Question 1

Which of the following best describes the Competitive Exclusion Principle as demonstrated by the population growth of P. aurelia and P. caudatum in combined cultures (see the third image)?

Accepted Answer

The species with the reproductive advantage will outcompete and eliminate the other species.

Question 2

In the context of ecological niches (see the fourth image), what is the main difference between a fundamental niche and a realized niche?

Accepted Answer

A fundamental niche is the total range of conditions a species can tolerate, while a realized niche is where the species actually exists due to competition and other biotic factors.

Question 3

Which type of interspecific interaction is illustrated by the relationship between the egret and the cattle (see the fourteenth image)?

Accepted Answer

Commensalism

Question 4

A harmless viceroy butterfly mimics the coloration of the toxic monarch butterfly (see the eighth image). What is this an example of?

Accepted Answer

Batesian mimicry

Question 5

Which of the following best explains why food chains are relatively short, as shown in the energy pyramid diagrams (see the seventeenth and eighteenth images)?

Accepted Answer

Energy is lost at each trophic level, with only about 10% transferred to the next level.

Question 6

If a primary producer in a food chain captures 10,000 J of energy from sunlight, how much energy would be available to a tertiary consumer according to the 10% rule (see the nineteenth image)?

$$E_{tertiary} = 10,000 	imes 0.1 	imes 0.1 	imes 0.1$$

Accepted Answer

10 J

Question 7

Which of the following is an example of a keystone species, based on the definition provided in the study materials?

Accepted Answer

A species whose removal causes the collapse of the ecosystem.

Question 8

Which defensive adaptation is shown by the satanic leaf-tailed gecko blending in with dead leaves (see the sixth image)?

Accepted Answer

Cryptic coloration

Question 9

In the context of community ecology, which of the following best describes mutualism, as seen in the relationship between the oxpecker and the impala (see the thirteenth image)?

Accepted Answer

Both species benefit from the interaction.

Question 10

Which of the following best describes the role of detritivores in an ecosystem?

Accepted Answer

They break down nonliving organic material and recycle nutrients back to producers.

Question 11

A disturbance such as a fire clears a forest, but the soil remains intact. What type of ecological succession will occur?

Accepted Answer

Secondary succession

Question 12

Which of the following interactions is correctly matched with its effect on the two species involved?

Accepted Answer

Commensalism: (+ / 0)

Question 13

In a food web, what would likely happen if all primary consumers were removed?

Accepted Answer

Producers would increase and secondary consumers would decrease.

Question 14

Which of the following best explains why Community 1 (see the fifteenth image) is considered more diverse than Community 2?

Accepted Answer

Community 1 has a more even relative abundance of species.

Question 15

Which of the following is an example of herbivory (see the ninth image)?

Accepted Answer

A caterpillar eating a leaf.

Question 16

If a disturbance increases the diversity of a community, what is the most likely explanation?

Accepted Answer

Moderate disturbances prevent any one species from dominating, allowing more species to coexist.

Question 17

Which of the following best describes the relationship between the braconid wasp and the tomato hornworm (see the tenth and eleventh images)?

Accepted Answer

Parasitism

Question 18

Which of the following is a real-world example of aposematic coloration (see the seventh image)?

Accepted Answer

A bright red and blue poison frog warning predators of its toxicity.

Question 19

Which of the following equations correctly represents the energy available at the third trophic level if the primary producers capture 5,000 J of energy?

$$E_{3rd} = 5,000 	imes 0.1 	imes 0.1$$

Accepted Answer

E_{3rd} = 50 J

Question 20

Which of the following best describes the feeding relationship between a praying mantis and a grasshopper (see the fifth image)?

Accepted Answer

Predation

Community Ecology and Ecosystem Energy Flow: Study Notes

Study Guide - Practice Questions

Study Guide - Flashcards