Animal Ecology
Chapter Exam Questions
Course Introduction
Animal Ecology explores the interactions between animals and their environments, focusing on how ecological factors such as food availability, predation, competition, and habitat influence animal populations, behaviors, and community structure. The course examines fundamental principles including energy flow, nutrient cycling, adaptation, and evolutionary ecology. Through lectures, laboratory work, and field studies, students gain insight into methods of ecological research, the dynamics of animal populations, and the impact of humans on animal communities, fostering a comprehensive understanding of ecological processes and conservation practices.
Recommended Textbook
Essentials of Ecology 4th Edition by Michael Begon
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14 Chapters
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Page 2
Chapter 1: Ecology and How to Do It
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Q1) Variation in your data affects the standard error.Your standard error will be smaller if:
A) The effect is more consistent or stronger
B) The sample size is smaller
C) The effect is weak
D) The sample size is larger
Answer: A,D
Q2) An ecologist wants to study what plants colonize a site after a volcano has erupted.She plans to compare what plant species were once there with what plant species begin to grow in a matter of a few months.What term best describes the process she is interested in studying?
A) Unnatural history experiment
B) Ecological succession
C) Organismal ecology
D) All of the above
Answer: B
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3
Chapter 2: Ecologys Evolutionary Backdrop
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Q1) Mitochondrial DNA was used as genetic evidence to determine that two fish species in Lake Apoyo evolved as a result of a sympatric speciation process.Mitochondrial DNA is:
A) DNA that is passed down to females only
B) DNA that is passed down maternally
C) DNA that is passed down paternally
D) None of the above
Answer: B
Q2) Island endemics evolve because they:
A) Can exchange genetic material with mainland species
B) Are isolated from individuals of the mainland species
C) Do not have gene flow with mainland species
D) They do not hybridize with other species
Answer: B,C
Q3) ______ structures are similar in superficial form or function.
A) Analogous
B) Homologous
C) Sympatric
D) Synonymous
Answer: A
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Page 4
Chapter 3: Physical Conditions and the Availability of Resources
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Q1) Oak tree species are quite abundant in the southern California landscape.These species are long-lived,even though they experience drought.What would you predict their root structure to be like?
A) They likely have shallow roots that spread out across wide areas
B) They likely have one single, shallow root
C) They likely have a very deep root structure that reaches through many layers of soil
D) They likely have a root structure that branches out but can move deeper into layers of soil when drought conditions occur.
Answer: C
Q2) Which of the following are examples of defense mechanisms?
A) The shell of a nut
B) The shell of a crab
C) Clover that release hydrogen cyanide when herbivores feed on them
D) Epidermal hairs on plants that keep thrips away from leaves
Answer: A,B,C,D
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Chapter 4: Climate and the Worlds Biomes
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Q1) Which biome would you expect to have the greatest amount of biodiversity?
A) Desert
B) Boreal forest
C) Tundra
D) Tropical rain forest
Q2) Which statement is most accurate regarding species richness in a tropical rainforest?
A) Species richness is low relative to a tundra biome.
B) Species richness is moderate compared to all other biomes.
C) Species richness is dramatically greater than all other biomes.
D) Species richness is the same across all biomes.
Q3) What term defines the land area where all the water draining from it comes to a particular stream or river?
A) Vent
B) Tundra
C) Savannah
D) Watershed
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Chapter 5: Birth, Death and Movement
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Q1) Which choice accurately defines what a genet is?
A) A genet is a single-celled zygote that has died
B) A genet is a term used to describe a module
C) A genet is a genetic individual that started as a single-celled zygote
D) A genet is a multicellular outgrowth from a module
Q2) This multicellular outgrowth is the product of a modular organism.It will proceed through its own life cycle,and its development will be indeterminate.This growth is known as which of the following terms?
A) Genet
B) Module
C) Genetic individual
D) Cohort
Q3) Which method would you employ if you wanted to create a life table for a population of tamarinds?
A) Use a cohort life table
B) Use a static life table
C) Neither work because tamarinds have overlapping generations
D) Neither work because tamarinds are semelparous
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Chapter 6: Interspecific Competition
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Q1) Species living in _____ live in the same place.
A) Allopatry.
B) Sympatry.
C) Pleiotropy.
D) Differentiated niches.
Q2) Four warbler species co-occur on the Mediterranean islands of Sardinia and Corsica.The four species' diets overlap,they each look similar,and they all utilize similar habitat.Upon closer investigation it appears that each species differentially uses zones within the habitat to forage.These species
A) Are interspecific competitors
B) Could be interspecific competitors, but one needs experimental evidence to know if they are in fact competitors.
C) Are not examples of niche differentiation.
D) Are not examples of differential resource utilization.
Q3) Coexistence between a superior and inferior competitor can occur if
A) The two species have independent, aggregated distributions.
B) The superior is homogenous throughout the habitat.
C) Competition were directed most from the superior to the inferior competitor.
D) All of the above.
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Page 8
Chapter 7: Predation, Grazing and Disease
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Q1) Compensation in plants due to herbivory might occur differently depending on which of the following factors?
A) Whether it is grazed on during a time of year when herbivores typically graze.
B) There should be no difference ever.
C) If the plant is a CAM plant or C4 plant.
D) Marine plants always produce more defensive compounds when grazed then terrestrial plants.
Q2) Which type of organism attacks their prey,kills it,and then consumes it?
