48. Ecology

Which of the following is characteristic of most terrestrial biomes?

a. A distribution predicted almost entirely by rock and soil patterns

b. Clear boundaries between adjacent biomes

c. Vegetation demonstrating vertical layering

d. Cold winter months

Which of the following groups is (are) absolutely essential to the functioning of an ecosystem?

a. Producers

b. Producers and herbivores

c. Producers, herbivores, and carnivores

d. Producers and decomposers

What is the main type of vegetation in a tropical wet forest?

a. shrubs and bunchgrasses

b. herbs, grasses, and vines

c. broad-leaved deciduous trees

d. broad-leaved evergreen trees

Areas of low solar irradiation are

a. Closer to the equator than to the poles

b. Closer to the poles than the equator

c. At high altitudes

d. Close to large bodies of water

e. More than one of the above is correct

The oceans affect the biosphere by

a. Absorbing a substantial amount of the biosphere's oxygen

b. Regulating the pH of freshwater biomes and terrestrial groundwater

c. Decreasing winter temperatures of coastal terrestrial biomes

d. Removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere

The oceans affect the biosphere in all of the following ways except

a. Producing a substantial amount of the biosphere's oxygen.

b. Removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

c. Moderating the climate of terrestrial biomes.

d. Regulating the pH of freshwater biomes and terrestrial groundwater.

What is one expected consequence of global climate change?

a. Average rainfall will increase.

b. Average rainfall will decrease.

c. Variability in rainfall will increase.

d. We cannot make predictions about future rainfall.

The solar equator, the region of Earth where the sun is directly overhead, moves from 23.5°N to 23.5°S latitudes and back over the course of a year. Why?

a. Earth wobbles on its axis during the year

b. The position of the poles changes by this amount annually

c. Earth's axis is 23.5° from perpendicular to the rays of the sun

d. Earth moves 23.5° toward the sun in summer and 23.5° away from the sun in winter

e. Ocean currents carry heat from the tropical ocean north in summer and south in winter

Which statement about dispersal is true?

a. Dispersal is not a component of the life cycles of most plants and animals.

b. Dispersal occurs only on an evolutionary time scale.

c. Colonization of devastated areas after floods or volcanic eruptions depends on dispersal.

d. The ability to disperse does not affect the geographic distribution of a species.

Which statement about dispersal is false?

a. Dispersal is a common component of the life cycles of plants and animals.

b. Colonization of devastated areas after floods or volcanic eruptions depends on dispersal.

c. Dispersal occurs only on an evolutionary time scale.

d. The ability to disperse can expand the geographic distribution of a species.

Which of these statements about aquatic biomes is true? Select True or False for each statement.

T/F The ocean is so vast that it is not influenced by human impacts.

T/F Water depth, water flow, salinity, and nutrient availability are important abiotic factors in aquatic biomes.

T/F Once nutrients sink to the bottom of lakes, they are no longer available to organisms.

Which of the following biomes is most common on Earth's land surface?

a. Chaparral

b. Desert

c. Temperate forest

d. Tundra

e. Boreal forest

When climbing a mountain, we can observe transitions in biological communities that are analogous to the changes

a. In biomes at different latitudes

b. In different depths in the ocean

c. In a community through different seasons

d. In an ecosystem as it evolves over time

Explain how the open ocean is similar to the desert, and how it is not.