Environmental Studies
Mock Exam
Course Introduction
Environmental Studies is an interdisciplinary field that explores the complex relationships between humans and their environment, examining the impact of human activity on natural systems and the strategies for promoting environmental sustainability. The course covers key topics such as ecology, conservation, environmental policy, resource management, and the effects of pollution and climate change. Students will engage in scientific analysis, policy evaluation, and critical thinking to understand and address current environmental issues, while also exploring solutions that balance ecological health with economic and social needs.
Recommended Textbook
Essentials of Ecology 4th Edition by Michael Begon
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14 Chapters
702 Verified Questions
702 Flashcards
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Chapter 1: Ecology and How to Do It
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Sample Questions
Q1) Ecologists may use which of these approaches to answer research questions?
A) Mathematical models
B) Controlled laboratory experiments
C) Manipulative field experiments
D) Observational data
Answer: A,B,C,D
Q2) When one evaluates case studies in ecology,it is important to keep in mind:
A) Phenomenon occur at a variety of scales
B) Data and evidence can come from a variety of sources
C) Scientific evidence is necessary and statistics should be relied upon
D) None of the above
Answer: A,B,C,
Q3) If an ecologist studies interbreeding between populations and how that affects which organisms live in a community,they would be working on scales that include:
A) The population level
B) The biosphere level
C) The community level
D) The molecular level
Answer: A,C,D
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Chapter 2: Ecologys Evolutionary Backdrop
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which term refers to a trait that has a genetic basis and is capable of being passed down to subsequent generations?
A) Evolution
B) Fitness
C) Heritable
D) Speciation
Answer: C
Q2) Peppered moths (Biston betularia)vary in color from place to place.Is the variation within these populations heritable?
A) No, variation within this species is not heritable
B) Yes, the trait is the same in all populations which allows any moth to change from white to black at any given time
C) Yes, this trait is heritable and is selected for or against depending on the environment
D) No, variation is not heritable because reproduction does determine the color morph.
Answer: C
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4
Chapter 3: Physical Conditions and the Availability of Resources
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Sample Questions
Q1) You have been studying microorganisms that appear to be capable of oxidizing reduced compounds such as hydrogen sulfide and hypothesize that these organisms are _______________.
A) Thermophilic
B) Chemo-autotrophic
C) Acido-autotrophic
D) Chemo-heterotrophic
Answer: B
Q2) Seeds of the lodgepole pine do not germinate unless:
A) Stimulated by fire, which indicates ground has been cleared and seedlings have a chance to become established.
B) Stimulated by fire, which is a stimulus indicating no predators will eat the seeds.
C) Stimulated by predators, which feed on the seeds and disperse them.
D) Stimulated by winter rainfall, which provides a stimulus for seeds to germinate.
Answer: A
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Chapter 4: Climate and the Worlds Biomes
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Sample Questions
Q1) What atmospheric effect is responsible for the severe desert conditions found in Death Valley California?
A) Prevailing winds hitting the side of the mountain range where Death Valley is found.
B) Death Valley California is the result of geological processes, not atmospheric.
C) A rain shadow.
D) Anthropogenic-induced climate change.
Q2) Based on your knowledge of the global climate system,high rates of precipitation occur at certain latitudes because:
A) Air rises and cools there
B) Cool air cannot hold as much moisture as warm air
C) Air gains moisture as it rises and cools
D) Water vapor from cool air condenses
Q3) Which abiotic processes are responsible for the Ferrel cells?
A) The Coriolis Effect
B) Westerlies
C) Hadley Cells
D) Polar Cells
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6
Chapter 5: Birth, Death and Movement
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Sample Questions
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) If you were going to concisely describe an annual,what would you say?
A) Many annuals are semelparous, have bursts of flowering, set seed, and then go dormant until the following year when they can reproduce again.
B) Many annuals are iteroparous, have bursts of flowering, set seed, and then die.
C) Many annuals are iteroparous, have bursts of flowering, set seed, and then get eaten.
D) Many annuals are semelparous, have bursts of flowering, set seed, and then die.
Q3) A survivorship curve of Type I:
A) Shows risk of mortality is greatest at older ages
B) Is typical of humans
C) Shows number of surviving individuals is greatest at younger ages
D) Is not likely to occur in wild populations of animals and plants
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Chapter 6: Interspecific Competition
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Sample Questions
Q1) Insects and tadpoles of Fowler's toad were allowed to compete at natural densities with tadpoles of the Pine Barrens tree frog.The intensity of competition was similar for both insects and Fowler's toad.What does this tell you about competition between unrelated species?
A) It may seem that more closely related species should have a greater intensity of competition, but interspecific competition can occur across diverse taxa at similar intensities.
B) That more closely related species should outcompete less closely related species because intraspecific competition is greater than interspecific competition.
C) Intraspecific competition can occur across diverse taxa at similar intensities.
D) It may seem that more closely related species should have a lesser intensity of competition, but intraspecific competition can occur across diverse taxa at similar intensities.
Q2) Negatively associated distributions
A) Occur within a community.
B) There are no potential competitors without niche differentiation.
C) There are potential competitors without niche differentiation .
D) Competitors occur only where the other is absent.
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Chapter 7: Predation, Grazing and Disease
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Sample Questions
Q1) If prey are experimentally protected from predators then:
A) Prey numbers typically decrease quickly
B) Prey numbers may increase but then decrease when resources become limiting
C) Prey numbers usually do not change
D) Prey numbers are not dependent on predators
Q2) When predation interrupts competitive exclusion it is said to result in __________________.
