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Ecology Final Exam Study Guide 2026-
2027: 1100 Complete Questions, Answers &
Detailed Review
Consider a species of fig tree that is pollinated by a single species of
wasp. Without the wasp, the fig tree will not produce seeds. Without the
Tr
fig tree, the wasp will not produce offspring. The relationship between
these species is an example of - ✔ANASWER✔-obligate mutualism
us
A species that interacts with many other species is a - ✔ANASWER✔-
generalist
te
A specialist is a species that - ✔ANASWER✔-interacts with one of a
few closely related species
ds
Which of the following are specialists that form a mutualism? I.
Honeybees pollinate many species of flower.
ch
II. The crayfish snake eats only crayfish.
ol
ar
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III. The yucca plant is pollinated by a single species of moth. -
✔ANASWER✔-III only
When two species provide fitness benefits to each other but do not
require each other to persist, they are - ✔ANASWER✔
facultative mutualists
Coral and zooxanthellae algae have a mutualism in which coral provide
shelter for algae. What do algae provide for coral? - ✔ANASWER✔-
nutrients
Tr
Which of the following are benefits that many mutualists provide one
us
another?
I. shelter
II. protection from predators III. nutrients - ✔ANASWER✔-I, II, III
te
Which of the following statements about the hyphae of ectomycorrhizal
ds
fungi are correct? I. They provide plants with minerals and water from
the soil.
II. They collect sugars that plants produce by photosynthesis.
ch
III. They grow between root cells. - ✔ANASWER✔-I, II, III
What benefit do Rhizobium bacteria provide to plants that plants cannot
ol
provide for themselves? - ✔ANASWER✔-a conversion of atmospheric
nitrogen to form that plants can use
ar
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Which of the following three interactions are mutualisms?
I: Wasp and butterfly larvae. The wasp lays its eggs inside the body of a
butterfly larva. The eggs hatch and the wasp larvae feed on the body of
the butterfly larva. By the time the wasp larvae metamorphose from the
butterfly larva, the butterfly larva is killed.
II: Fig and fig wasp: The adult wasps crawl into the cluster of fig flowers
to lay eggs. By moving around, the adult wasp pollinates the fig flowers,
allowing them to produce fruit and seeds. As the fig fruit develops, it
provides shelter for the wasp larvae.
Tr
III: Ants and acacias: Acacia plants develop hollow thorns that provide
shelter for ant colonies and produce nectaries on their leaves that provide
food for ants. The ants defend the acacia plant from herbivores. -
us
✔ANASWER✔-II, III
What benefit do Pseudomyrmex ants obtain from their mutualism with
te
acacia trees? I. shelter in hollow thorns
II. food from nectaries
ds
III. nitrogen from atmospheric sources - ✔ANASWER✔-I, II
If you removed mutualistic ants from acacia trees, there would be -
ch
✔ANASWER✔-more herbivorous insects on the acacia
(Figure 17.9) Two species of ant that live on acacia are
ol
Pseudomyrmex ferruginea and P. gracilis. The figure shows how the
presence or absence of each species of ant affects the abundance of
ar
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pathogenic bacteria on acacia leaves. What conclusion can you draw
from this figure? - ✔ANASWER✔-only
P. ferruginea is mutualistic with acacia
Which of the following benefits do acacia plants obtain from mutualisms
with ants?
I. Ants kill herbivorous insects.
II. Ants keep competitive plants from growing nearby. III. Ants
spread antibacterial compounds on the plant. - ✔ANASWER✔-I,II,
III
Tr
Endophytic fungi - ✔ANASWER✔-live within a plant's tissue
us
If oxpecker birds went extinct, what would be the most likely
consequence? - ✔ANASWER✔-large african mammals would have
te
more parasites
ds
What condition of large mammals do oxpecker birds seek out? -
✔ANASWER✔-many parasites
ch
A biologist is studying three species of small fish (sp 1, sp 2, and sp 3)
that cling to the bodies of bigger fish and consume parasites on the
larger fish. He conducts an experiment with three treatments. In each
treatment, he removes a different one of the small fish species from a
ol
large fish and examines the number offspring produced by the large fish.
ar
Trustedscholar
Ecology Final Exam Study Guide 2026-
2027: 1100 Complete Questions, Answers &
Detailed Review
Consider a species of fig tree that is pollinated by a single species of
wasp. Without the wasp, the fig tree will not produce seeds. Without the
Tr
fig tree, the wasp will not produce offspring. The relationship between
these species is an example of - ✔ANASWER✔-obligate mutualism
us
A species that interacts with many other species is a - ✔ANASWER✔-
generalist
te
A specialist is a species that - ✔ANASWER✔-interacts with one of a
few closely related species
ds
Which of the following are specialists that form a mutualism? I.
