Ecology Exam

Due May 24, 2023 by 10am
Points 100
Available Jan 7, 2023 at 12am - May 24, 2023 at 10am

This assignment was locked May 24, 2023 at 10am.

This will be an entirely Multiple Choice exam, as you will be answering short answer questions on the cumulative final .

Reminder:

You must come to a Zoom meeting during the time of your final exam :
Tuesday, December 13th at 10AM

Ecology Exam

Here are all the study guide questions in one spot:

If you were trying to feed a large population- which group of organisms will provide the most energy: producers, herbivores, carnivores ?

Make sure to include

- Explanation of what are producers, herbivores and carnivores
- Original source of energy in ecosystem
- How it is captured (psn)
- Where it is stored (chemical bonds)
- What it is used for (cell respiration, building new molecules)
- Why some is lost (heat)

How have humans altered the carbon cycle? In order to answer this question, you need to first describe the basics of the carbon cycle, followed by indicating which parts are altered by humans and in what ways.

Make sure to include

- Description of the carbon cycle
- What form of carbon do producers use? What do they make with the CO2? What can they do with that glucose ? What happens to the carbon at the end of cell respiration? What kind of organic molecules do they make? And what do they do with them?
- What form of carbon do consumers use? What do they do with those organic molecules? What happens to the carbon at the end of cell respiration? What kind of organic molecules do they make? And what do they do with them?
- What are fossil fuels? What happens to that stored carbon when we burn them?
- How does deforestation impact the carbon cycle? What happens to the carbon embedded in the trees? What happens to the ability to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere?

Someone says to you that the climate isn't warming, and points to the really cold winters and large snowfalls in the East Coast as evidence. Using the information from this course, what is your explanation of why this is a misconception.?

Make sure to include:

- - Definitions of climate and weather
  - Explanation of the similarities and differences between weather and climate
  - Summary of trends in extreme weather events
  - Explanation of the significance of extreme weather events.

What is the greenhouse effect and how does it impact the earth?

Make sure to include

- Explanation of greenhouse gases (methane, CO2 and water vapor)
- What generates these gases?
- Explain how these gases trap heat in the earth's atmosphere (where did the energy come from originally, what would happen to it without these gases?)
- Is the greenhouse effect a good thing for life on earth or a bad thing? What determines your answer (what happens if there are too little or too much of these gases?)

What is causing the dramatic increase in global temperature? You can answer the question by filling in this sentence for volcanoes, orbital changes, solar flare changes, greenhouse gas emissions, ozone, land cover and aerosols. If ____________ was the only force affecting global temperature, then the global temperatures would be ___________.

In class, I used the graphic from Chapter 2 of the 2018 National Climate Assessment Report Links to an external site. to address the question. You can find the images in the Powerpoint slides from my lecture or go to the Report itself and scroll down until you get to Figure 2.1, Natural Influences on Global Temperature. ( see image to the right). Notice that you can click on the Drivers individually or combined to toggle them on or off.

The black line represents current observed temperature changes. The other lines indicate the temperature changes caused by different factors. Which factors are the best match for the current temperature increase?

Species interactions lead to natural selection for adaptations. For each type of interaction, describe a specific example of the interaction and adaptations.

- Predation
- Competition
- Parasitism
- Herbivory
- Commensalism
- Mutualism

Describe the process of succession from disturbance, through the pioneer species to climax stage. Use a specific example:

- What types of disturbance can cause succession?
- What are characteristics of pioneer species?
- Give examples of how pioneer species change the landscape so that the next species outcompete them?
- Why does each group of species replace the previous?

Below are myths about fire and California. Write a response that is grounded in the content covered in this module. Each response should be three to five sentences long and include evidence in support of your response.

Statement #1. All wildfires are bad and should be stopped immediately.

Statement #2. Wildfires are natural and should be allowed to burn freely.

Statement #3. Fires are the result of forest mismanagement.

Statement #4. Logging forests prevents wildfires.

Statement #5. Mechanical thinning for fuels reduction is harmful to forest health.

Statement #6. The fires are caused by climate change.

Be able to read a population graph and interpret the population size, population density and population growth rate at different points in time

Examples:

Compare these age structure graphs and be able to determine which population has the highest birth rate, death rate, and what will happen to those rates over time.

Swedish statistician, Hans Rosling, argues that saving the lives of poor children around the world is the most important action we can take for reducing population growth. Explain why this is the case: