Exam 44: Ecological Communities

An ecologist who runs a transect across a gradient from serpentine soils to non-serpentine soils will most likely find

According to the theory of island biogeography,which type of island would have the highest species diversity?

The theory of island biogeography is based on the conclusion that equilibrium in species richness is reached when the rate of species colonization of an island matches the rate of species _______.

Design an experiment that a group of scientists could use to determine how climate change is affecting the species composition of pond communities.

Which pair of scientists is most associated with the theory of island biogeography?

Suppose that plants are able to convert 80 percent of the energy that they obtain into biomass,and that the ecological efficiency of primary consumers is 20 percent.For every calorie that is converted into primary consumer biomass,how much energy must be captured and converted into chemical energy?

Characteristics of the surface features of the environment of a natural community,plus the horizontal and vertical distribution of objects in that environment,are known as the _______ structure.

The process by which the beetle community changes over the hours and days after the deposition of dung is called

For study purposes,which of the following would not be considered an ecological community?

Biome A supports approximately 1,400 species of birds,biome B supports approximately 105 species,and biome C supports 56 species.Based on these numbers,what are the likely climates of these biomes?

After a major ice storm,most trees in an area fall and die.Over the course of two decades,a new community reassembles there.The ice storm would be considered a(n)

An ecologist is studying changes in the abundance of plant species in a marsh as one moves away from the ocean.This means the ecologist is studying species changes that occur along a(n)

The volcanic island of Krakatau provides a very good illustration of

One possible reason for the increase in species richness toward the tropical latitudes is that

In the total of Earth's food webs,the sun represents

Latitudinal gradients in species diversity exist in marine as well as terrestrial habitats.Which ocean community would most likely have the highest species diversity?

Three plant communities have the species compositions shown in the table below.Which community or communities have the highest species richness?

David Tilman's experiments showed that as species richness in prairie plots increases,those plots show _______ NPP.

Corridors help mitigate the effect of habitat fragmentation because they

The number of trophic levels in a community is limited-most communities have no more than four levels.Explain why this is the case.