3%-8% of Rn. In
the fen, the effect of IR loading on G was modulated by water table depth, whereas in the bog, it
was not. Energy dissipation from the mesocosms occurred mainly via vertical exchange with air,
as well as the deeper soil layers through the bottom of the mesocosms, whereas lateral fluxes
were 10- to 20-fold smaller and independent of IR loading and water table depth. The exchange
with deeper soil layers was sensitive to water table depth, in contrast to G, which responded
primarily to IR loading. The qualitative responses in the bog and fen were similar, but the fen
displayed wider seasonal variations and greater extremes in soil energy fluxes. The differences of
G in the bog and fen are attributed to differences in the reflectance in the long waveband as a
function of vegetation type, whereas the differences in soil heat storage may also depend on
different soil properties and different water table depth at comparable treatments. These data
suggest that the ecosystem-dependent controls over soil energy fluxes may provide an important
constraint on biotic response to climate change.
21) The Noormets et al. study (2004) shows that there was an ecosystem-specific control over
soil energy fluxes, and this constrained the biotic response to climate change. How do you think
radiative heat would affect the water table in a wetland versus a temperate forest?
A) The wetland would likely absorb less heat than the temperate forest and, therefore, not
significantly change water table depth.
B) The wetland would likely absorb more heat than the temperate forest and significantly change
water table depth.
C) The temperate forest would likely absorb more heat than the wetland and significantly change
water table depth.
D) Both areas would absorb similar amounts of radiative heat and, therefore, affect the water
table equally.
22) Once heat is transferred to the soil, where does it go next (reference the study by Noormets et
al. 2004)?
I) The heat is emitted back to the atmosphere.
II) The heat is transferred to other soil layers.
III) The heat is stored in the soil.
A) only I
B) only II
C) only III
D) I, II, and III
23) Suppose you are studying the nitrogen cycling in a pond ecosystem over the course of a
month. While you are collecting data, a flock of one hundred Canada geese lands and spends the
night during a fall migration. What could you do to eliminate error in your study as a result of
this event?
A) Find out how much nitrogen is consumed in plant material by a Canada goose over about a
twelve-hour period, multiply this number by 100, and add that amount to the total nitrogen in the
ecosystem.
B) Find out how much nitrogen is eliminated by a Canada goose over about a twelve-hour
period, multiply this number by 100, and subtract that amount from the total nitrogen in the
ecosystem.
C) Find out how much nitrogen is consumed and eliminated by a Canada goose over about a
twelve-hour period and multiply this number by 100; enter this +/- value into the nitrogen budget
of the ecosystem.
D) Put a net over the pond so that no more migrating flocks can land on the pond and alter the
nitrogen balance of the pond.
24) As big as it is, the ocean is nutrient-limited. If you wanted to investigate this phenomenon,
one reasonable approach would be to _____.
A) observe Antarctic Ocean productivity from year to year to see if it changes
B) experimentally enrich some areas of the ocean and compare their productivity to that of
untreated areas
C) compare nutrient concentrations between the photic zone and the benthic zone in various
marine locations
D) contrast nutrient uptake by autotrophs in marine locations that are different temperatures
25) If you applied a fungicide to a cornfield, what would you expect to happen to the rate of
decomposition and net ecosystem production (NEP)?
A) Both decomposition rate and NEP would decrease.
B) Both decomposition rate and NEP would increase.
C) Decomposition rate would increase and NEP would decrease.
D) Decomposition rate would decrease and NEP would increase.
26) Which of the following is a true statement regarding mineral nutrients in soils and their
implication for primary productivity?
A) Globally, phosphorous availability is most limiting to primary productivity.
B) Adding a nonlimiting nutrient will stimulate primary productivity.
C) Phosphorous is sometimes unavailable to producers due to leaching.
D) Alkaline soils are more productive than acidic soils.
27) Why is net primary production (NPP) a more useful measurement to an ecosystem ecologist
than gross primary production (GPP)?
A) NPP can be expressed in energy/unit of area/unit of time.
B) NPP can be expressed in terms of carbon fixed by photosynthesis for an entire ecosystem.
C) NPP represents the stored chemical energy that is available to consumers in the ecosystem.
D) NPP shows the rate at which the standing crop is utilized by consumers.
28) How is net ecosystem production (NEP) typically estimated in ecosystems?
A) the amount of heat energy released by the ecosystem
B) the net flux of carbon dioxide or oxygen in or out of an ecosystem
C) the rate of decomposition by detritivores
D) the annual total of incoming solar radiation per unit of area
29) Which of the following ecosystems would likely have the largest net primary productivity
per hectare and why?
A) open ocean, because of the total biomass of photosynthetic autotrophs
B) grassland, because of the small standing crop biomass that results from consumption by
herbivores and rapid decomposition
C) tundra, because of the incredibly rapid period of growth during the summer season
D) cave, due to the lack of photosynthetic autotrophs
30) How is it that satellites can detect differences in primary productivity on Earth?
