Exam 31: Conserving Earths Biodiversity

The detritivores and decomposers in soil are responsible for recycling nutrients.

Plants help reduce flooding by

Human population growth poses a threat to sustainable development.

A(n) is an animal whose predation on other species has major effects on the structure of the biological community.

Under the redundancy hypothesis, if one species is removed from an ecosystem, then another organism in that ecosystem that occupies a similar niche will take its place, leading to minimal disruption.

The most likely explanation for any mass- extinction event is

-Which types of species are most likely to disappear from fragmented forests?

The term refers to the ways in which ecosystems provide benefits to people, either directly or indirectly.

Maintaining soil fertility, purifying water, producing oxygen, and decomposing waste are all examples of

Plants prevent erosion by

Habitat fragmentation has forced many species into smaller habitats, which results in increased mortality within populations. To give these species access to larger habitats, wildlife biologists developed

Overexploitation of many species has increased due to the growing demand for wild animals and plants, and

Unsustainable farming practices include

How can you, as an individual consumer, conserve energy?

The principle of requires that the human species adopt lifestyles and development paths that respect nature's limits.

What two factors are most responsible for the decline in worldwide biodiversity?

In the soil, convert atmospheric nitrogen into a form that plants can use.

What is the difficulty with establishing small, isolated reserve areas for the preservation of threatened species?

In aquatic environments, high levels of nutrients can act as pollutants.

Tropical rain forests provide all of the following EXCEPT