DSST Environmental Science 2 Practice Questions and Answers

What is ecology? Study of organism interactions and surroundings. What are abiotic factors? Non-living factors in an environment. Give examples of abiotic factors in a salt marsh ecosystem. Climate, weather, water temperature, salinity, pH, soil composition, oxygen content. What are biotic factors? Living organisms in an ecosystem. Give examples of biotic factors in a salt marsh ecosystem. Marsh grass, shrubs, plant life, fish, worms, insects, shellfish, crabs, birds, bacteria, plankton. What is the lowest level of biotic factors hierarchy? Organisms. Give examples of organisms in a salt marsh ecosystem. Marsh grass, flounder, fiddler crabs. What is a species? Population of organisms capable of reproducing. What do members of a species share? Behaviors, genetic structure, appearance. Give an example of a species in a salt marsh ecosystem. Fiddler crabs. What is a population? Group of the same species in the same region. Give an example of a population in a salt marsh ecosystem. Fiddler crabs in Maryland vs Delaware. What is a community? Interacting populations of different species in an area. What is an ecosystem? A community of different species interacting with abiotic factors. What is global ecology? Study of organisms and their environment on a global scale. What do ecologists examine in global ecology? Interactions among ecosystems, land, atmosphere, and oceans.