A) Satellite instruments can detect reflectance patterns of the photosynthetic organisms of
different ecosystems.
B) Sensitive satellite instruments can measure the amount of NADPH (nicotinamide adenine
dinucleotide phosphate) produced in the summative light reactions of different ecosystems.
C) Satellites compare the wavelengths of light captured and reflected by photoautotrophs in
different ecosystems.
D) Satellites detect differences by measuring the amount of water vapor emitted by transpiring
producers.
31) Which one of the following correctly ranks these organisms in order from lowest to highest
percent in production efficiency?
A) mammals, fish, insects
B) insects, fish, mammals
C) fish, insects, mammals
D) mammals, insects, fish
32) Owls eat rats, mice, shrews, and small birds. Assume that, over a period of time, an owl
consumes 5000 J of animal material. The owl loses 2300 J in feces and owl pellets and uses 2500
J for cellular respiration. What is the production efficiency of this owl?
A) 0.02%
B) 0.2%
C) 4%
D) 40%
33) After looking at the figure above, what can be said about productivity in this ecosystem?
A) Nothing can be said based on this information.
B) Between 80% and 90% of the energy is lost between most trophic levels.
C) Between 10% and 20% of the energy is lost between most trophic levels.
D) Productivity increases with each trophic level.
34) How does inefficient transfer of energy among trophic levels result in the typically high
endangerment status of many top-level predators?
A) Top-level predators are destined to have small populations that are sparsely distributed.
B) Predators have relatively large population sizes.
C) Predators are more disease-prone than animals at lower trophic levels.
D) Top-level predators are more likely to be stricken with parasites.
35) Why does a vegetarian leave a smaller ecological footprint than an omnivore?
A) Fewer animals are slaughtered for human consumption.
B) There is an excess of plant biomass in all terrestrial ecosystems.
C) Vegetarians need to ingest less chemical energy than omnivores.
D) Eating meat is an inefficient way of acquiring photosynthetic productivity.
36) For most terrestrial ecosystems, pyramids composed of species abundances, biomass, and
energy are similar in that they have a broad base and a narrow top. The primary reason for this
pattern is that _____.
A) secondary consumers and top carnivores require less energy than producers
B) at each step, energy is lost from the system
C) biomagnification of toxic materials limits the secondary consumers and top carnivores
D) top carnivores and secondary consumers have a more general diet than primary producers
37) Which of the following is primarily responsible for limiting the number of trophic levels in
most ecosystems?
A) Many primary and higher-order consumers are opportunistic feeders.
B) Decomposers compete with higher-order consumers for nutrients and energy.
C) Nutrient cycling rates tend to be limited by decomposition.
D) Energy transfer between trophic levels is usually less than 20 percent efficient.
38) Which trophic level is most vulnerable to extinction?
A) producer level
B) primary consumer level
C) secondary consumer level
D) tertiary consumer level
39) Which statement best describes what ultimately happens to the chemical energy that is not
converted to new biomass in the process of energy transfer between trophic levels in an
ecosystem?
A) It is undigested and winds up in the feces and is not passed on to higher trophic levels.
B) It is used by organisms to maintain their life processes through the reactions of cellular
respiration.
C) Heat produced by cellular respiration is used by heterotrophs for thermoregulation.
D) It is eliminated as feces or is dissipated into space as heat, consistent with the second law of
thermodynamics.
40) Consider the food chain of grass → grasshopper → mouse → snake → hawk. About how
much of the chemical energy fixed by photosynthesis of the grass (100 percent) is available to
the hawk?
A) 0.01%
B) 0.1%
C) 1%
D) 10%
41) If the flow of energy in an arctic ecosystem goes through a simple food chain, perhaps
involving humans, starting from phytoplankton to zooplankton to fish to seals to polar bears,
then which of the following could be true?
A) Polar bears can provide more food for humans than seals can.
B) The total biomass of the fish is lower than that of the seals.
C) Seal populations are larger than fish populations.
Diagram of a food web (arrows represent energy flow and letters represent species)
42) If the figure above represents a terrestrial food web, the combined biomass of C + D would
probably be _____.
A) greater than the biomass of A
B) greater than the biomass of B
C) less than the biomass of A + B
43) A porcupine eats 3000 J of plant material. Of this, 2100 J is indigestible and is eliminated as
feces, 800 J are used in cellular respiration, and 100 J are used for growth and reproduction.
What is the approximate production efficiency of this animal?
A) 0.03%
B) 3%
C) 10%
D) 33%
44) What do researchers typically focus on when they study a particular biogeochemical cycle?
I) the nature and size of the reservoirs
II) the rate of element movement between reservoirs
III) interaction of the current cycle with other cycles
A) only I
B) only II
C) only III
D) only II and III
45) Based on the experiment in the figure above, which of the following are plausible reasons for
the result?
I) No nutrients evaporate now that vegetation is absent.
