APES PRACTICE ASSESSMENT TEST
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS AND
ANSWERS
1. People who believe that wild species have an inherent right to exist generally believe
that species have - Answer-intrinsic value.
2. The heat island effect can be counteracted by:
I. planting more vegetation
II. establishing higher energy efficiency standards
III. painting roofs and other surfaces lighter colors - Answer-I, II and III
3. A one-hectare pond is sampled in early September. The sample yields 1 small catfish
as well as 17 benthic (bottom-dwelling) invertebrates that represent 10 different species.
Which of the following can be estimated from the sample for the invertebrates in the
pond? - Answer-The species richness
4. The water cycle:
I. Is powered by energy from the sun and gravity
II. Involves only liquid and gaseous phases
III. Is expected to cease due to global warming - Answer-I only
5. Withdrawal of fresh water from streams, lakes, and underground sources has
resulted in which of the following?
I. Intrusion of ocean salt water into groundwater
II. Groundwater depletion
III. Alteration of water quality and consequently changing ecological processes -
Answer-I, II, and III
6. Base your answer to the following question on the following processes.
(A) Decomposition
(B) Assimilation
(C) Denitrification
(D) Transpiration
(E) Photosynthesis
After this process occurs, only decomposition can return nitrogen to the soil - Answer-
Assimilation
7. Choose the process below that best fits the following: the rapid rate
of this process in tropical forests results in low-nutrient soils. - Answer-Decomposition
8. Defining characteristics of a wetland involve which of the following?
I. Hydrology
, II. Soil type
III. Species composition - Answer-I, II, and III
9. The rain shadow effect that occurs along the mountain ranges through California are
characterized by - Answer-lack of precipitation and semiarid conditions on the leeward
side of the mountain range
10. The great concentrations of DDT, a once commonly-used pesticide, in predatory
birds such as the peregrine falcon is an example of - Answer-biomagnification
11. Drip irrigation promises to: - Answer-increase efficiency and crop yields
12. Of the following, which is the primary method of waste disposal in the United
States? - Answer-Landfilling
13. In Mediterranean climate regions like portions of California, a wetter-than-normal
winter often leads to greater severity of fires the following summer. This seeming
paradox occurs because increased rain leads to - Answer-greater accumulation of
chapparal biomass
14. All of the following are ways to reduce groundwater depletion EXCEPT - Answer-
planting crops such as cotton and sugarcane in dry areas
15. A farmer complains that her soil for a potted plant does not aerate well enough and
absorbs water too slowly. What kind of soil should she mix up with the soil in the pot? -
Answer-Sand
16. Antibiotic resistance is making this once treatable disease very difficult to treat with
the emergence of antibiotic resistant strains. - Answer-Tuberculosis
17. According to the Coriolis effect, the rotation of the earth would cause a Southern
Hemisphere wind originally moving south to actually move - Answer-south-east
18. Characteristics that tend to increase the risk of species becoming endangered
include which of the following?
I. Having a very limited distribution
II. Being a specialist at the end of a long food chain
III. Having a small population size. - Answer-I, II and III
19. Which of the following is the usual cause of cultural eutrophication is in surface
waters? - Answer-Runoff of nitrate compounds into bodies of water
20. Above the tree line, well-drained soil, frozen plains
(A) Antarctic
(B) Benthos
(C) Coral Reefs
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS AND
ANSWERS
1. People who believe that wild species have an inherent right to exist generally believe
that species have - Answer-intrinsic value.
2. The heat island effect can be counteracted by:
I. planting more vegetation
II. establishing higher energy efficiency standards
III. painting roofs and other surfaces lighter colors - Answer-I, II and III
3. A one-hectare pond is sampled in early September. The sample yields 1 small catfish
as well as 17 benthic (bottom-dwelling) invertebrates that represent 10 different species.
Which of the following can be estimated from the sample for the invertebrates in the
pond? - Answer-The species richness
4. The water cycle:
I. Is powered by energy from the sun and gravity
II. Involves only liquid and gaseous phases
III. Is expected to cease due to global warming - Answer-I only
5. Withdrawal of fresh water from streams, lakes, and underground sources has
resulted in which of the following?
I. Intrusion of ocean salt water into groundwater
II. Groundwater depletion
III. Alteration of water quality and consequently changing ecological processes -
Answer-I, II, and III
6. Base your answer to the following question on the following processes.
(A) Decomposition
(B) Assimilation
(C) Denitrification
(D) Transpiration
(E) Photosynthesis
After this process occurs, only decomposition can return nitrogen to the soil - Answer-
Assimilation
7. Choose the process below that best fits the following: the rapid rate
of this process in tropical forests results in low-nutrient soils. - Answer-Decomposition
8. Defining characteristics of a wetland involve which of the following?
I. Hydrology
, II. Soil type
III. Species composition - Answer-I, II, and III
9. The rain shadow effect that occurs along the mountain ranges through California are
characterized by - Answer-lack of precipitation and semiarid conditions on the leeward
side of the mountain range
10. The great concentrations of DDT, a once commonly-used pesticide, in predatory
birds such as the peregrine falcon is an example of - Answer-biomagnification
11. Drip irrigation promises to: - Answer-increase efficiency and crop yields
12. Of the following, which is the primary method of waste disposal in the United
States? - Answer-Landfilling
13. In Mediterranean climate regions like portions of California, a wetter-than-normal
winter often leads to greater severity of fires the following summer. This seeming
paradox occurs because increased rain leads to - Answer-greater accumulation of
chapparal biomass
14. All of the following are ways to reduce groundwater depletion EXCEPT - Answer-
planting crops such as cotton and sugarcane in dry areas
15. A farmer complains that her soil for a potted plant does not aerate well enough and
absorbs water too slowly. What kind of soil should she mix up with the soil in the pot? -
Answer-Sand
16. Antibiotic resistance is making this once treatable disease very difficult to treat with
the emergence of antibiotic resistant strains. - Answer-Tuberculosis
17. According to the Coriolis effect, the rotation of the earth would cause a Southern
Hemisphere wind originally moving south to actually move - Answer-south-east
18. Characteristics that tend to increase the risk of species becoming endangered
include which of the following?
I. Having a very limited distribution
II. Being a specialist at the end of a long food chain
III. Having a small population size. - Answer-I, II and III
19. Which of the following is the usual cause of cultural eutrophication is in surface
waters? - Answer-Runoff of nitrate compounds into bodies of water
20. Above the tree line, well-drained soil, frozen plains
(A) Antarctic
(B) Benthos
(C) Coral Reefs
