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Biology, 7e (Campbell)
Chapter 54: Ecosystems


Chapter Questions

1) What is the fundamental difference between matter and energy?
A) Matter is cycled through ecosystems; energy is not.
B) Energy is cycled through ecosystems; matter is not.
C) Energy can be converted into matter; matter cannot be converted into energy.
D) Matter can be converted into energy; energy cannot be converted into matter.
E) Matter is used in ecosystems; energy is not
Answer: A
Topic: Concept 54.1
Skill: Comprehension

2) Which of the following best explains why energy cannot cycle through an ecosystem?
A) the law of conservation of energy
B) the second law of thermodynamics
C) the competitive exclusion principle
D) the green world hypothesis
E) the principle of biomagnification
Answer: B
Topic: Concept 54.1
Skill: Comprehension

3) A cow's herbivorous diet indicates that it is a(n)
A) primary consumer.
B) secondary consumer.
C) decomposer.
D) autotroph.
E) producer.
Answer: A
Topic: Concept 54.1
Skill: Knowledge

4) To recycle nutrients, the minimum an ecosystem must have is
A) producers.
B) producers and decomposers.
C) producers, primary consumers, and decomposers.
D) producers, primary consumers, secondary consumers, and decomposers.
E) producers, primary consumers, secondary consumers, top carnivores, and decomposers.
Answer: B
Topic: Concept 54.1
Skill: Comprehension

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5) Which of the following terms encompasses all of the others?
A) heterotrophs
B) herbivores
C) carnivores
D) primary consumers
E) secondary consumers
Answer: A
Topic: Concept 54.1
Skill: Comprehension

6) Production, consumption, and decomposition are important ecosystem processes. Which of the following could
be decomposers?
A) bacteria
B) vertebrates
C) invertebrates
D) A and C only
E) A, B, and C
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.1
Skill: Knowledge

7) Which of the following are responsible for most of the conversion of organic materials into CO
2
, which can be
utilized in primary production?
A) autotrophs
B) bacteria
C) fungi
D) B and C only
E) A, B, and C
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.1
Skill: Knowledge

8) The main decomposers in an ecosystem are
A) fungi.
B) plants.
C) insects.
D) prokaryotes.
E) both A and D
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.1
Skill: Knowledge

9) Many homeowners mow their lawns during the summer and collect the clippings, which are then hauled to the
local landfill. Which of the following alternatives would cause the least disturbance to local ecosystems?
A) Don't mow the lawn-have sheep graze it and put the sheep's feces into the landfill.
B) Collect the clippings and burn them.
C) Either collect the clippings and add them to a compost pile, or don't collect the clippings and let them decompose
on the lawn.
D) Collect the clippings and wash them into the nearest storm sewer that feeds into the local lake.
E) Dig up the lawn and cover the yard with asphalt.
Answer: C
Topic: Concept 54.1
Skill: Comprehension

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10) The producers in ecosystems include organisms in which of the following groups?
A) prokaryotes
B) algae
C) plants
D) B and C only
E) A, B, and C
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.2
Skill: Knowledge

11) Subtraction of which of the following will convert gross primary productivity into net primary productivity?
A) the energy contained in the standing crop
B) the energy used by heterotrophs in respiration
C) the energy used by autotrophs in respiration
D) the energy fixed by photosynthesis
E) all solar energy
Answer: C
Topic: Concept 54.2
Skill: Comprehension

12) The difference between net and gross primary productivity would likely be greatest for
A) phytoplankton in the ocean.
B) corn plants in a farmer's field.
C) prairie grasses.
D) an oak tree in a forest.
E) sphagnum moss in a bog.
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.2
Skill: Comprehension

13) Which of these ecosystems accounts for the largest amount of Earth's net primary productivity?
A) tundra
B) savanna
C) salt marsh
D) open ocean
E) tropical rain forest
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.2
Skill: Knowledge

