Name: _____________________________________ Period: _______________ Date: _______________
Organisms and Environments Unit Test - Review
Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
____
1. When lightning strikes in the open prairies of North America, widespread fires can quickly consume
the brown, dry grasses. Small burrowing animals have advantages over larger ones. This is
because they a. outrun larger animals
b. can dig below ground level and remain there until the flames pass
c. feast on small insects escaping from the fires
d. have a large supply of water stored in their bodies to last through the fire
____
2. Which inherited trait does this bird most likely share with its parents?
a. eating from bird feeders
b. flying to search for food
c. having long tail feathers
d. building nests in trees
____
3. Which animal is best adapted for flying at night?
a. Animal 1
b. Animal 2
c. Animal 3
d. Animal 4
____
4. Which of the following characteristics could a tulip's offspring inherit?
a. rooteating insects
b. winddamaged flowers
c. red flowers with six petals
d. stems wilting from lack of rain
____
5. Joe put a deer feeder on his 180 acre ranch in the Texas Hill Country. The feeder is 12' tall, battery
powered and light sensitive. It automatically scatters corn from a dispenser at dawn and dusk. Joe
saw small, muddy footprints on the dispenser and knew that raccoons were climbing up the
supports of the feeder and reaching their tiny hands in the dispenser to get corn. This behavior of
raccoons a. is inherited
b. is unique only to these raccoons
c. is learned
d. happened only one time
____
6. Jason has red hair, freckles, and blue eyes. His favorite color is blue. He and his dad eat pizza
together and both enjoy learning about stars. Jason put constellations on his bedroom ceiling after
his dad painted it dark blue. They also watch the NASA channel together. In his free time, Jason
rides his bike and enjoys reading science fiction.
Which list represents Jason’s learned behaviors only?
a. I
b. II
c. III
d. IV
____
7. Adaptations are passed on from parents to offsprings to help the species survive. Which of the
following is not a survival adaptation by the animal?
a. Coloration of a rabbit's fur allows it to blend into its environment.
b. Bats finding food through echolocation.
c. A lizard catches flies with its long, sticky tongue.
d. A dog eats when a bell rings.
____
8. Some plants are covered in sharp, spiny seeds, called burrs. These burrs hook onto the fur or the
clothes of passing animals or people.
This image is courtesy of Wikipedia
How do burrs help the plants they come from?
a. Burrs collect water from the ground.
b. Burrs help to spread the plant's seeds.
c. Burrs stop other seeds from growing.
d. Burrs are very tasty to animals.
____
9. Look at the diagram of the barrel cactus. Which of the following is an adaptive characteristic that
enables its unique niche in its ecosystem, the desert?
a. Ground birds build nests in and around the barrel cactus.
b. The spines on the cactus help reduce water loss and help to protect it from
herbivores.
c. Many people have cactus in their yards in the southwestern part of the United
States.
d. The spines of the cactus trap blowing leaves and branches which act as mulch.
The Roadrunner
The roadrunner is the largest bird in the cuckoo family. This bird has dark feathers streaked with
white; a long upward pointing tail; a crest of feathers topping its head, and four toes - two that face
forward and two facing backward. A roadrunner has a patch of blue and orange skin behind a pair of
bright yellow eyes.
Of course, roadrunners are fast on their feet, running from 15 to 18 mph. Although they are able to
fly, they prefer to run and use their speed to catch lizards, small birds, snakes, small mammals, and
insects. Their swiftness also enables them to escape predators. Their natural predators include coyotes,
skunks, and hawks.
Roadrunners live primarily in deserts. In the United States, they are found across the Southwestern
states from California to Texas and Arkansas. Because they do not migrate to cooler climates, they have
several ways to deal with the heat in order to avoid dehydration. They are able to lower their body
temperature at night to 94° F from a daytime body temperature of 101° F. To help store water, they
eliminate salt through glands in their noses instead of through their urine. They rest in the shade during
the heat of the day and warm up in the morning by turning their backs to the sun and fluffing their
feathers to expose their black skin to the sun’s rays.
Roadrunners mate once or twice a year, depending on the amount of rainfall in the area. They build
their nests above ground and lay between 28 eggs, which take about 20 days to hatch.
____ 10. Which behavior of humans is similar to the roadrunner's behavior of excreting salt through the
nose?
a. running fast in soccer
c. shivering in cold weather
b. squinting in bright sunlight
d. sweating to cool off
____ 11. According to the information above, which diagram most likely represents the feet of birds in the
cuckoo family?
a.
c.
b.
d.
