topics 1.8-1.11

Question 1

which group of organisms would be considered herbivores?
a. snakes
b. mice
c. grasshoppers
d. grasses

Answer 1

c. grasshoppers

Question 2

Terrestrial biomes may vary in net primary productivity. The explanation for the variation includes which of the following?

I. Temperature

II. Precipitation

III. Longitude

a. I only
b. II only
c. III only
d. I and II only
e. II and III only

Answer 2

d. I and II only

Question 3

The net annual primary productivity of a particular wetland ecosystem is found to be 8,000 kcal/m2 per year. If respiration by the aquatic producers is 12,000 kcal/m2 per year, what is the gross annual primary productivity for this ecosystem, in kcal/m2 per year?
a. 4,000
b. 8,000
c. 12,000
d. 20,000
e. 96,000

Answer 3

d. 20,000

Question 4

Which of the following best explains why decomposers in soils and water are important to ecosystems?
a. they remove heavy metals
b. they store carbon dioxide
c. they recycle nutrients
d. they neutralize acid deposition
e. they produce more oxygen than they consume

Answer 4

c. they recycle nutrients

Question 5

Which of the following best describes gross primary productivity in an ecosystem?
a. Gross primary productivity is the total amount of energy captured by producers plus the energy used by consumers over time.
b. Gross primary productivity is the total amount of energy captured by producers minus the energy that producers respire over time.
c. Gross primary productivity is the total amount of energy lost as heat during energy transfer between trophic levels.
d. Gross primary productivity is the total amount of solar energy captured by producers through photosynthesis over time.

Answer 5

d. Gross primary productivity is the total amount of solar energy captured by producers through photosynthesis over time.

Question 6

Which of the following best describes the net primary productivity of an ecosystem?
a. Net primary productivity is the amount of energy captured by producers through photosynthesis over time.
b. Net primary productivity is the amount of energy lost by producers through respiration over time.
c. Net primary productivity is the amount of energy lost through respiration by producers subtracted from the gross primary productivity of an ecosystem.
d. Net primary productivity is the amount of energy lost through respiration by producers added to the gross primary productivity of an ecosystem.

Answer 6

c. Net primary productivity is the amount of energy lost through respiration by producers subtracted from the gross primary productivity of an ecosystem.

Question 7

Directions: Select the choice that best fits each statement. The following question(s) refer to the following energy efficiencies, expressed percentages.

(A) 100%

(B) 95%

(C) 30%

(D) 15%

(E) 1%

Approximate efficiency of the conversion of light energy to chemical energy in photosynthesis
a. 100%
b. 95%
c. 30%
d. 15%
e. 1%

Answer 7

e. 1%

Question 8

Directions: Select the choice that best fits each statement. The following question(s) refer to the following energy efficiencies, expressed percentages.

(A) 100%

(B) 95%

(C) 30%

(D) 15%

(E) 1%

The maximum efficiency possible in an energy-conversion process that is not limited by the second law of thermodynamics
a. 100%
b. 95%
c. 30%
d. 15%
E. 1%

Answer 8

a. 100%

Question 9

In a given ecosystem, producers convert solar energy into 15,000 kcal of chemical energy stored in organic compounds. Which of the following is the most likely amount of energy available to secondary consumers?
a. 1.5 kcal
b. 150 kcal
c. 1,500 kcal
d. 13,500 kcal

Answer 9

b. 150 kcal

Question 10

The ultimate source of energy for terrestrial ecosystem is
a. nutrients in soil
b. nutrients in vegetation
c. primary consumers
d. producers
e. the sun

Answer 10

e. the sun

Question 11

Directions: Select the choice that best fits each statement. The following question(s) refer to the following concepts related to energy

(A) Heat flow

(B) Kinetic energy

(C) Potential energy

(D) First law of thermodynamics

(E) Second law of thermodynamics

An energy transformation occurs and results in increased disorder.
a. heat flow
b. kinetic energy
c. potential energy
d. first law of thermodynamics
e. second law of thermodynamics

Answer 11

e. second law of thermodynamics

Question 12

Losses of usable energy between successive trophic levels in an ecosystem are best accounted for by which of the following?
a. the first law of thermodynamics
b. the second law of thermodynamics
c. the law of conservation of matter
d. the process of ecological succession
e. limiting factors in the ecosystem

Answer 12

b. the second law of thermodynamics

Question 13

Which of the following best describes the movement of energy in an ecosystem?
a. Energy is constantly recycled by decomposers for use by producers.
b. Energy is harnessed by producers, and available energy decreases with each trophic level transfer.
c. Energy is absorbed by plants through water and soil and then moves up the food chain through consumers.
d. Energy is magnified as it moves up the trophic levels, and tertiary consumers store the most energy in a food web.