Honeybees pollinate many species of flower.
ch
II. The crayfish snake eats only crayfish.
ol
ar
Trustedscholar
, 2 | Page
III. The yucca plant is pollinated by a single species of moth. -
✔ANASWER✔-III only
When two species provide fitness benefits to each other but do not
require each other to persist, they are - ✔ANASWER✔
facultative mutualists
Coral and zooxanthellae algae have a mutualism in which coral provide
shelter for algae. What do algae provide for coral? - ✔ANASWER✔-
nutrients
Tr
Which of the following are benefits that many mutualists provide one
us
another?
I. shelter
II. protection from predators III. nutrients - ✔ANASWER✔-I, II, III
te
Which of the following statements about the hyphae of ectomycorrhizal
ds
fungi are correct? I. They provide plants with minerals and water from
the soil.
II. They collect sugars that plants produce by photosynthesis.
ch
III. They grow between root cells. - ✔ANASWER✔-I, II, III
What benefit do Rhizobium bacteria provide to plants that plants cannot
ol
provide for themselves? - ✔ANASWER✔-a conversion of atmospheric
nitrogen to form that plants can use
ar
Trustedscholar
, 3 | Page
Which of the following three interactions are mutualisms?
I: Wasp and butterfly larvae. The wasp lays its eggs inside the body of a
butterfly larva. The eggs hatch and the wasp larvae feed on the body of
the butterfly larva. By the time the wasp larvae metamorphose from the
butterfly larva, the butterfly larva is killed.
II: Fig and fig wasp: The adult wasps crawl into the cluster of fig flowers
to lay eggs. By moving around, the adult wasp pollinates the fig flowers,
allowing them to produce fruit and seeds. As the fig fruit develops, it
provides shelter for the wasp larvae.
Tr
III: Ants and acacias: Acacia plants develop hollow thorns that provide
shelter for ant colonies and produce nectaries on their leaves that provide
food for ants. The ants defend the acacia plant from herbivores. -
us
✔ANASWER✔-II, III
What benefit do Pseudomyrmex ants obtain from their mutualism with
te
acacia trees? I. shelter in hollow thorns
II. food from nectaries
ds
III. nitrogen from atmospheric sources - ✔ANASWER✔-I, II
If you removed mutualistic ants from acacia trees, there would be -
ch
✔ANASWER✔-more herbivorous insects on the acacia
(Figure 17.9) Two species of ant that live on acacia are
ol
Pseudomyrmex ferruginea and P. gracilis. The figure shows how the
presence or absence of each species of ant affects the abundance of
ar
Trustedscholar
, 4 | Page
pathogenic bacteria on acacia leaves. What conclusion can you draw
from this figure? - ✔ANASWER✔-only
P. ferruginea is mutualistic with acacia
Which of the following benefits do acacia plants obtain from mutualisms
with ants?
I. Ants kill herbivorous insects.
II. Ants keep competitive plants from growing nearby. III. Ants
spread antibacterial compounds on the plant. - ✔ANASWER✔-I,II,
III
Tr
Endophytic fungi - ✔ANASWER✔-live within a plant's tissue
us
If oxpecker birds went extinct, what would be the most likely
consequence? - ✔ANASWER✔-large african mammals would have
te
more parasites
ds
What condition of large mammals do oxpecker birds seek out? -
✔ANASWER✔-many parasites
ch
A biologist is studying three species of small fish (sp 1, sp 2, and sp 3)
that cling to the bodies of bigger fish and consume parasites on the
larger fish. He conducts an experiment with three treatments. In each
treatment, he removes a different one of the small fish species from a
ol
large fish and examines the number offspring produced by the large fish.
ar
Trustedscholar