14) Which of these ecosystems has the highest net primary productivity per square meter?
A) savanna
B) open ocean
C) boreal forest
D) tropical rain forest
E) temperate forest
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.2
Skill: Comprehension

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15) The total biomass of photosynthetic autotrophs present in an ecosystem is known as
A) gross primary productivity.
B) standing crop.
C) net primary productivity.
D) secondary productivity.
E) trophic efficiency.
Answer: B
Topic: Concept 54.2
Skill: Knowledge

16) How is it that the open ocean produces the highest net primary productivity of Earth's ecosystems, yet net
primary productivity per square meter is relatively low?
A) It contains greater concentrations of nutrients.
B) It receives a greater amount of solar energy per unit area.
C) It has the greatest total area.
D) It contains more species of organisms.
E) Its producers are generally much smaller than its consumers.
Answer: C
Topic: Concept 54.2
Skill: Knowledge

17) Aquatic primary productivity is often limited by which of the following?
A) light
B) nutrients
C) pressure
D) A and B only
E) A, B, and C
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.2
Skill: Comprehension

18) Aquatic ecosystems are unlikely to be limited by insufficient
A) nitrogen.
B) carbon.
C) phosphorus.
D) iron.
E) sodium.
Answer: B
Topic: Concept 54.2
Skill: Comprehension

19) Which of the following organisms fix nitrogen in aquatic ecosystems?
A) cyanobacteria
B) chemoautotrophs
C) phytoplankton
D) legumes
E) fungi
Answer: A
Topic: Concept 54.2
Skill: Knowledge

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20) As big as it is, the ocean is nutrient-limited. If you wanted to investigate this, one reasonable avenue would be
to
A) follow whale migrations in order to determine where most nutrients are.
B) observe Antarctic Ocean productivity and compare that to other areas.
C) experimentally enrich some areas of the ocean and compare them to unmanipulated areas.
D) B and C only
E) A, B, and C
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.2
Skill: Comprehension

21) The amount of chemical energy in consumers' food that is converted to their own new biomass during a given
time period is called
A) biomass.
B) standing crop.
C) biomagnification.
D) primary production.
E) secondary production.
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Knowledge

22) How does inefficient transfer of energy among trophic levels influence the typically high risk of extinction
shared by most top predators?
A) Predators are sparsely distributed.
B) Predators have relatively small population sizes.
C) Predators are more disease-prone than animals at lower trophic levels.
D) A and B only
E) A, B, and C
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Comprehension

23) Trophic efficiency is
A) the ratio of net secondary production to assimilation of primary production.
B) the percentage of production transferred from one trophic level to the next.
C) the ratio of net production at one trophic level to the net production at the level below, expressed as a percentage.
D) usually greater than production efficiencies.
E) both B and C
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Comprehension

24) Which of the following pyramids cannot be inverted?
A) production
B) biomass
C) numbers
D) A and B only
E) A, B, and C
Answer: A
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Comprehension

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25) If you wanted to convert excess grain into the greatest amount of animal biomass, to which animal would you
feed the grain?
A) chickens
B) mice
C) cattle
D) carp (a type of fish)
E) mealworms (larval insects)
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Comprehension

26) Organisms in which of the following groups can be primary producers?
A) cyanobacteria
B) zooplankton
C) flowering plants
D) A and C only
E) A, B, and C
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Knowledge

27) In general, the total biomass in a terrestrial ecosystem will be greatest for which trophic level?
A) producers
B) herbivores
C) primary consumers
D) tertiary consumers
E) secondary consumers
Answer: A
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Knowledge

28) Some aquatic ecosystems can have inverted biomass pyramids because
A) phytoplankton are much larger than zooplankton.
B) phytoplankton have a relatively short life cycle.
C) consumption of phytoplankton by zooplankton is so rapid that the standing crop of phytoplankton remains
relatively low.
D) B and C only
E) A, B, and C
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Knowledge

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Refer to Figure 54.1, a diagram of a food web, for the following questions. (Arrows represent energy flow and
letters represent species.)