Answer 13

b. Energy is harnessed by producers, and available energy decreases with each trophic level transfer.

Question 14

Which of the following best describes the first law of thermodynamics?
a. Energy always changes from a more useful, more concentrated form to a less useful, less concentrated form.
b. In a closed system of constant mass, the energy involved in any physical or chemical change is neither created nor destroyed, but merely changed from one form to another.
c. Heat always flows from a hot body to a cold body.
d. Entropy of a system increases as the state of disorganization in the system increases.
e. In a reversible process, the entropy of the system is constant, whereas in an irreversible process, the entropy of the system increases.

Answer 14

b. In a closed system of constant mass, the energy involved in any physical or chemical change is neither created nor destroyed, but merely changed from one form to another.

Question 15

Scientists calculated the net primary productivity at two different forest sites. Both forests have the same gross primary productivity. Forest
A has a net primary productivity of 1,650 kcal/m^2/year, and forest B has a net primary productivity of 1,110 kcal/m^2/year.

Which of the following statements is best supported by the data?
a. Forest A has a higher rate of decomposition by bacteria than forest B.
b. forest A has more biodiversity than forest B
c. Forest A producers have lower rater of cellular respiration than forest B
producers.
d. Forest A producers have more biomass than forest B producers

Answer 15

c. Forest A producers have lower rates of cellular respiration than forest B producers

Question 16

Of the following organisms, which occupies the lowest trophic level?
a. spider
b. deer
c. lion
d. hawk
e. snake

Answer 16

b. deer

Question 17

Of the following ecosystems, which has the lowest net primary productivity, measured as kilocalories of energy produced per square meter per year?
a. taiga (boreal forest)
b. open ocean
c. temperature grassland
d. estuary
e. agricultural land

Answer 17

b. open ocean

Question 18

Open oceans produce the largest share of Earth’s biomass because the net primary productivity (NPP) of the oceans is
a. high and thus can support a high proportion of producers
b. high as a result of the high concentration of nutrients in the open oceans
c. low, but the large expanse of the oceans supports enormous numbers of producers such as phytoplankton
d. low, but the individual producers found there are huge in size
e. low, but still higher than that of other ecosystems of the world

Answer 18

c. low, but the large expanse of the oceans supports enormous numbers of producers such as phytoplankton

Question 19

Algae in an aquatic food chain convert solar energy into 93,000 kilocalories of plant tissue.

Which of the following values best represents the amount of energy available for primary consumers in the food chain?
a. 930 kilocalories
b. 9,300 kilocalories
c. 93,000 kilocalories
d. 930,000 kilocalories

Answer 19

b. 9,300 kilocalories

Question 20

Algae in an aquatic food chain convert solar energy into 93,000 kilocalories of plant tissue.

Which of the following values best represents the amount of energy available for secondary consumers in the food chain?
a. 930 kilocalories
b. 9,300 kilocalories
c. 93,000 kilocalories
d. 930,000 kilocalories

Answer 20

a. 930 kilocalories

Question 21

For a primary producer, the main function of photosynthesis is to manufacture
a. oxygen
b. carbon dioxide
c. glucose
d. proteins
e. water

Answer 21

c. glucose

Question 22

Which of the following best explains why terrestrial trophic pyramids usually do not have levels higher than tertiary consumers?
a. Tertiary consumers are the largest organisms in an ecosystem and require the most space to survive.
b. Plants can only perform photosynthesis during the day, so tertiary consumers cannot get enough energy from consuming plants.
c. A large proportion of energy is lost as heat as it is transferred up the pyramid, so there is not enough energy available to support another level.
d. Tertiary consumers are often indicator species and are the first to be affected by environmental disturbances.

Answer 22

c. A large proportion of energy is lost as heat as it is transferred up the pyramid, so there is not enough energy available to support another level.