Ecological Succession Quiz

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Questions and Answers

What are the two types of ecological succession identified by ecologists?

Primary succession and secondary succession

What is primary succession?

When new land is formed or bare rock is exposed, providing a habitat that can be colonized for the first time

What happens during primary succession?

Weathering and other natural forces break down the substrate, allowing pioneer species to establish and eventually be replaced by other species

What is secondary succession?

Secondary succession is the process of re-colonization of a previously occupied area following a disturbance that kills much or all of its community. Signup and view all the answers

Give an example of secondary succession.

An example of secondary succession is the re-colonization of oak and hickory forests cleared by wildfire. Signup and view all the answers

What are pioneer species?

Pioneer species are the first plants to grow back in a disturbed area during succession. Signup and view all the answers

What is a climax community?

A climax community is a stable and unchanging final state of succession, largely determined by the area's climate. In the example above, the mature oak and hickory forest is considered the climax community. Signup and view all the answers

Population Growth

People are organisms, and like any organism, they need resources to live. However, humans are unique in that we have built a large, organized civilization with advanced infrastructure, which takes up significantly more resources than other beings whose main concerns are survival and procreation. As the human population continues skyrocketing past 7 billion, there are several ways this can affect the environment Rise in Carbon Emissions - the current human population is based around non-renewable energy sources that release greenhouse gases when burned. Until humans make a commitment to renewable energy sources, the release of gases will only increase with more population. In addition, the greater the population, the faster these resources will run out Destruction of Habitat - As humans continue building, they have to develop undeveloped areas, which destroys the habitats of that area. Deforestation is a common issue (more on deforestation below), and ocean habitats are also affected due to the large concentration of people living along coastlines. Pesticides and Fertilizers - People need food to live, so farmers are key to sustaining the human population. Unfortunately, most farmers use pesticides that can seep into the soil, polluting it, and can run off into nearby waterways, which pollutes the water for ecosystems downstream. Signup and view all the answers

The rise in human population leads to an increase in ______ emissions

carbon Signup and view all the answers

Human activities lead to the ______ of habitats

destruction Signup and view all the answers

The use of pesticides by farmers can pollute the ______ and nearby waterways

soil Signup and view all the answers

Human impacts on the environment are not always _______

visible Signup and view all the answers

The human population continues to ______ past 7 billion

skyrocket Signup and view all the answers

Farmers use _______ that can seep into the soil and pollute it

pesticides Signup and view all the answers

Match the following terms with their definitions:

Deforestation = Permanent removal of trees to make room for something besides forest Desertification = Process by which fertile land becomes desert, typically as a result of drought, deforestation, or inappropriate agriculture Bioremediation = Use of microorganisms or other forms of life to consume and break down environmental pollutants Perpetual = So frequent as to seem endless and uninterrupted Signup and view all the answers

Match the following environmental terms with their correct definitions:

Inexhaustible = Unable to be used up because existing in abundance Limiting factor = Anything that constrains a population's size and slows or stops it from growing Carrying capacity = The number or quantity of people or things that can be conveyed or held by a vehicle or container Greenhouse effect = The trapping of the sun's warmth in a planet's lower atmosphere Signup and view all the answers

Match these terms related to species and pollution with their definitions:

Native species = One that is found in a certain ecosystem due to natural processes, such as natural distribution and evolution Invasive species = Organism not native to an ecosystem and causes harm Acid rain = Rainfall made sufficiently acidic by atmospheric pollution that it causes environmental harm Deforestation = Permanent removal of trees to make room for something besides forest Signup and view all the answers

Match the following ecological terms with their definitions:

Extinct = Termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds, usually a species Extant = Organism that still has living species Indicator species = An animal or plant species that can be used to infer conditions in a particular habitat Keystone species = A species on which other species in an ecosystem largely depend, such that if it were removed the ecosystem would change drastically Signup and view all the answers

Match these ecological phenomena with their descriptions:

Eutrophication = Excessive richness of nutrients in a lake or other body of water, frequently due to runoff from the land, which causes a dense growth of plant life and death of animal life from lack of oxygen Red tides = A common name for harmful algal blooms occurring along coastal regions, which are resulted from large concentrations of aquatic microorganisms, such as protozoans and unicellular algae Hypoxia = Deficiency in the amount of oxygen reaching the tissues Dead zone = An area of hypoxic (less than 2 ppm dissolved oxygen) waters at the mouth of the Mississippi River that are caused by algae blooms Signup and view all the answers

