BIO 160 General Ecology First Midterm Exam Review

150 pts: 50 pt multiple choice (25 questions); 100 pts short answer (15 blanks 4

pts each) and SHORT essay (2 essays, 20 pts each, your choice from two sets)

Exam: Multiple Choice/Matching/Short Answer/Essay. Use your notes (lecture and lab) and previous quizzes as a study guide

Potential Essay/Short Answer Topics:

Describe "ecological science" as it has changed over the last two thousand years (over the last century)

Explain how the beliefs of Captain Robert Fitzroy may have both aided and hindered Charles Darwin's search for a non-theistic explanation for the origin of new species.

Explain Darwin's Theory of evolution by natural selection (there are five general parts to this theory).

What will allow microevolution to occur (macroevolution)?

Explain why "perfectly adapted" organisms are unlikely to be found in nature.

Describe the Geologic History of California paying particular attention to chronological order.

Why might there be a correlation between the California Vegetation Map and the California Geologic Map? What are three factors that might influence this correlation?

Briefly explain the Coriolis effect.

How is upwelling generated?

Explain orographic rainfall.

Compare and contrast various biomes.

Compare and contrast Podsolization with Laterization.

Define the Anthropic Principle and give one example.

Explain the "even is green" hypothesis.

Compare and contrast the tradeoff in adaptations of C3, C4 and CAM plants

What is ecological efficiency, how is it determined and what impact can it have on an ecosystem in terms of trophic level complexity.

Provide a plausible explanation (fitting in with ideas presented in this class) for the presence of heavy ridges and spines on marine mollusc shells AND for the great diversity among species of marine molluscs (Hint: consider the requirements for macrovolution).

Explain the elements of Darwin's theory of evolution.

Describe what is meant by an n-dimensional hyperspace (use a drawing) as a definition for niche.

Briefly explain how the science of ecology has changed over the last 100 years. Include in your essay at least three significant people who were alive during this century who contributed significantly to the science of ecology that we know today.

Using your knowledge of evolution and competition explain how thirteen distinct species of finches may have arisen on the Galapagos from an original single Ecuadoran colonizing species without competitive exclusion eliminating new species as they begin to form.

Compare and contrast a desert rodent's (i.e., kangaroo rat) concerns and adaptations for maintaining water balance with that of a marine bony fish (i.e., garibaldi, surf perch, salmon). (Hint: to compare and contrast means to show both similarities AND differences)

Draw a soil profile, label and brieflly describe each layer (include: four distinct layers and the appropriate alphabetical designations; plants with roots; parent rock; description should include basic composition and differences between layers). Using your diagram explain what happens during the process of laterization.

Explain the purpose of basic descriptive statistics.

Outline the scientific method using the development of a question regarding the variability in elevation of the transition from the subalpine to alpine zone in the Sierra Nevada as an example.

Explain two reasons why population distributions may be clumped, random or even.

Explain three factors (sensu Rabinowitz) that determine the degree of rarity or abundance of a particular species and suggest a conservation implication of this idea.

Compare and contrast source and sink populations. Which would be more important to conserve? Why? Provide an example.