Test your basic knowledge |

PCAT Biology Ecology

Subjects : pcat, biology
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Nitrates are absorbed by plants are used to syntheisze nucleic acids and plant proteins






2. Autotrophic green plants and chemosynthetic bacteria that use the energy of the sun and simple raw materials to manufacture carbohydrates - proteins - and lipids






3. Include reproduction and protection from predators and destructive weather






4. Evolve toward a balance in which the predator is a regulatory influence on th prey but not a threat to its survival






5. (living) includes all living things that directly or indirectly influence the life of the organism including the relationships that exist between organisms






6. The nitrogen locked up in the wastes and dead tissues is released by the action of the bacteria of decay - which convert the proteins into ammonia






7. Oceans connect to form one continuous body of water - which controls the earth's temperature by absorbing solar heat






8. Receive less rainfall than the temperate forests - have long - cold winters - and are inhabited by single coniferous tree-the spruce -extreme northern parts of Canada and Russia






9. Symbiotic relationship from which both organisms derive some benefit






10. Integrated system of species that are dependent upon one another for survival






11. Vegetation such as vines and eppiphytes






12. Ammonia (NH3) is broken down to release free nitrogen - which returns to the beginning of the denitrifying






13. Chief animal inhabitant is the moose; however - the black bear - wolf - and some birds






14. Receive less than ten inches of rain each year; the rain is concentrated within a few heavy cloudbursts -ex: Sahara in Africa and Gobi in Asia






15. Consists of populations of different plants and animal species interacting with each other in a given environment






16. Region typical of the open seas and can be divided into photic and aphotic zones






17. Treeless - frozen plain found between the taiga lands and the northern ice sheets - very short summer and thus a very short growing season during which time the ground becomes wet and marshy






18. Nutrients - water - and sunlight limitations aid in maintaining populations at relatively constant levels






19. Determine by the amount of decaying plant and animal life in the soil






20. Because organisms at the upper levels of the food chain derive their food energy from organisms at lower levels - and because energy is lost from one level to the next - each level can support a successively smaller biomass






21. Animals eat plants and use the digested nutrients to form carbohydrates - fats - and proteins characteristic of the species. a part of these organic compounds is used as fuel in respiration in plants and animals






22. One or both organisms can't survive without the other






23. Must be maintained at an optimal level -organisms have adaptations necessary for protection against extremes






24. Polar bears - musk oxen - and arctic hens






25. Used to include only the population and not their physical environment






26. In the ocean - the top layer thorugh which light can penetrate - is where all aquatic photosynthetic activity takes place






27. Conserve water actively






28. More than 70% of earth -plants have little controlling influence in communities -most stable ecosystems; the conditions affecting temperature - amount of available oxygen and cabon dioxide - and amount of suspended or dissolve materials are very stab






29. Composed of populations that are able to exist under the new conditions






30. The chief disruptive force






31. The vegetation that becomes dominant and stable after years of evolutiionary development






32. Freshwater Biomes vs. Saltwater 1: Freshwater is _______________ which results in the passage of water into the cell. Freshwater organisms have homeostatic mechanisms to maintain water balance by the regular removal of the excess water. these include






33. The metabolically produced CO2 is released to the air. The rest of the orgnaic carbon remains locked whthin an organism until its death (except for wastes given off) - at which time decay processes by bacteria return the CO2 to the air






34. One that exerts control over the other species that are present






35. Includes climate - temperature - availability of light and water - and the local topology






36. Animals that feed on secondary consumer






37. Lichens and moss






38. Adaptations for maintaining their internal osmolarity and conserving water






39. Links between oceans and land






40. Individual unit of an ecological system - but the organism itself is composed of smaller units -organs >tissues >cells >molecules >atoms > subatomic particles






41. Monkeys - lizards - snakes - and birds - floor is inhabited by saprophytes






42. When a parasite benefits at the expense of the host






43. Animals that consume primary consumers (carnivores)






44. Trees such as beech - maple - oaks - and willows shed their leaves during cold winters months






45. Food chain is not a simple linear chain but an intricate web






46. Region on the continental shelf that contains ocean area with depths up to 600 feet and extends several hundred miles from the shores






47. Deer - fox - woodchuck - and squirrel






48. Free-living organisms that feed on other living organisms






49. Animals that consume only plants or plant foods






50. Defines the functional role of an organism in its ecosystem -described what the organism eats - where and how it obtains its food - what climatic factors it can tolerate and which are optimal - the nature of its parasites and predators - where and ho