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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. Any group of similar organisms that are capable of reproducing






2. Animals that consume primary consumers (carnivores)






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






4. Every energy transfer involves a loss of energy and each level of the food chain uses some of the energy it obtains from the food for its own metabolism and loses some additional energy in the form of heat






5. Characterized by low rainfall - although considerably more than the desert biomes receive -provide no shelter for herbivorous mammals from carnivorous predators -ex: East of the Rockies - steppes of the Ukraine - and the pampas of Argentina






6. Region exposed to low tides that undergoes variations in temperature and periods of dryness






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






8. Nekton and benthos - scavengers - and predators (fiercely competitive)






9. Cold - dry - and inhabited by fir - pine - and spruce trees -much vegetation has evolved adaptations for water conservation such as needle-shaped leaves -Extreme Northern Part of the US and in Southern Canada






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






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






12. Animals that consume only plants or plant foods






13. The study of interactions between organisms and their environment






14. Animals that only eat other animals -possess pointed teeth and fang-like canine teeth for tearing flesh -have shorter digestive tracts because the easier digestibility of animal food






15. Two fates await the ammonia (NH3). some are nitrified or dentrified






16. 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






17. 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






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






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






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






21. One species may be competitively superior in some regions - and the other may be superior in other regions under different environmental conditions. this would result in the elimination of one species in some places and the other in other places






22. Active swimmers such as fish - sharks - or whales that feed on plankton and smaller fish






23. First to resettle a virgin area






24. 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






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






26. 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






27. Includes all portions of the planet that support life -the atmosphere - the lithosphere - and the hydrosphere






28. Include those protists and fungi that decompose dead organic matter externally and absorb the nutrients - they consistitute a vital link in the cycling of material within the ecosystem






29. Consumer organisms that are higher in hte food chain are usually larger and heavier than those further down






30. 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






31. Conserve water actively






32. Made into nitrites by chemosynthetic bacteria and then to usable nitrates by nitrifying bacteria






33. Determines the nature of plant and animal life in the soil






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






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






36. Encompasses all that is external to the organism and is necessary for its existence






37. Group of organisms of the same species living together in a given location






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






39. Recycle water - oxygen - and phosphorus






40. Rhododendrons and pines are more suited for growth in acid oil






41. Rock and soil surface






42. Algae - sponges - clams - snails - sea urchins - starfish - and crabs






43. Sunlit layer of the open sea extending to a depth of 250-600ft






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






45. 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






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






47. Energy is transferred from the original sources in green plants through a series o organisms with repeated stages of consumption and finally decomposition






48. Vegetation such as vines and eppiphytes






49. Only animal life and other heterotrophic life exists






50. Jungles characterized by high temperatures and torrential rains -found in Central Africa - Central America - the Amazon basic - and Southeast Asia