____ 12. Which column lists the adaptations of roadrunners that help them to survive extreme temperatures?
a. I
b. II
c. III
d. IV
____ 13. Plants use photosynthesis to help them live and survive. What are the products of photosynthesis?
a. oxygen and water
b. sugars and oxygen
c. sugars and carbon dioxide
d. carbon dioxide and chlorophyll
____ 14. A forest contains many different kinds of plants and animals. All living things eventually die, yet the
forest floor is not piled high with their remains. Which organisms are most responsible for cleaning
up the remains of dead plants and animals?
a. producers and consumers
b. consumers and scavengers
c. producers and decomposers
d. scavengers and decomposers
____ 15. The food chain is a way to describe what animals in a certain environment eat. What is the first link
in the food chain of the ocean?
a. squid
b. sharks
c. shellfish
d. plankton
____ 16. Ecosystems are made of biotic and abiotic factors. Which term refers to a factor that is in short
supply for the organisms that depend on it for survival?
a. abiotic climate
b. biotic resource
c. climate factor
d. limiting factor
____ 17. Jeremy wants to find out how well a rose bush will grow in drought conditions. How often should
Jeremy water the rose bush to best model drought conditions?
a. daily
b. hourly
c. weekly
d. monthly
____ 18. In a land ecosystem, some organisms only live in the soil under rocks, logs, or plants. What would
be a reasonable prediction about how these organisms would be affected if humans removed the
coverings?
a. Organisms would not be affected by this change.
b. The diversity of organisms in the soil would increase.
c. The number of decomposers in the soil would increase.
d. The number of these organisms in the soil would decrease.
____ 19. Which negative ecological effect do you predict would result from the doubling of a region’s human
population?
a. Humans will destroy habitats by building homes and other structures.
b. Humans will protect more organisms than they did before the increase.
c. Humans will set aside more land for preserving endangered organisms.
d. Humans will use fewer resources that other organisms need for survival.
____ 20. Which of these describes the flow of energy in a food chain?
a. decomposers —› consumers —› plants —› producers
b. sun —› consumers —› producers —› decomposers
c. producers —› predators —› decomposers —› consumers
d. sun —› producers —› consumers —› decomposers
____ 21. Rabbits are not native to Australia, even though there is plenty of food for them. People first took
rabbits to Australia in 1859. In Australia, there were no predators that hunted rabbits. Which most
likely happened next?
a. The rabbits had no effect on the ecosystem.
b. The rabbit population grew but did not disturb the existing animal species.
c. The rabbit population grew, causing the existing animal species to compete for
food and shelter.
d. The rabbit population caused changes in the water cycle, which affected many
other species.
____ 22. A farmer decides to form a pond by building a dam across a small creek. Which organisms will be
harmed by this change to the ecosystem?
a. lily pads that grow in ponds
b. frogs that can’t live in creeks
c. cows that will have water to drink
d. fish and other animals that live downstream
____ 23. How do animals depend on plants and other producers?
a. All animals consume plants or other producers directly.
b. All animals need the oxygen that plants produce.
c. All animals find shelter in plants.
d. Animals do not need plants or other producers to survive.
____ 24. Mandy sees a news program with two scientists arguing about the carbon dioxide–oxygen cycle.
One scientist claims an increase in carbon dioxide is leading to global warming. The other scientist
disagrees. What should Mandy do?
a. Believe the scientist her mother says is correct
b. Believe the scientist who speaks clearly and is most convincing
c. Find information about both sides and see which arguments are most logical
d. Find information to support global warming and ask a scientist why it is incorrect
____ 25. A state government is planning to build a highway and is interested in protecting alligator habitats.
The graph below shows which habitats alligators prefer.
The state wants to build where the fewest alligator observations have occurred. Near which type of
area do you predict that the state will build the highway to protect the alligators?
a. coves
b. ponds
c. creeks
d. shoreline
____ 26. A rabbit eats grass to live and survive in its ecosystem. In the same ecosystem, bobcats eat rabbits.
How are these living elements interacting?
a. Rabbits are predators and bobcats are prey.
b. Rabbits are prey and bobcats are predators.
c. Rabbits are producers and bobcats are consumers.
d. Rabbits are consumers and bobcats are producers.
____ 27. The animals are included in the physical characteristics of the desert. The jackrabbit supports the
community by?
a. providing energy for the coyote and hawk
b. providing companionship for the lizards
c. providing a pet for the people living there
d. providing energy for the cactus
____ 28. The grass in a terrarium environment supports the cricket population in all of the following ways
EXCEPT?
a. providing shelter
b. providing nutrition
c. providing water
d. providing light
____ 29. The picture shows the leaf and fruit of a sycamore tree. A tree like the sycamore would have the
hardest time growing in an environment that is mostlya. cold and dark
b. warm and rainy
c. cool and wet
d. hot and cloudy
____ 30. In what ways does the water not support the pond community?
a. provides a habitat for fish
b. provides water for the animal populations
c. provides energy for animals
d. provides water to the tree’s roots
Organisms and Environments Unit Test - Review
Answer Section
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
ANS:
B
C
D
C
C
C
D
B
B
D
D
A
B
D
D
D
D
D
A
D
C
D
B
C
D
B
A
D
A
C
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
STA:
5.10A
5.10B & 5.2D
5.10A & 5.2G
5.10B & 5.2D
5.10B
5.10B & 5.2G
5.10B
5.10A
5.10A
5.10A & 5.2D
5.10A & 5.2D
5.10A & 5.2D
5.9D
5.9B
5.9B
5.9A
5.9A
5.9C
5.9C
5.9B
5.9C | 5.3A
5.9C
5.9D
5.9D | 5.3A
5.9C
5.9A
3.9A
3.9A
3.9A
3.9A