1st Quarter Midterm

Question 1

A simple growing, green plant often found on rocks, trees, and walls.

Answer 1

Lichens

Question 2

A gradual development/regrowth of a community over time

Answer 2

Succession

Question 3

An organism capable of synthesizing its own food from inorganic substances using light or chemical energy

Answer 3

Autotroph

Question 4

An organism deriving its nutritional requirements from complex organic substances

Answer 4

Heterotroph

Question 5

Trees that lose their leaves during Autumn

Answer 5

Deciduous

Question 6

Trees made up of waxy pines that stay green throughout every season

Answer 6

Coniferous

Question 7

Three examples of prey adaptations

Answer 7

warning coloration, camouflage, mimicry of a well-defended species, defense mechanisms, etc.

Question 8

Describe the importance of Mono Lake

Answer 8

Mono Lake is acts as an ancestral breeding ground and is an important stop for many birds to stop and get food.

Question 9

Define mutualism and give an example of it.

Answer 9

• mutualism: both organisms benefit , EX: clown fish shelter themselves in anemones by coating themselves in a layer of protective mucus. The clown fish is protected, and it protects the anemone from possible predators such as butterfly fish and cleans the anemone.

Question 10

What is the rule of 10 percent?

Answer 10

10% of the energy from the organism consumed is given to the consumer.

Question 11

Why do organisms need nitrogen?

Answer 11

Nitrogen is used to build proteins and DNA for new cells

Question 12

What is nitrogen fixation?

Answer 12

Nitrogen fixation is when nitrogen in the atmosphere in converted to another form of nitrogen (such as ammonia) by natural or industrial means

Question 13

What is Batesian mimicry? Give an example.

Answer 13

When two animals of different families have similar coloration, but one is toxic, and the other isn’t. This benefits both the toxic and non-toxic animal. EX= Coral Snake (venomous) and King Snake (safe)

Question 14

What is Mullerian mimicry? Give an example.

Answer 14

When groups of animals all have similar coloration, giving the whole group of animals protection EX = Bees

Question 15

Give three reasons why animals have warning coloration.

Answer 15

To warn that they’re dangerous, poisonous, or unpalatable

Question 16

What element to organic molecules contain?

Answer 16

carbon

Question 17

Explain Australia was overrun with rabbits, and why the Aussie’s method of exterminating them did not work very well.

Answer 17

There were no predators, resulting in an overpopulation of rabbits. The Australian government introduced a new virus to the rabbits in order to get rid of their vast population. More than 99% of the rabbits died when the virus was used, but the surviving rabbits reproduced, and the more they used the virus, the less rabbits died because of the virus. They slowly became immune to the virus.

Question 18

What is commensalism? Give an example.

Answer 18

One benefits, other is unharmed. EX: Remoras attach themselves to sharks and feed on the food they leave behind.

Question 19

What is parasitism? Give an example.

Answer 19

One benefits, one is harmed. Female wasp laying eggs on tomato hornworm. When the eggs hatch, they burrow into the caterpillar’s body and eat it alive

Question 20

Define ecology.

Answer 20

study of interactions of living organisms with one another and their environment.

Question 21

Define biotic.

Answer 21

living

Question 22

Define abiotic.

Answer 22

not living.

Question 23

Define population.

Answer 23

same species living in the same environment.

Question 24

Define community.

Answer 24

all the populations of species that live in the same habitat and interact with each other

Question 25

Define ecosystem.

Answer 25

a community of organisms and their abiotic environment

Question 26

Define biosphere.

Answer 26

part of Earth where life exists

Question 27

herbivore

Answer 27

organism that only eats plants

Question 28

carnivore

Answer 28

animal that only eats meat

Question 29

omnivore

Answer 29

organism that eats both plants and animals

Question 30

consumer

Answer 30

obtains food from feeding on other organisms

Question 31

producer

Answer 31

creates own food

Question 32

decomposer

Answer 32

breaks down organic material and returns it to the Earth

Question 33

carrying capacity

Answer 33

largest population an environment can support at any given time

Question 34

independent variable

Answer 34

variable you change for the sake of the experiment

Question 35

dependent variable

Answer 35

variable you measure

Question 36

prey

Answer 36

organism hunted by another organism

Question 37

predator

Answer 37

organism that hunts other organisms

Question 38

salinity

Answer 38

amount of salt in water

Question 39

detritus

Answer 39

organic debris (leaves, animal remains, waste products, etc)

Question 40

limiting factor

Answer 40

constrains a population’s size, slows/ stops it from growing