A) Prey population cycles
B) Predator-mediated coexistence
C) Predator-induced competition
D) Prey-mediated predator population cycles
Q3) What is one reason that predators may no have a significant impact on prey populations as a whole?
A) Predator populations are usually less abundant than prey populations
B) Prey populations are usually less abundant than predator populations
C) Predators typically feed on individuals that currently make little to no reproductive contribution to the prey population
D) Predators typically feed on reproductively active females
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Chapter 8: Molecular and Evolutionary Ecology
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which molecular marker is a series of nucleotide bases repeated numerous times and is found in noncoding regions of DNA?
A) SNP
B) DNA barcode
C) Polymorphism
D) Microsatellite
Q2) A population of organisms is divided by a large seismic event.The populations remain split for hundreds of years.One side of the split population is exposed to high levels of ultraviolet radiation,while the other side is primarily exposed to moderate levels of ultraviolet radiation as had been in the shared environment in the past.What hypothesis might you derive with regard to how these populations have responded to ultraviolet radiation?
A) The populations have likely differentiated due to continued gene flow.
B) The populations have likely differentiated due to adaptive variation.
C) The populations have likely not differentiated because of genetic drift.
D) The populations have likely not differentiated but there may be adaptive variation and new species.
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10
Chapter 9: From Populations to Communities
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Q1) In highly agricultural areas,fencerows provide habitat and refugia for wildlife.You might assume:
A) Metapopulation analysis is more appropriate now than before land modification to agriculture.
B) Some species may go extinct in some fencerows but not others.
C) Smallest fencerows may see the most frequent species extinctions
D) For it to be a metapopulation organisms must be able to go from one fencerow to other fencerows.
Q2) k-values are highest when
A) Reproduction is also high.
B) survivorship is also high.
C) morality is low.
D) mortality is high.
Q3) What term describes structured analyses that use large numbers of data sets to discern consistent trends?
A) A metapopulation
B) A meta-analysis
C) A meta-index
D) A metaphore
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Page 11
Chapter 10: Patterns in Species Richness
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Q1) In which of the two examples of a community is species richness greater: A community with 100 species that can all be found equally within a 25 km radius of the area,or a community spread across the same area that has 100 species,in which 5% of the individuals are rare species.
A) The community where species can be found equally.
B) The species richness is the same.
C) The community where species are not found equally.
D) There is not enough information to answer this question.
Q2) When looking at a simple model of species richness based on a single resource,species richness may be determined by?
A) The range of available resource.
B) The level of specialization of each species on the resource.
C) The level of overlap of the usage of the resource by each species.
D) The level of interspecific competition.
Q3) As vegetation productivity goes up in China,vertebrate richness _______.
A) Increases.
B) Decreases.
C) Remains the same.
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Chapter 11: The Flux of Energy and Matter Through Ecosystems
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Sample Questions
Q1) Where would photosynthetic efficiency be lowest?
A) A conifer forest
B) A deciduous forest
C) A tropical rain forest
D) A desert
Q2) Which terms would be important to an ecologist when measuring primary productivity?
A) Net primary productivity only since all that is important is the actual rate of decomposition of biomass.
B) Gross primary productivity because all that is important is the total amount of energy gained after photosynthesis.
C) Net primary productivity and gross primary productivity because net primary productivity tells you the rate of new biomass produced and gross primary productivity tells you the total fixation of energy via photosynthesis.
D) Only primary productivity; there is no need for an ecologist to look at net or gross primary productivity.
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Page 13
Chapter 12: Global Biogeochemical Cycles and Their Alteration by Humans
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Q1) Coastal marshes contribute little to no methane to the atmosphere due to high levels of ________.
A) Nitrogen
B) Carbon
C) Sulfate
D) None of the above
Q2) Which of the following is a reason why the rate of phosphorus flow through the global environment is approximately three times greater than preindustrial and pre-agricultural revolutions?
A) Phosphorus from rock beds
B) Decaying plant matter
C) Deforestation
D) Phosphorus cleaning agents and fertilizer usage
Q3) Anthropogenic sources of methane include which of the following?
A) Decomposition of organic matter in landfills
B) Bacterial methanogenesis
C) Deforestation
D) Animal agriculture
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Chapter 13: Conservation Ecology
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Sample Questions
Q1) 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
Q2) What umbrella term is used to describe the various actions taken to slow down or reverse the loss of species and biodiversity?
A) Preservation
B) Conservation
C) Restoration
D) Remediation
Q3) There is often a _______________ between agriculture production and biodiversity.
A) Tradeoff
B) Direct positive relationship
C) Complementary relationship
D) Synergistic relationship
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Chapter 14: The Ecology of Human Population Growth, Disease,
and Food Supply
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Sample Questions
Q1) What is one reason that global hunger persists?
A) Lack of synthetic nitrogen fertilizer
B) Inadequate global food production
C) Unequal distribution of food produced
D) Under consumption when food is available
Q2) Growing organic crops _________ the environment because _________.
A) Benefits; it produces better food
B) Destroys; it produces more nitrogen in agricultural runoff
C) Benefits; it reduces the amount of nitrogen in agricultural runoff
D) Destroys; it reduces the amount of nitrogen in agricultural runoff
Q3) Under what conditions would a pesticide be most polluting?
A) If it is unselective and persistent
B) If it is selective and has a short half life
C) If it does not biomagnify in the food chain
D) If it biomagnifies in the food chain
Q4) The major cause of ozone depletion in the stratosphere was
A) CFCs
B) Lead paints
C) DDT
D) Excessive nutrients
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