ECOL111 2025/2026 Exam Questions
with 100% Correct Answers | Latest
Update
What is biodiversity? - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔Variability among organisms and the
ecological complexes they are part of. This includes diversity between
species, within species, and between ecosystems.
Why does biodiversity matter? - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔- Ecosystem stability
- Key resources for humans
- Inspiration and quality of life
How do we track trends in biodiversity? - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔Using the IUCN
Red list - this is the worlds most comprehensive database on animal
groups and other parts of ecosystems across the world. This captures info
about the distribution, population size, ecology, and threats of ecosystems
around the world.
What are the five major threats to biodiversity across terrestrial, freshwater
and marine environments? - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔- Land use changes
1
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,- Exploitation
- Climate change
- Pollution
- Invasive species
Explain how land use changes act as a driver for loss of biodiversity. Use
an example. - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔- Conversion of land cover (deforestation,
mining)
- Changes in management (agricultural intensification)
- Changes in spatial configuration (habitat fragmentation)
New Zealand as an example
Prior to humans, most of NZ was forest, so when humans arrived, through
agriculture, intensive grazing, introduced plants etc there was mass forest
loss throughout the country.
Explain how exploitation acts as a driver for loss of biodiversity. Use an
example. - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔Key exploited species are marine fish,
invertebrates, trees, tropical vertebrates. A large example of exploitation is
2
COPYRIGHT@SARAHROSAPERAL 2025/2026. YEAR PUBLISHED 2025. COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 619652435. TERMS OF USE.
PRIVACY STATEMENT. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
,overfishing, where we are leading many species to extinction and also
causing shifts in size distribution due to forcing this selection pressure of
fish that are favourable due to surviving against fishing.
Explain how climate change acts as a driver for loss of biodiversity. Use an
example. - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔- Has impact on ecosystem functioning (e.g
bush fires causing wipeout of Australian galaxiids due to sediment run off
from fires)
-Impacts migration
-May threaten 1/6 of species globally, especially marine (warming oceans,
acidification)
Explain how pollution acts as a driver for loss of biodiversity. - 🧠 ANSWER
✔✔-Atmospheric deposition of nitrogen (burning fossil fuels etc) mean that
there is an increase in nutrients which change the growth rates of plants etc
in ecosystems, sometimes we don't want these increases.
-Nitrogen-phosphorus fertiliser
-Microplastics (we don't know a lot about them as it is an emerging threat)
Why do we look at the effects of pollution in relation to loss in biodiversity in
relation to how pollutants move through food webs and rainfall? - 🧠
3
COPYRIGHT@SARAHROSAPERAL 2025/2026. YEAR PUBLISHED 2025. COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 619652435. TERMS OF USE.
PRIVACY STATEMENT. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
, ANSWER ✔✔So we can see how it moves through environments and
which areas are threatened by accumulation of pollutants.
Explain how invasive species act as a driver for loss of biodiversity. Use an
example. - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔Invasive species disrupt ecological functioning
of natural ecosystems as they either out-compete or prey on native
species.
An example of invasive species causing loss in biodiversity is the predation
of rodents and cats on New Zealand's native birds.
How far can we go as scientists in terms of conservation of biodiversity? - 🧠
ANSWER ✔✔As scientists we can say that 'this is what will happen if
nothing is done' about a situation, but it is up to cultural, social, and
economic context to decide what will happen in terms of policy making.
Which factors underpin conservation status assessments of rare
ecosystems in Aotearoa? - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔- Assessing key threats on
environments
- Collecting data from GIS tools on indigenous cover and protected cover of
environments
4
COPYRIGHT@SARAHROSAPERAL 2025/2026. YEAR PUBLISHED 2025. COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 619652435. TERMS OF USE.
PRIVACY STATEMENT. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
with 100% Correct Answers | Latest
Update
What is biodiversity? - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔Variability among organisms and the
ecological complexes they are part of. This includes diversity between
species, within species, and between ecosystems.
Why does biodiversity matter? - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔- Ecosystem stability
- Key resources for humans
- Inspiration and quality of life
How do we track trends in biodiversity? - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔Using the IUCN
Red list - this is the worlds most comprehensive database on animal
groups and other parts of ecosystems across the world. This captures info
about the distribution, population size, ecology, and threats of ecosystems
around the world.
What are the five major threats to biodiversity across terrestrial, freshwater
and marine environments? - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔- Land use changes
1
COPYRIGHT@SARAHROSAPERAL 2025/2026. YEAR PUBLISHED 2025. COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 619652435. TERMS OF USE.
PRIVACY STATEMENT. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
,- Exploitation
- Climate change
- Pollution
- Invasive species
Explain how land use changes act as a driver for loss of biodiversity. Use
an example. - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔- Conversion of land cover (deforestation,
mining)
- Changes in management (agricultural intensification)
- Changes in spatial configuration (habitat fragmentation)
New Zealand as an example
Prior to humans, most of NZ was forest, so when humans arrived, through
agriculture, intensive grazing, introduced plants etc there was mass forest
loss throughout the country.
Explain how exploitation acts as a driver for loss of biodiversity. Use an
example. - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔Key exploited species are marine fish,
invertebrates, trees, tropical vertebrates. A large example of exploitation is
2
COPYRIGHT@SARAHROSAPERAL 2025/2026. YEAR PUBLISHED 2025. COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 619652435. TERMS OF USE.
PRIVACY STATEMENT. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
,overfishing, where we are leading many species to extinction and also
causing shifts in size distribution due to forcing this selection pressure of
fish that are favourable due to surviving against fishing.
Explain how climate change acts as a driver for loss of biodiversity. Use an
example. - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔- Has impact on ecosystem functioning (e.g
bush fires causing wipeout of Australian galaxiids due to sediment run off
from fires)
-Impacts migration
-May threaten 1/6 of species globally, especially marine (warming oceans,
acidification)
Explain how pollution acts as a driver for loss of biodiversity. - 🧠 ANSWER
✔✔-Atmospheric deposition of nitrogen (burning fossil fuels etc) mean that
there is an increase in nutrients which change the growth rates of plants etc
in ecosystems, sometimes we don't want these increases.
-Nitrogen-phosphorus fertiliser
-Microplastics (we don't know a lot about them as it is an emerging threat)
Why do we look at the effects of pollution in relation to loss in biodiversity in
relation to how pollutants move through food webs and rainfall? - 🧠
3
COPYRIGHT@SARAHROSAPERAL 2025/2026. YEAR PUBLISHED 2025. COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 619652435. TERMS OF USE.
PRIVACY STATEMENT. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
, ANSWER ✔✔So we can see how it moves through environments and
which areas are threatened by accumulation of pollutants.
Explain how invasive species act as a driver for loss of biodiversity. Use an
example. - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔Invasive species disrupt ecological functioning
of natural ecosystems as they either out-compete or prey on native
species.
An example of invasive species causing loss in biodiversity is the predation
of rodents and cats on New Zealand's native birds.
How far can we go as scientists in terms of conservation of biodiversity? - 🧠
ANSWER ✔✔As scientists we can say that 'this is what will happen if
nothing is done' about a situation, but it is up to cultural, social, and
economic context to decide what will happen in terms of policy making.
Which factors underpin conservation status assessments of rare
ecosystems in Aotearoa? - 🧠 ANSWER ✔✔- Assessing key threats on
environments
- Collecting data from GIS tools on indigenous cover and protected cover of
environments
4
COPYRIGHT@SARAHROSAPERAL 2025/2026. YEAR PUBLISHED 2025. COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER: 619652435. TERMS OF USE.
PRIVACY STATEMENT. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