Figure 54.1

29) If this were a terrestrial food web, the combined biomass of C + D would probably be
A) greater than the biomass of A.
B) less than the biomass of H.
C) greater than the biomass of B.
D) less than the biomass of A + B.
E) less than the biomass of E.
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Comprehension

30) If this were a marine food web, the smallest organism might be
A) A.
B) F.
C) C.
D) I.
E) E.
Answer: A
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Application

31) For most terrestrial ecosystems, pyramids of numbers, biomass, and energy are essentially the same-they have a
broad base and a narrow top. The primary reason for this pattern is that
A) secondary consumers and top carnivores require less energy than producers.
B) at each step, energy is lost from the system as a result of keeping the organisms alive.
C) as matter passes through ecosystems, some of it is lost to the environment.
D) biomagnification of toxic materials limits the secondary consumers and top carnivores.
E) top carnivores and secondary consumers have a more general diet than primary producers.
Answer: B
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Comprehension

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32) Which of the following is primarily responsible for limiting the number of trophic l evels in most ecosystems?
A) Many primary and higher-order consumers are opportunistic feeders.
B) Most predators require large home ranges.
C) Nutrient cycles involve both abiotic and biotic components of ecosystems.
D) Nutrient cycling rates tend to be limited by decomposition.
E) Each energy transfer is less than 100% efficient.
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Comprehension

33) Which of the following situations is consistent with the green world hypothesis?
A) Milkweed plants are eaten by monarch caterpillars.
B) Some gypsy moths cannot feed and thus die because others moths have defoliated the trees in the area.
C) Webworms cooperate with each other to build a protective silken structure around themselves.
D) A mild winter improves the survival rate of overwintering cutworms.
E) Grasshoppers in a corn field are killed by a viral infection.
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Comprehension

34) Which of the following statements about energy flow is incorrect?
A) Secondary productivity declines with each trophic level.
B) Only net primary productivity is available to consumers.
C) About 90% of the energy at one trophic level does not appear at the next.
D) Eating meat is probably the most economical way of acquiring the energy of photosynthetic productivity.
E) Only about one-thousandth of the chemical energy fixed by photosynthesis reaches a tertiary-level consumer.
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Comprehension

35) Nitrogen is available to plants only in the form of
A) ammonium.
B) nitrite.
C) nitrate.
D) A and C only
E) A, B, and C
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.4
Skill: Knowledge

36) In the nitrogen cycle, the bacteria that replenish the atmosphere with N
2
are
A) Rhizobium bacteria.
B) nitrifying bacteria.
C) denitrifying bacteria.
D) methanogenic protozoans.
E) nitrogen-fixing bacteria.
Answer: C
Topic: Concept 54.4
Skill: Knowledge

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37) How does phosphorus normally enter the atmosphere?
A) respiration
B) photosynthesis
C) rock weathering
D) geological uplifting (subduction and vulcanism)
E) It does not enter the atmosphere in biologically significant amounts.
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.4
Skill: Knowledge

38) Which of the following statements is correct about biogeochemical cycling?
A) The phosphorus cycle involves the rapid recycling of atmospheric phosphorus.
B) The phosphorus cycle is a sedimentary cycle that involves the weathering of rocks.
C) The carbon cycle is a localized cycle that primarily reflects the burning of fossil fuels.
D) The carbon cycle has maintained a constant atmospheric concentration of CO
2
for the past million years.
E) The nitrogen cycle involves movement of nitrogen very little of which is chemically altered by either the biotic or
abiotic components of the ecosystem.
Answer: B
Topic: Concept 54.4
Skill: Knowledge

