Ecology, Biomes, and Ecological Succession

Changes in an ecosystem over a long period of time are shown in the diagram below.
These changes will most likely lead to a:

• stable ecosystem that can last for many years
• loss of heterotrophs that cannot be recovered
• long-term rise in environmental temperatures
• forest consisting of only producers and decomposers

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The diagram below shows how an area progresses over time after a forest fire.
What process is illustrated by the diagram in boxes 4-8 after the forest fire?

• pioneer speciation
• primary succession
• secondary succession
• ecosystem boundaries

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A biologists compares how different ecosystems undergo succession. She divides the series of events that happen during primary and secondary succession into three different stages. Which feature might be used to distinguish secondary succession from primary succession?

• the lack of pioneer species in the second stage
• the presence of pioneer species in the final stage
• the presence of trees and large plants in the final stage
• the presence of soil and organic matter in the first stage.

After a volcano erupts and destroys an ecosystem, a few organisms are able to begin growing from the decaying organic matter left behind. What do we call those organisms that are able to grow in little or no soil that first appear?

• adaptors
• pioneer species
• non-vascular plants
• decomposers

One way that humans could have a positive impact on local environments is to:

• generate waste products as a result of technological advances
• use resources that are renewable
• increase planting large areas of one crop
• increase the use of pesticides

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Environmentalists are hoping to protect endangered organisms by calling for a reduction in the use of pesticides, because loss of these organisms would:

• increase the mutation rate in plants
• cause pesticides to become more toxic to insects
• reduce biodiversity in various ecosystems
• decrease the space and resources available to other organisms

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The biome known for trees with broad leaves that fall off the trees in the winter.

• Coniferous Forests
• Deciduous Forests
• Deserts
• Tropical Rain Forests

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What term is given by scientists to the living parts of an ecosystem?

• Biotic Factors
• Abiotic Factors
• Community
• Population

Abiotic factors are parts of the environment that are...

• Nonliving 
• Living
• Populations
• Vegetation

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This forest is split into "layers" where organisms live.

• Deciduous Forest
• Tropical Rain Forest
• Coniferous Forest
• None of these

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