Question Bank No: 1

1. All of the following apply to the concept of the extinction vortex except:

 a)Population of the species entering it are small
 b)It is a concept developed by conservation biologists who adopt the "small population approach"
 c)The genetic variation of the species' population decreses
 d)The key factor driving the extinction vortex is intraspecific competition

2. Which of the following does not represent a potential threat to biodiversity?

 a)importing a Europena insect into the United states to control an undesirable weed
 b)letting previously used farmland go falloe and begin to fill with weeds and shrubs
 c)building a new mall on a previously unoccupied piece of midwestern prairie
 d)harvesting all of the oysters from an oyster bed off the Atlantic coast

3. Introduced species can have important effects on biological communities by

 a)preying upon native species
 b)displacing native species
 c)reducing biodiversity
 d)doing all of the above

4. Which of the following was not presented as an example of an introduced species?

 a)red foxed in Australia
 b)timber wolves in Minnesota
 c)starlings in New York
 d)zebra mussels in the Great Lakes

5. The Nile perch (Lates niloticus) is a good example of a(n)

 a)endangered endemic
 b)threatened migratory species
 c)introduced predator
 d)population sink

6. According to most conservation biologists, the single greatest threat to global biodiversity is

 a)altertion or destruction of the physical habitat
 b)global climare change resulting from a variety of human activities
 c)stratospheric ozone depletion
 d)chemical pollution of water and air

7. Which of the following is a valid conclusion about the outcome of Biospher II?

 a)Natural ecosystems are complex and not easily duplicated
 b)Humans cannot live in small spaces for an extended period of time
 c)Closed ecosystems must be made airtight
 d)Small populations are more likely to go extinct

8. Which of the following would not qualify as an ecosystem service?

 a)rain falling to Earth
 b)squirrells burying acorns
 c)leaves falling on a forest floor
 d)bees pollinating an apple tree

9. The most accurate assessments of current extinction rates probably come from studies of

 a)reptiles, because they are ectothermic and susceptible to population declines during frequent past glacial periods
 b)birds and mammals, because they are relatively well- known taxa
 c)vascular plants, because they do not move around
 d)insects, because they comprise the vast majority of extant muticellulat organisms

10. Estimates of current rates of extinction

 a)indicate that we have reached a state of unstable equilibrium in which speciation and extinction rates are approximately equal
 b)suggest that one-half of all animal and plant species may be gone by the year 2100
 c)indicate that rates may be 1,000 times higher than at any other time in the last 100,000 years
 d)B and C are true

11. In order to better understand the extent of current extinctions it will be necessary to do which of the following?

 a)Focus intensely on identifying more species of mammals and birds
 b)Monitor atmospheric carbon dioxide levels
 c)Differentiate between plant extinction and animal extinction
 d)Identify more of the vet unknown species of organisms on our plant

12. Which of the following terms includes all of the others?

 a)genetic diversity
 b)species diversity
 c)biodiversity
 d)ecosystem diversity

13. Which of the following most directly relates to the current biodiversity crisis?

 a)increased atmospheric carbon dioxide
 b)ozone depletion
 c)the rate of extinction
 d)introduced species

14. The total number of extant species is approximately

 a)1,000 to 50,000
 b)50,000 to 150,000
 c)500,000 to 1,000,000
 d)10,000,000 to 80,000,000