39) Long-term ecological research at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest indicates that
A) intensive logging can dramatically increase levels of nitrate and calcium ions retained in the soil.
B) the amount of nutrients leaving an intact forest ecosystem is controlled by the plants themselves.
C) selective logging can actually increase species richness in temperate forests.
D) A and C only
E) A, B, and C
Answer: B
Topic: Concept 54.4
Skill: Knowledge

40) If you were tracking a nutrient molecule through an ecosystem, which of the following statements would you
expect to verify?
A) Molecules move through all ecosystems at the same constant rate, as the laws of physics would predict.
B) Because of the liquid nature of the aquatic ecosystem, nutrient molecules move through it rapidly compared with
forest ecosystems.
C) Vertical mixing is essential for high productivity in aquatic ecosystems.
D) A and B only
E) A, B, and C
Answer: C
Topic: Concept 54.4
Skill: Comprehension

41) Which of the following statements is (are) true?
A) An ecosystem's trophic structure determines the rate at which energy cycles within the system.
B) At any point in time, it is impossible for consumers to outnumber producers in an ecosystem.
C) Chemoautotrophic prokaryotes near deep-sea vents are primary producers.
D) There has been a well-documented increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide over the past several decades.
E) both C and D
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.5
Skill: Knowledge

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42) Human-induced modifications of the nitrogen cycle can result in
A) eutrophication of freshwater ecosystems.
B) increased availability of fixed nitrogen to primary producers.
C) accumulation of toxic levels of nitrates in groundwater.
D) A and C only
E) A, B, and C
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.5
Skill: Knowledge

43) The high levels of pesticides found in birds of prey is an example of
A) eutrophication.
B) predation.
C) biological magnification.
D) the green world hypothesis.
E) chemical cycling through an ecosystem.
Answer: C
Topic: Concept 54.5
Skill: Knowledge

44) If the flow of energy in an arctic ecosystem goes through a simple food chain from seaweeds to fish to seals to
polar bears, then which of the following is true?
A) Polar bears can provide more food for people than seals can.
B) The total energy content of the seaweeds is lower than that of the seals.
C) Polar bear meat probably contains the highest concentrations of fat-soluble toxins.
D) Seals are more numerous than fish.
E) The carnivores can provide more food for people than the herbivores can.
Answer: C
Topic: Concept 54.5
Skill: Application

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Use Figure 54.2 to answer the following questions. Examine this food web for a particular terrestrial ecosystem.
Each letter is a species. The arrows represent energy flow.



Figure 54.2

45) Which species is autotrophic?
Answer: A
Topic: Concept 54.1
Skill: Comprehension

46) Which species is most likely the decomposer?
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.1
Skill: Comprehension

47) A toxic pollutant would probably reach its highest concentration in which species?
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.5
Skill: Comprehension

48) Species C is toxic to predators. Which species is most likely to benefit from being a mimic of C?
Answer: B
Topic: Concept 54.1
Skill: Application

49) Excluding the decomposer, biomass would probably be smallest for which species?
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Comprehension

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The following questions refer to the organisms in a grassland ecosystem listed below. Each term may be used once,
more than once, or not at all.

A. hawks
B. snakes
C. shrews
D. grasshoppers
E. grass

50) an autotroph
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.1
Skill: Comprehension

51) an herbivore
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.1
Skill: Comprehension

52) smallest biomass
Answer: A
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Comprehension

53) tertiary consumer
Answer: B
Topic: Concept 54.3
Skill: Comprehension

54) probably contains the highest concentration of toxic pollutants (biological magnification)
Answer: A
Topic: Concept 54.5
Skill: Comprehension

55) When levels of CO
2
are experimentally increased, C
3
plants generally respond with a greater increase in
productivity than C
4
plants. This is because
A) C
3
plants are more efficient in their use of CO
2
.
B) C
3
plants are able to obtain the same amount of CO
2
by keeping their stomata open for shorter periods of time.
C) C
4
plants don't use CO
2
as their source of carbon.
D) C
3
plants are more limited than C
3
plants by CO
2
availability.
E) B and D only.
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.5
Skill: Comprehension

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The following questions refer to the terms below. Each term may be used once, more than once, or not at all.