Match these environmental terms with their meanings:

Extinct = Termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds, usually a species Red tides = A common name for harmful algal blooms occurring along coastal regions, which are resulted from large concentrations of aquatic microorganisms, such as protozoans and unicellular algae Hypoxia = Deficiency in the amount of oxygen reaching the tissues Eutrophication = Excessive richness of nutrients in a lake or other body of water, frequently due to runoff from the land, which causes a dense growth of plant life and death of animal life from lack of oxygen Signup and view all the answers

Match the following environmental processes with their descriptions:

Deforestation = The permanent removal of trees to make room for something besides forest Desertification = The process by which fertile land becomes desert, typically as a result of drought, deforestation, or inappropriate agriculture Bioremediation = The use of either naturally occurring or deliberately introduced microorganisms or other forms of life to consume and break down environmental pollutants, in order to clean up a polluted site Greenhouse effect = The trapping of the sun's warmth in a planet's lower atmosphere, due to the greater transparency of the atmosphere to visible radiation from the sun than to infrared radiation emitted from the planet's surface Signup and view all the answers

Match the following terms with their definitions:

Perpetual = So frequent as to seem endless and uninterrupted Inexhaustible = Unable to be used up because existing in abundance Limiting factor = Anything that constrains a population's size and slows or stops it from growing Carrying capacity = The number or quantity of people or things that can be conveyed or held by a vehicle or container Signup and view all the answers

Match the following ecological terms with their descriptions:

Native species = One that is found in a certain ecosystem due to natural processes, such as natural distribution and evolution Invasive species = Organism not native to an ecosystem and causes harm Acid rain = Rainfall made sufficiently acidic by atmospheric pollution that it causes environmental harm, typically to forests and lakes Limiting factor = Anything that constrains a population's size and slows or stops it from growing Signup and view all the answers

Match the following ecological terms with their definitions:

Extinct = Termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds, usually a species Indicator species = An animal or plant species that can be used to infer conditions in a particular habitat Keystone species = A species on which other species in an ecosystem largely depend Eutrophication = Excessive richness of nutrients in a lake or other body of water, frequently due to runoff from the land, which causes a dense growth of plant life and death of animal life from lack of oxygen Signup and view all the answers

Match these environmental phenomena with their descriptions:

Red tides = A common name for harmful algal blooms occurring along coastal regions, which are resulted from large concentrations of aquatic microorganisms, such as protozoans and unicellular algae Hypoxia = Deficiency in the amount of oxygen reaching the tissues Dead zone = An area of hypoxic (less than 2 ppm dissolved oxygen) waters at the mouth of the Mississippi River that are caused by algae blooms Extant = Organism that still has living species Signup and view all the answers

Match these terms related to species and pollution with their definitions:

Extinct = Termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds, usually a species Eutrophication = Excessive richness of nutrients in a lake or other body of water, frequently due to runoff from the land, which causes a dense growth of plant life and death of animal life from lack of oxygen Red tides = A common name for harmful algal blooms occurring along coastal regions, which are resulted from large concentrations of aquatic microorganisms, such as protozoans and unicellular algae Dead zone = An area of hypoxic (less than 2 ppm dissolved oxygen) waters at the mouth of the Mississippi River that are caused by algae blooms Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Ecological Succession

Two types of ecological succession are recognized: primary succession and secondary succession.
Primary succession is the gradual colonization of a barren, lifeless area by a series of organisms that change the environment over time.
Primary succession happens when new land is formed, such as from volcanic eruptions, retreating glaciers, or sand dunes.
Pioneer species, such as lichens and mosses, are the first organisms to colonize the barren land. They break down rocks, create soil, and make the environment more suitable for other organisms to thrive.
Secondary succession occurs when a previously existing community has been disrupted, for example, by fire, flood, or human activity.
Secondary succession starts with soil already present, allowing the process to occur more rapidly than primary succession.
A climax community is the final, stable community that develops after succession, characterized by a high diversity of species and a complex web of interactions.

Human Impact on the Environment

The rise in human population leads to an increase in greenhouse gas emissions.
Human activities lead to the fragmentation of habitats.
The use of pesticides by farmers can pollute the groundwater and nearby waterways.
Human impacts on the environment are not always reversible.
The human population continues to grow past 7 billion.
Farmers use fertilizers that can seep into the soil and pollute it.

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Description

Test your knowledge on ecological succession and its different types with this quiz. Learn about primary and secondary succession and understand the process of how communities change over time.