A) Parasitoid
B) True Predator
C) Parasite
D) Grazer
Q3) A metapopulation:
A) Refers to the patchiness that can occur in populations
B) Can be useful in understanding why population fluctuations are often dampened
C) Usually refers to two subpopulations
D) Has individuals that usually do not disperse between subpopulations
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9
Chapter 8: Molecular and Evolutionary Ecology
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Q1) Bacteria that are found in the root nodules of most leguminous plants and are responsible for fixing nitrogen are known as ______________.
A) Arbuscules
B) Rhizobia
C) Parasitic fungi
D) There is no term to define these bacteria because there are so many of them.
Q2) Regions of DNA that do not vary between individuals are referred to as what?
A) Microsatellites
B) Allele
C) Locus
D) Conserved
Q3) A bird feeds on the fruit of a plant.The bird will later regurgitate the seed.However,in the process of digesting the fruit and regurgitating the seed,the embryo is made non-viable.This is ___________.
A) An example of a mutualism because the bird disperses the plants seeds.
B) An example of a coevolutionary relationship because both are specialized.
C) Not an example of a mutualism because the bird destroys the seed and so it is never actually benefiting the plant.
D) None of the above
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Page 10
Chapter 9: From Populations to Communities
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Q1) Anthropologists have long wondered what happened to the inhabitants of Easter Island.It is clear that part of the island was arable.Which of the following likely occurred after the island was depopulated?
A) Primary succession
B) Regulation
C) Secondary succession
D) Determination
Q2) In 1944,a researcher observes 710 ithomiine butterflies in a lek in a Central American rainforest.In 1945,1946,and 1947,the same researcher observed 722,711,744,and 702 individuals in a lek at the same location.In 2012,a different researcher revisited the same location and observed 694 ithomiine butterflies in the lek.What can you say about the stability of these ithomiine butterflies?
A) Nothing has really changed from 1944 to 2012.
B) The population has not fluctuated through time.
C) The population has experienced a steady decline.
D) None of the above.
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11
Chapter 10: Patterns in Species Richness
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Q1) What is one way to define a harsh environment?
A) An environment that humans cannot survive
B) An environment where many organisms once occupied
C) An environment that is dominated by an extreme abiotic factor
D) None of the above.
Q2) Which of the following is a measure of atmospheric energy?
A) Plant respiration
B) Gamma diversity
C) Potential evapotranspiration
D) Solar plexus
Q3) You are fishing in a large lake.You are not after any particular species you just want to catch fish.You would choose a fishing lure that:
A) Dives to the bottom of the lake.
B) Stays at the surface of the lake.
C) Goes to intermediate lake depths.
D) Goes to a depth where the lure would still be illuminated and thus visible to fish.
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Chapter 11: The Flux of Energy and Matter Through Ecosystems
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Q1) Which of the following terms refers to the mass of organisms per unit area?
A) Gross primary productivity
B) Biomass
C) Standing crop
D) Carrying capacity
Q2) Which biome has the greatest overall NPP?
A) Tropical rain forest
B) Tundra
C) Tropical savanna
D) Temperate forest
Q3) Which of the following statements are correct regarding nitrogen fixation in subtropical ocean gyres?
A) Nitrogen fixation does occur in subtropical ocean gyres
B) Nitrogen fixation does NOT occur in subtropical ocean gyres
C) Sulfate reduces the rate of nitrogen fixation in subtropical ocean gyres
D) Phytoplankton in subtropical ocean gyres are small but highly abundant
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Chapter 12: Global Biogeochemical Cycles and Their Alteration by Humans
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Q1) Prior to 1900,what was the major source of atmospheric carbon dioxide?
A) The burning of fossil fuels
B) Rubber production
C) Deforestation
D) Livestock
Q2) Phosphorus cycles within ecosystems,but the vast majority of phosphorus is stored where?
A) Land plants
B) Ocean Sediments
C) Mineable rock
D) Animals
Q3) Which researcher(s)proposed the idea that there are ten planetary life-sustaining biophysical systems that are essential for life on Earth?
A) The IPCC
B) Svante Arrhenius
C) Charles Keeling
D) Rockstrom et al.
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Page 14
Chapter 13: Conservation Ecology
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Q1) What remains the most likely cause of biodiversity loss?
A) Acidification of oceans
B) Deforestation
C) Eutrophication
D) Acid rain
Q2) You have studied a bird species in Costa Rica and there is a greater than 20% probability that it will go extinct in approximately 4 generations.Should this species be classified,and if so with what status?
A) No, it should not be classified
B) Yes, it should be classified as near threatened
C) Yes, it should be classified as critically endangered
D) Yes, it should be classified as endangered
Q3) A marine protected area is ___________.
A) All marine with no adjacent land area included
B) All or mostly marine area, sometimes with portions of adjacent land
C) All pelagic area
D) Only coastal areas with no deep sea space
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Chapter 14: The Ecology of Human Population Growth, Disease,
and Food Supply
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Q1) Extreme weather events have
A) Decreased in number since the 1980s
B) Likely killed more people in the 1980s than they did in the 1970s
C) Are likely connected to changes in global climate patterns
D) All of the above
Q2) What environmental problem(s)is/are related to increased corn production in the U.S.?
A) Air pollution
B) Nutrient pollution of waterways
C) Ozone depletion
D) Infectious disease spread
Q3) The projected increased spread of human diseases can be
A) Related to global climate change
B) Related to increased mutation rates in humans
C) Related to a decrease in vertebrate hosts
D) Unrelated to disease vectors
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