A. green world hypothesis
B. turnover
C. biological magnification
D. greenhouse effect
E. cultural eutrophication

56) CO
2
and water vapor re-reflect infrared radiation back toward Earth
Answer: D
Topic: Concept 54.5
Skill: Comprehension

57) caused by excessive nutrient input into lakes
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.5
Skill: Comprehension

58) caused excessively high levels of DDT in fish-eating birds
Answer: C
Topic: Concept 54.5
Skill: Comprehension

59) occurs at a high rate for nutrients in tropical rain forests
Answer: B
Topic: Concept 54.4
Skill: Comprehension

60) All of the following are likely results of land-clearing operations such as deforestation and agricultural activity
except
A) destruction of plant and animal habitats.
B) erosion of soil due to increased water runoff.
C) leaching of minerals from the soil.
D) rapid eutrophication of streams and lakes.
E) decreased carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.5
Skill: Comprehension

61) Agricultural lands frequently require nutritional supplementation because
A) genetically engineered crops require more nutrients.
B) the nutrients that enter the plants grown on those lands do not return to that soil.
C) the prairies that comprise good agricultural land tend to be nutrient-poor.
D) grains raised for feed must be fortified, and thus require additional nutrients.
E) both A and B
Answer: B
Topic: Concept 54.5
Skill: Comprehension

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62) Burning fossil fuels releases oxides of sulfur and nitrogen. Ultimately, these are probably responsible for
A) the death of fish in Norwegian lakes.
B) rain with a pH of 3.0.
C) calcium deficiency in soils.
D) B and C only
E) A, B, and C
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.5
Skill: Knowledge

63) You have a friend who is wary of environmentalists' claims that global warming could lead to major biological
change on Earth. Which of the following statements can you truthfully make in response to your friend's
suspicions?
A) We know that atmospheric carbon dioxide has increased in the last 150 years.
B) Through measurements and observations, we know that carbon dioxide and temperature were correlated even in
prehistoric times.
C) Global warming could have significant effects on United States agriculture.
D) A and C only
E) A, B, and C
Answer: E
Topic: Concept 54.5
Skill: Comprehension


Media Activity Questions

64) 10,000 kcal of producer would support approximately ________ kcal of tertiary consumer.
A) 1
B) 0
C) 1,000
D) 10
E) 100
Answer: D
Topic: Web/CD Activity: Pyramids of Production

65) Which of these removes carbon from the atmosphere?
A) burning fossil fuels, such as oil
B) algae
C) rabbits
D) bobcats
E) logging trees
Answer: B
Topic: Web/CD Activity: The Carbon Cycle

66) Denitrifying bacteria convert ________ to ________.
A) ammonium; nitrogen gas
B) nitrates; nitrogen gas
C) nitrogen gas; nitrates
D) nitrogen gas; ammonium
E) nitrogen gas; nitrites
Answer: B
Topic: Web/CD Activity: The Nitrogen Cycle

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67) Which of these are two major sources of nitrate pollution in rivers?
A) animal waste and fertilizers
B) the burning of fossil fuels by factories and cars
C) animal waste and the burning of fossil fuels by cars
D) fertilizer runoff and the burning of fossil fuels by cars
E) animal wastes and the burning of fossil fuels by factories
Answer: A
Topic: Web/CD Activity: Water Pollution from Nitrates

68) Switching from fossil fuels to ________ energy would significantly decrease the release of carbon dioxide into
the atmosphere.
A) geothermal
B) solar and geothermal
C) solar, nuclear, and geothermal
D) nuclear
E) solar
Answer: C
Topic: Web/CD Activity: The Greenhouse Effect