II) Nutrients dissolve in the water running through the watershed.
III) Nutrients are attached to small particles of sand or clay that leave the watershed.
IV) Plant roots that held soil particles in place are no longer there.
A) only I and III
B) only II and IV
C) only I, II, and IV
D) only II, III, and IV
46) Consider the global water cycle depicted in the figure above. Which one of the reserves
contains the smallest percentage of global water?
A) rivers and lakes
B) polar ice caps
C) glaciers
D) atmosphere
47) Consider the global nitrogen cycle depicted in the figure above. What is the limiting portion
of the cycle for plants?
A) industrial nitrogen fixation
B) nitrogen lost to the atmosphere
C) internal nitrogen cycling in the oceans
D) nitrogen fixation by bacteria
48) Consider the global nitrogen cycle depicted in the figure above. How are humans altering
this cycle?
A) industrial nitrogen fixation
B) nitrogen lost to the atmosphere
C) reduction of nitrogen available to terrestrial ecosystems
D) reduction of nitrogen fixation by bacteria
49) Which of the following locations are major reservoirs for carbon for the carbon cycle?
I) atmosphere
II) sediments and sedimentary rocks
III) fossilized plant and animal remains (coal, oil, and natural gas)
IV) plant and animal biomass
A) only I and III
B) only II and IV
C) only II, III, and IV
D) I, II, III, and IV
50) Which of the following statements is correct about biogeochemical cycling?
A) The phosphorus cycle involves the recycling of atmospheric phosphorus.
B) The phosphorus cycle involves the weathering of rocks.
C) The carbon cycle has maintained a constant atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide for
the past million years.
D) The nitrogen cycle involves movement of diatomic nitrogen between the biotic and abiotic
components of the ecosystem.
51) On the diagram of the nitrogen cycle, which number represents nitrite (NO2)?
A) 1
B) 2
C) 3
D) 4
52) On the diagram of the nitrogen cycle, which number represents the ammonium ion (NH4+)?
A) 1
B) 2
C) 3
53) Nitrifying bacteria participate in the nitrogen cycle mainly by _____.
A) converting nitrogen gas to ammonia
B) releasing ammonium from organic compounds, thus returning it to the soil
C) converting ammonium to nitrate, which plants absorb
D) incorporating nitrogen into amino acids and organic compounds
54) The Hubbard Brook watershed deforestation experiment revealed that _____.
I) deforestation increased water runoff
II) nitrate concentration in waters draining the deforested area became dangerously high
III) calcium levels remained high in the soil of deforested areas
A) only I
B) only II
C) only III
D) only I and II
55) Why do logged tropical rain forest soils typically have nutrient-poor soils?
A) Tropical bedrock contains little phosphorous.
B) Logging results in soil temperatures that are lethal to nitrogen-fixing bacteria.
C) Most of the nutrients in the ecosystem are removed in the harvested timber.
D) The cation exchange capacity of the soil is reversed as a result of logging.
56) How can biodiversity affect the way we decontaminate industrial sites?
I) Bacteria have been found to be able to detoxify certain chemicals; perhaps there are more.
II) Trees produce sawdust, which can be used to soak up chemicals.
III) Species evolving in contaminated areas could adapt and detoxify the area.
A) only I
B) only II
C) only III
D) only II and III
57) The first step in ecosystem restoration is to _____.
A) restore the physical structure
B) restore native species that have been extirpated due to disturbance
C) remove competitive invasive species
D) remove toxic pollutants
58) The goal of restoration ecology is to _____.
A) replace a ruined ecosystem with a more suitable ecosystem for that area
B) return degraded ecosystems to a more natural state
C) manage competition between species in human-altered ecosystems
D) prevent further degradation by protecting an area with park status
59) The discipline that applies ecological principles to returning degraded ecosystems to a more
natural state is known as _____.
A) landscape ecology
B) conservation ecology
C) restoration ecology
D) resource conservation
60) Which of the following would be considered an example of bioremediation?
A) adding nitrogen-fixing microorganisms to a degraded ecosystem to increase nitrogen
availability
B) using a bulldozer to regrade a strip mine
C) dredging a river bottom to remove contaminated sediments
D) adding seeds of a chromium-accumulating plant to soil contaminated by chromium
61) Acid precipitation lowered the pH of soil in a terrestrial ecosystem that supported a diverse
community of plants and animals. The decrease in pH eliminated all nitrogenfixing bacteria
populations in the area. Which prediction most accurately reflects the impact this will have on
the community?
A) Since phosphorus can replace nitrogen as an essential nutrient, the impact will be minimal.
B) Plants can obtain the nitrogen necessary for growth from the atmosphere, but bacterial
communities will be negatively impacted.
C) Primary producers will suffer from nitrogen deficiency and the entire community will
experience a decrease in carrying capacity.
D) The decrease in pH actually increases the availability of soil nutrients, so other nutrients that
were less available cause an increase in primary production and an increase in biomass at other
trophic levels.