Ecology Review

What are the limits to the number of organisms and populations an ecosystem can support called?

• Biodiversity limits

• Carrying capacities

• Population thresholds

• Environmental barriers

Which process provides most of the energy for life processes?

• Photosynthesis and cellular respiration

• Geothermal energy

• Fermentation

• Fossil fuel combustion

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What is the carrying capacity of the graph?

• around 500
• more than 500
• less than 500
• around 600

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Which of the following would INCREASE the carrying capacity of an ecosystem?

• increase in predators
• disease
• increase in available food
• drought

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If the amount of food or resources available increases, the carrying capacity for an animal:

• Stays the same
• Increases
• Decreases
• Fluctuates

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In the context of populations, what is a "limiting factor"?

• A factor that has no effect on population size

• A factor that increases population size indefinitely

• A factor that prevents a population from increasing

• A factor that solely affects the birth rate

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Which of the following is NOT a factor that affects carrying capacity?

• Amount of available food

• Space for territories

• Number of predators

• The color of the organisms

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How does competition among species in an ecosystem relate to carrying capacity?

• It has no effect on carrying capacity.

• It increases carrying capacity by reducing population sizes.

• It decreases carrying capacity by intensifying the struggle for resources.

• It increases carrying capacity by promoting biodiversity.

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How do decomposers contribute to the nutrient cycle in an ecosystem?

• By consuming live plants

• By preying on smaller animals

• By breaking down dead organisms and waste, returning nutrients to the soil

• By producing oxygen through photosynthesis

Answer explanation

Decomposers contribute to the nutrient cycle by breaking down dead organisms and waste, returning nutrients to the soil.

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The reason that organisms cannot produce populations of unlimited size is that

• Populations always stay exactly the same.

• The resources of Earth are limited.

• There is no carrying capacity for the whole Earth.

• Species rarely compete with each other for food.

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