BIO 370; Ecology Exam #1 questions
and answers
Spatial Scale - correct answer ✔✔ Small- mm to cm
Large- Global
What is ecology? - correct answer ✔✔ Hypotheses for how organisms and the environment
interact constantly change with new research and technology.
The hierarchy of biological organization - correct answer ✔✔ 1. Molecules
2. Subcellular Organisms
3. Cells
4. Tissues
5. Organs
6. Organ Systems
7. Individuals
8. Populations
9. Communities
10. Ecosystems
11. Biosphere
Ecology of Individuals - correct answer ✔✔ How an organism's physiology and behavior
determines:
1. How it responds to the environment
2. How it shapes the environment
,Population Ecology - correct answer ✔✔ Why do numbers of individuals of the same species
fluctuate in space and time?
Community Ecology - correct answer ✔✔ How do interactions among different species and their
environment shape patterns of diversity and composition?
Ecosystem Ecology - correct answer ✔✔ What controls the flow of energy and materials
between organisms and the environment?
Ecology of the Biosphere - correct answer ✔✔ How does global climate and geography
influence environmental patterns and distributions of all living organisms?
Abiotic - correct answer ✔✔ Non-living chemical and physical parts of the environment
Biotic - correct answer ✔✔ All living components
What is soil? (abiotic or biotic) - correct answer ✔✔ Contains both inorganic materials
(minerals, rocks, water) AND organic material (plant roots, fungi, bacteria, etc.)
How do we study ecology? - correct answer ✔✔ Microcosm experiment
Ecosystem experiment
Mesocosm experiment
Observational-Surveys - correct answer ✔✔ - Observing patterns in natural ecosystems, but not
manipulating the environment
- Can determine potential correlations in nature
- Example: plant diversity can be correlated with precipitation
, Experiments - correct answer ✔✔ - Manipulate/control an ecological factor (biotic or abiotic)
and observe effects
- Can determine cause and effect relationships
- Example: insecticides reduce herbivorous insects, influencing plant communities
Theoretical-Mathematical Modeling - correct answer ✔✔ - Use known relationships to predict
ecological outcomes
- Can test scales that are not feasible with experiments or surveys and predict general patterns.
- Example: Fish response to increased food resources over 10,000 generations
Scientific Method - correct answer ✔✔ 1. Observe & Question
2. Predict with hypotheses
3. Test hypotheses
4. Consider results
Weather - correct answer ✔✔ Variation in temperature and precipitation over hours, days, or
weeks.
Climate - correct answer ✔✔ Long-term description of weather at a given location, based on
averages and variation measured over decades.
Climate controls organism distributions by influencing patterns in: - correct answer ✔✔ 1.
Temperature: determines rates of biochemical reactions (metabolism)
2. Precipitation: provide essential water for terrestrial organisms and maintains freshwater
ecosystems
3. Ocean currents: alter temperature and chemistry of marine ecosystems
and answers
Spatial Scale - correct answer ✔✔ Small- mm to cm
Large- Global
What is ecology? - correct answer ✔✔ Hypotheses for how organisms and the environment
interact constantly change with new research and technology.
The hierarchy of biological organization - correct answer ✔✔ 1. Molecules
2. Subcellular Organisms
3. Cells
4. Tissues
5. Organs
6. Organ Systems
7. Individuals
8. Populations
9. Communities
10. Ecosystems
11. Biosphere
Ecology of Individuals - correct answer ✔✔ How an organism's physiology and behavior
determines:
1. How it responds to the environment
2. How it shapes the environment
,Population Ecology - correct answer ✔✔ Why do numbers of individuals of the same species
fluctuate in space and time?
Community Ecology - correct answer ✔✔ How do interactions among different species and their
environment shape patterns of diversity and composition?
Ecosystem Ecology - correct answer ✔✔ What controls the flow of energy and materials
between organisms and the environment?
Ecology of the Biosphere - correct answer ✔✔ How does global climate and geography
influence environmental patterns and distributions of all living organisms?
Abiotic - correct answer ✔✔ Non-living chemical and physical parts of the environment
Biotic - correct answer ✔✔ All living components
What is soil? (abiotic or biotic) - correct answer ✔✔ Contains both inorganic materials
(minerals, rocks, water) AND organic material (plant roots, fungi, bacteria, etc.)
How do we study ecology? - correct answer ✔✔ Microcosm experiment
Ecosystem experiment
Mesocosm experiment
Observational-Surveys - correct answer ✔✔ - Observing patterns in natural ecosystems, but not
manipulating the environment
- Can determine potential correlations in nature
- Example: plant diversity can be correlated with precipitation
, Experiments - correct answer ✔✔ - Manipulate/control an ecological factor (biotic or abiotic)
and observe effects
- Can determine cause and effect relationships
- Example: insecticides reduce herbivorous insects, influencing plant communities
Theoretical-Mathematical Modeling - correct answer ✔✔ - Use known relationships to predict
ecological outcomes
- Can test scales that are not feasible with experiments or surveys and predict general patterns.
- Example: Fish response to increased food resources over 10,000 generations
Scientific Method - correct answer ✔✔ 1. Observe & Question
2. Predict with hypotheses
3. Test hypotheses
4. Consider results
Weather - correct answer ✔✔ Variation in temperature and precipitation over hours, days, or
weeks.
Climate - correct answer ✔✔ Long-term description of weather at a given location, based on
averages and variation measured over decades.
Climate controls organism distributions by influencing patterns in: - correct answer ✔✔ 1.
Temperature: determines rates of biochemical reactions (metabolism)
2. Precipitation: provide essential water for terrestrial organisms and maintains freshwater
ecosystems
3. Ocean currents: alter temperature and chemistry of marine ecosystems
