Exam 23: Ecological Communities

The release of a parasitic wasp in California helped control the infestation of scale insects on citrus trees. However, it also caused the near-extinction of a different species of parasitic wasp. Should we consider this experiment an unqualified success?

Relationships between different species often involve energy or lifestyle compromises. What best describes the compromises, if any, seen in mutualism?

Which of the following symbols represents a competitive interaction?

____________________ competition occurs when one organism directly keeps another organism from using a resource; for example, when two species of birds attempt to use an abandoned woodpecker cavity.

The consumer in a predator/prey interaction can be a selective force in the evolution of the prey species.

The figure below illustrates how, although pines first established themselves as the dominant tree in the Lake Michigan sand dune community, black oaks ultimately become the dominant species. What best explains the gradual reduction of the pine?

Bees use pollen to feed ____________________, as a protein source. A variety of pollen provides a variety of protein sources.

In the pollinator mutualism between the yucca plant and the yucca moth, the yucca plant is able to abort the seeds in any given flower if the moth lays too many eggs in that flower. What is the advantage the yucca plant gains by aborting these seeds?

In a typical prairie food web, energy moves from grass to grasshopper to field mouse to fox. Which organism is the primary producer?

Islands such as the Hawaiian Islands are particularly vulnerable to introduced species because

An animal eats fruit from a plant and later deposits seed in its feces far from the plant. This is an example of a

A deer and a caterpillar are peacefully munching on the leaves of the same apple tree. This is an example of

The terms mutualistic and symbiotic can be used interchangeably; any mutualistic relationship is an example of symbiosis, whereas any symbiotic relationship is also mutualistic.

____________________ are organisms that make their own food from an external energy source, such as the sun.

A(n)____________________ is an organism that transfers one plant's male reproductive cells to the female reproductive organs of another plant.

Human cells contain mitochondria, which are responsible for processing the energy needed by our cells. Remember that the ancestors of mitochondria may once have been free-living prokaryotes. If mitochondria were still considered to be separate organisms within our cells, which of the following would best describe our relationship with them?

Which of the following symbols represents a parasitic relationship?

Communities always recover quickly from disturbances caused by humans.

Secondary succession is more common following a disturbance than primary succession because ____________________ typically remain intact.

In a typical prairie food web, energy moves from grass to grasshopper to field mouse to fox. Which organism is the secondary consumer?