Self-Quiz Questions

69) Which of the following organisms is incorrectly paired with its trophic level?
A) cyanobacteria-primary producer
B) grasshopper-primary consumer
C) zooplankton-secondary consumer
D) eagle-tertiary consumer
E) fungi-detritivore
Answer: C

70) A production pyramid such as the one shown in Figure 54.11 (in the text) implies that
A) only half the energy in a trophic level is transferred on to the next-higher level.
B) most of the energy in a trophic level is incorporated into the next-higher level.
C) as energy is transferred from one trophic level to another, about 10% of the energy is lost.
D) the most efficient transfer of energy is from producers to primary consumers.
E) eating grain-fed beef is an inefficient way to obtain the energy captured by photosynthesis.
Answer: E

71) Nitrifying bacteria participate in the nitrogen cycle mainly by
A) converting nitrogen gas to ammonia.
B) releasing ammonia from organic compounds, thus returning it to the soil.
C) converting ammonia to nitrogen gas, which returns to the atmosphere.
D) converting ammonia to nitrate, which is absorbed by plants.
E) incorporating nitrogen into amino acids and organic compounds.
Answer: D

72) The Hubbard Brook watershed deforestation experiment supported all of the following conclusions except that
A) most minerals were recycled within a forest ecosystem.
B) the flow of minerals out of a natural watershed was offset by minerals flowing in.
C) deforestation increased water runoff.
D) the nitrate concentration in waters draining the deforested area became dangerously high.
E) calcium levels remained high in the soil of deforested areas.
Answer: E

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73) The main cause of the recent increase in CO
2
concentration in Earth's atmosphere is
A) increased worldwide primary production.
B) increased worldwide standing crop biomass.
C) an increase in the amount of infrared radiation absorbed by the atmosphere.
D) the burning of larger amounts of wood and fossil fuels.
E) additional respiration by the rapidly growing human population.
Answer: D

74) Which of the following is a consequence of biological magnification?
A) Toxic chemicals in the environment pose greater risk to top-level predators than to primary consumers.
B) Populations of top-level predators are generally smaller than populations of primary consumers.
C) The biomass of producers in an ecosystem is generally higher than the biomass of primary consumers.
D) Only a small portion of the energy captured by producers is transferred to consumers.
E) The amount of biomass in the producer level of an ecosystem decreases if the producer turnover time increases.
Answer: A

75) Which of these ecosystems has the lowest net primary production per square meter?
A) a salt marsh
B) an open ocean
C) a coral reef
D) a grassland
E) a tropical rain forest
Answer: B

76) Tropical forest soils contain comparatively low levels of mineral nutrients because
A) the standing crop biomass of tropical forests is comparatively small.
B) tropical soil microorganisms do not break down organic matter as efficiently as temperate zone soil
microorganisms do.
C) organic matter decomposes more rapidly and plants assimilate soil nutrients more rapidly in the tropics.
D) nutrients cycle more slowly in the tropics.
E) many nutrients are destroyed by high temperatures in the tropics.
Answer: C

77) Imagine that you test samples of coastal water polluted with run-off from farms and find detectable levels of
phosphates, but not of nitrogen. In a follow-up experiment, you find that if you enrich some of your samples with
nitrogen, algal growth is much greater than in unenriched, control samples. Enriching samples with phosphate,
however, does not increase algal growth. From your results, you can conclude that
A) algae populations in these waters could be reduced by decreasing phosphate runoff.
B) eutrophication of these waters could be reduced by adding nitrogen.
C) algae populations in these waters are kept low by high levels of phosphorus.
D) nitrogen is the limiting nutrient in these waters.
E) phosphate is the limiting nutrient in these waters.
Answer: D

78) Which of the following greatest effect on the rate of chemical cycling in an ecosystem?
A) the ecosystem's rate of primary production
B) the production efficiency of the ecosystem's consumers
C) the rate of decomposition in the ecosystem
D) the trophic efficiency of the ecosystem
E) the location of the nutrient reservoirs in the ecosystem
Answer: C