Test File
to accompany
Life: The Science of Biology, Ninth Edition
Sadava • Hillis • Heller • Berenbaum
Chapter 56: Species Interactions and Coevolution
TEST FILE QUESTIONS
(By Norman Johnson)
Multiple Choice
1. Leaf-cutter ants that tend fungal gardens protect themselves from mold by means of
a. their feces.
b. the fungi.
c. bacteria.
d. a smaller ant species.
e. None of the above
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 56.0 Anty biotics
Page: 1185
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
2. Which of the following statements about leaf-cutter ants is true?
a. They fertilize their fungus gardens with their own feces.
b. Most colonies collect more than a kilogram of plant material per day.
c. The ants feed directly from the leaves they collect.
d. Both a and b
e. Both b and c
Answer: d
Textbook Reference: 56.0 Anty biotics
Page: 1185
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
3. The relationship between a zebra and the lion that eats it is an example of what kind of relationship?
a. Competition
b. Mutualism
c. Antagonistic
d. Commensalism
e. Amensalism
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 56.1 What Types of Interactions Do Ecologists Study?
Page: 1186
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
4. Which of the following does not involve antagonistic relationships?
a. Parasitism
b. Predation
c. Herbivory
d. Competition
e. All of the above involve antagonistic relationships.
Answer: d
Textbook Reference: 56.1 What Types of Interactions Do Ecologists Study?
Page: 1186
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
5. Which of the following is an example of a mutualistic interaction?
a. Barnacles obtain safe haven by riding on a whale, while the whale is unaffected.
b. A bacterium fixes nitrogen, thereby providing nutrient for a plant, while the plant provides protection for the bacterium.
c. A virus infects a bird, thus reducing the bird’s fecundity.
d. Both a and b
e. None of the above
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 56.1 What Types of Interactions Do Ecologists Study?
Page: 1186
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
6. Two species of beetles are both herbivores on the same host plant, and the presence of either species reduces the population growth of the other. The relationship between the beetles is best described as
a. antagonistic.
b. predation.
c. herbivory.
d. competition.
e. amensalism.
Answer: d
Textbook Reference: 56.1 What Types of Interactions Do Ecologists Study?
Page: 1186
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
7. Which of the following relationships has negative consequences for both species involved?
a. Predation
b. Competition
c. Amensalism
d. Parasitism
e. Aposematism
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 56.1 What Types of Interactions Do Ecologists Study?
Page: 1186
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
8. Suppose the fecal matter from dogs helps fertilize a particular species of plant, thus increasing the plant’s ability to grow in a particular area. The relationship between the dogs and the plants would be described as
a. mutualism.
b. amensalism.
c. herbivory.
d. antagonistic.
e. commensalism.
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 56.1 What Types of Interactions Do Ecologists Study?
Page: 1187
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
9. While hunting, a bear smashes into and destroys a bush, and then continues pursuing its prey. The relationship between the bear and the bush would be described as
a. herbivory.
b. antagonistic.
c. amensalism.
d. commensalism.
e. predation.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 56.1 What Types of Interactions Do Ecologists Study?
Page: 1187
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
10. Another term for coevolution is
a. amensalism.
b. commensalism.
c. aposematism.
d. reciprocal adaptation.
e. character displacement.
Answer: d
Textbook Reference: 56.1 What Types of Interactions Do Ecologists Study?
Page: 1188
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
11. Which of the following relationships is least likely to result in coevolution?
a. Mutualism
b. Host–parasite
c. Predator–prey
d. Competition
e. Amensalism
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 56.1 What Types of Interactions Do Ecologists Study?
Page: 1188
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
12. Coevolutionary “arms races” are usually the result of
a. amensalism.
b. responses to abiotic conditions.
c. reciprocal adaptations.
d. commensalism.
e. None of the above
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 56.1 What Types of Interactions Do Ecologists Study?
Page: 1188
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
13. Which of the following statements about a predator–prey relationship is true?
a. It is an antagonistic relationship.
b. The predators tend to be more specialized than other types of consumers.
c. The relationship has negative consequences for both species involved.
d. Both a and b
e. Both b and c
Answer: a
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1189
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
14. Suppose a survey of predator–prey relationships shows that the fastest predators are usually found in regions where the fastest prey also are found. The most likely explanation for such a finding is
a. character displacement.
b. reciprocal adaptations.
c. aposematism.
d. exploitative competition.
e. the Batesian principle.
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1189
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
15. Bombardier beetles are best known for their
a. ability to mimic other, more toxic beetles.
b. crypsis.
c. ability to escape from predators by means of their extraordinarily quick reflexes.
d. chemical defenses.
e. extraordinary polyphagy.
Answer: d
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1189
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
16. Which of the following statements about chemical defenses of prey is true?
a. Prey that use chemical defenses tend to be slow-moving.
b. Some predators can evolve countermeasures against the chemical defenses of prey.
c. Many prey species that defend themselves with toxic chemicals advertise their toxicity.
d. Both a and b
e. Both b and c
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1189
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
17. The sharp contrast of black and white on a skunk warns other animals to stay away, lest they face a noxious spray. This defense is an example of
a. Batesian mimicry.
b. amensalism.
c. character displacement.
d. crypsis.
e. aposematism.
