General Environmental Science Test
  • 1. An organism's role in an ecosystem is called its
A) habitat
B) adaptation
C) biotic factor
D) niche
  • 2. Individuals are added to a population through
A) through immigration
B) through emigration
C) the birth of offspring
D) both the birth of offspring and immigration
  • 3. The study of how living things interact with each other and with their environment is called
A) limiting factors
B) symbiosis
C) commensalism
D) ecology
  • 4. Species tend to change over time to make them better suited to their environment. What is this process called?
A) camouflage
B) natural selection
C) reproduction
D) survival
  • 5. The largest population that an environment can support is called its
A) maximum birth rate
B) population equation
C) carrying capacity
D) limiting factor
  • 6. Which of the following is NOT a basic need that must be provided by an organism's habitat?
A) water
B) entertainment
C) shelter and protection
D) food
  • 7. A prairie dog, a hawk, and a badger are all members of the same
A) community
B) population
C) habitat
D) species
  • 8. The struggle among organisms for the limited resources in an ecosystem is called
A) mutualism
B) symbiosis
C) competition
D) predation
  • 9. Which of the following sequences goes from the simplest level to the most complex?
A) population, ecosystem, community
B) population, community, ecosystem
C) community, ecosystem, population
D) community, population, ecosystem
  • 10. Which cycle involves evaporation, precipitation, and condensation?
A) carbon cycle
B) water cycle
C) oxygen cycle
D) nitrogen cycle
  • 11. Which of the following is a biotic factor affecting water biomes?
A) salt content
B) sunlight
C) bacteria
D) oxygen content
  • 12. Which of the following is NOT an energy role in an ecosystem?
A) consumer
B) decomposer
C) scavenger
D) producer
  • 13. The level of an energy pyramid with the least energy available is
A) producers
B) first level consumer
C) third level consumer
D) second level consumer
  • 14. The two major types of water ecosystems are
A) fresh water and marine
B) shallow water and deep water
C) intertidal zone and neurotic zone
D) moving water and standing water
  • 15. Which of the following roles do bacteria and fungi play in an ecosystem?
A) producer
B) decomposer
C) scavenger
D) consumer
  • 16. Which of the following organisms could form the base of a food web?
A) grass
B) fox
C) grasshopper
D) rabbit
  • 17. The number of different species in an area is called
A) biodiversity
B) captive breeding
C) habitat preservation
D) extinction
  • 18. Species that could become endangered in the near future are called
A) keystone species
B) exotic species
C) extinct species
D) threatened species
  • 19. Which of these ecosystems has the greatest biodiversity?
A) grassland
B) tropical rain forest
C) desert
D) freshwater pond
  • 20. The practice of raising fish and other water-dwelling organisms for food is called
A) habitat preservation
B) forest management
C) biodiversity
D) aquaculture
  • 21. As human population has continued to grow, the demand for resources has
A) decreased dramatically
B) stayed about the same
C) decreased slightly
D) also increased
  • 22. The most environmentally sound method for disposing of grass clippings, food leftovers, and other organic wastes is
A) composting
B) depositing in sewers
C) compacting
D) incinerating
  • 23. The soil layer where many plant roots are found is
A) bedrock
B) subsoil
C) topsoil
D) litter
  • 24. The inability of plants to grow in an area where topsoil has been lost is called
A) erosion
B) biodegradation
C) composting
D) desertification
  • 25. All of the abiotic and biotic factors that interact in a particular area make up a(n)
A) community
B) ecosystem
C) species
D) population
  • 26. A group of ecosystems with similar climates and organisms is known as a
A) niche
B) habitat
C) community
D) biome
  • 27. About 97% of the water on Earth is
A) salt water
B) groundwater
C) in the form of ice
D) fresh water
  • 28. The long term weather patterns that exist in an area are called its
A) meteorology
B) precipitation
C) temperature
D) climate
  • 29. An arrangement of organisms within an ecosystem in which each one eats the one prior to it and is eaten by the one that follows it is called
A) a food link
B) survival of the fittest
C) a food chain
D) food pyramid
  • 30. Abiotic factors found in an ecosystem include
A) plants
B) animals
C) rocks
D) fungi
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