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1189
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
18. What is the major difference between Batesian and Müllerian mimicry?
a. Only Batesian mimicry involves reciprocal adaptations.
b. Only Müllerian mimicry involves reciprocal adaptations.
c. All of the species that exhibit Müllerian mimicry are toxic; in Batesian mimicry, one or more species are toxic and one or more species are nontoxic mimics.
d. All of the species that exhibit Batesian mimicry are toxic; in Müllerian mimicry, one or more species are toxic and one or more species are nontoxic mimics.
e. There is no difference between Müllerian and Batesian mimicry.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1190
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
19. Many female swallowtail butterflies are not toxic, but they resemble butterflies that are toxic. This phenomenon is known as
a. character displacement.
b. Müllerian mimicry.
c. Batesian mimicry.
d. Wallacean mimicry.
e. crypsis.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1190
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
20. Three species of snails that are toxic to their bird predators have evolved similar patterns of coloration that help notify the birds of their poisonous nature. This phenomenon is best described as
a. Müllerian mimicry.
b. Batesian mimicry.
c. character displacement.
d. crypsis.
e. homotypy.
Answer: a
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1190
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
21. The opposite of crypsis is
a. homotypy.
b. commensalism.
c. antagonism.
d. aposematism.
e. character displacement.
Answer: d
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1190
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
22. Homotypy is a type of
a. aposematism.
b. Müllerian mimicry.
c. Batesian mimicry.
d. chemical defense.
e. crypsis.
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1190
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
23. Which of the following statements about herbivory is false?
a. At least hundreds of thousands of species engage in herbivory.
b. Herbivory is an antagonistic interaction.
c. Herbivory is found in marine as well as terrestrial systems.
d. Most herbivore species are insects.
e. All of the above are true; none is false.
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1190–1191
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
24. Drosophila sechellia, which is native to the Seychelles Islands, feeds only from the Indian mulberry shrub. This species would therefore be called
a. polyphagous.
b. oligophagous.
c. aposematic.
d. amensalistic.
e. xeric.
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1191
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
25. Caterpillars of the winter moth Operophtera brumata eat the leaves of a variety of trees, including maples, oaks, cranberry, blueberry, and apple. The feeding habits of this moth would therefore be called
a. aposematic.
b. oligophagous.
c. polyphagous.
d. homotypic.
e. pathogenic.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1191
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
26. Which of the following statements about the relationship between plants and animals is correct?
a. Because vertebrates are more likely than insects to be herbivores, plants have not needed to evolve responses against insect herbivory.
b. Because herbivorous insects usually do not kill the plants they feed on, their role as a selective agent is questionable.
c. Because most plants live a long time, they are less likely to be able to evolve defenses against the herbivores.
d. The fact that most insects are able to eat a wide variety of plants suggests that plant defenses are ineffective.
e. The fact that insects do not exhibit character displacement argues against their ability to coevolve with any other life form.
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1191
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
27. Which of the following statements about herbivory is true?
a. Most insects are specialized herbivores, usually feeding from one or a few host plants.
b. Most vertebrates are specialized herbivores, usually feeding from one or a few host plants.
c. In most natural ecosystems, insects usually remove less than 20 percent of plant biomass.
d. Both a and b
e. Both a and c
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1191
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
28. Most plants defend themselves against herbivory mainly by means of
a. aposematism.
b. crypsis.
c. thorns and spines.
d. silica.
e. chemical defenses.
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1191
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
29. Which of the following is most responsible for the biochemical diversity of plants?
a. Adaptations to different soils
b. Adaptations to different temperature regimes
c. Adaptations to different levels of moisture
d. Coevolution with herbivores
e. Coevolution with commensals
Answer: d
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1192
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
30. Which of the following is most likely to evolve specialized detoxification systems?
a. A mammalian herbivore that eats a variety of plant species
b. An avian predator
c. An insect whose larvae feed from the leaves from a single host plant
d. A bumblebee that obtains nectar while pollinating flowers
e. A tick that lives as an ectoparasite
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1192
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
31. Monarch butterflies are toxic to many of their predators because they
a. have a mutualistic relationship with a fungus that produces a toxin in exchange for nutrition.
b. have a mutualistic relationship with a bacterium that produces a toxin in exchange for nutrition.
c. eat milkweed and are able to sequester the toxins from that plant.
d. have evolved an enzyme that produces a toxin.
e. None of the above
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1192
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
32. The H1N1 influenza virus responsible for the 2009 pandemic is considered a(n)
a. microparasite.
b. macroparasite.
c. ectoparasite.
d. oligoparasite.
e. mutualist.
Answer: a
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1192
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
33. Which of the following are most likely to be pathogens?
a. Macroparasites
b. Ectoparasites
c. Microparasites
d. Cryptoparasites
e. None of the above
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1192–1193
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
34. Which of the following statements about pathogens and their hosts is true?
a. Pathogens are always selected evolutionarily to kill their host as quickly as possible.
b. Increased host resistance can lead to stable coexistence between pathogen and host.
c. Hosts are classified as susceptible, immune, or recovered.
d. Both a and b
e. Both b and c
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1193
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
35. Which of the following would be most likely to evolve adaptations that would enable them to grasp onto and maintain a tight grip on their hosts?
a. Amensals
b. Ectoparasites
c. Microparasites
d. Herbivores
e. Guild parasites
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 56.2 How Do Antagonistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1193
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
36. Which of the following statements about mutualistic interactions is true?
a. They are almost always symmetrical.
b. They can evolve into parasitism.
c. They usually evolve when resources are common.
d. All of the above
e. None of the above
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 56.3 How Do Mutualistic Interactions Evolve?
Page: 1194
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
37. Under which of the following conditions would a mutualistic relationship most likely lead to reciprocal adaptations?
a. When the mutualism is asymmetrical
b. When both partners are animals
c. When one partner is an animal and the other is a plant
d. When both partners are plants
e. When increased benefits are gained by greater dependence on the partner
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 56.3 How Do Mutualistic Interactions Evolve?