Texas Academic Pentathlon
7th Grade Science Practice Test
2015-2016
1. An abiotic interaction is a relationship between an organism and
a. another of its same species.
b. it physical environment.
c. a different type of species.
d. and its nucleic structure.
e. another organism’s nucleic structure.
2. German biologist Ernst Haeckel was the first to use the term
a. biome.
b. natural selection.
c. habitat.
d. ecology.
e. species.
3. “A group of living things of different species found in an ecosystem” is a(n)
a. biosphere.
b. biome.
c. ecosystem.
d. population.
e. community.
4. All of the following areas are considered to be a part of Environmental Studies EXCEPT:
a. ecology.
b. geology.
c. philosophy.
d. mechanical engineering.
e. economics.
5. A scientific investigation always begins with a(n)
a. experiment.
b. observation.
c. reaction.
d. measurement.
e. prediction.
6. The highest level of biological organization is a(n)
a. population.
b. biome.
c. community.
d. ecosystem.
e. biosphere.
7. Regions with maritime climates are characterized by
a. high humidity and little daily or seasonal fluctuations in temperature.
b. freezing temperatures all year long.
c. dry winters with short, cold summers.
d. hot and dry summers with mild winters.
e. widely varying temperatures with high humidity.
8. Rain shadow effect is also known as ______effect.
a. frontal
b. cyclical
c. orographic
d. hydrologic
e. atmospheric
9. The El Nino weather pattern would cause Texas to have
a. very cold and dry winters.
b. warm winters and large amounts of rainfall.
c. a few snowstorms over the entire state.
d. cooler and wetter winters than the state normally experiences.
e. hot summers and mild winters.
10. Parent material is MOST CLOSELY associated with
a. oxygen.
b. carbon dioxide.
c. rock.
d. nitrogen.
e. peat.
11. The “A horizon” is also called
a. topsoil.
b. root layer.
c. organic segment.
d. vertical profile.
e. subsoil.
12. The product of photosynthesis is
a. carbon dioxide.
b. phosphate.
c. nitrate.
d. carbohydrates.
e. fructose.
13. Where is the highest concentration of salt in ocean water found?
a. in the deepest section of the Pacific Ocean known as the Mariana Trench
b. near coastal deserts of countries located in the southern hemisphere
c. in the waters nearest to the equator
d. in the waters above the arctic circle
e. in the Indian Ocean
14. Water covers about ______percent of the Earth’s surface.
a. seventy-one
b. ninety-seven
c. twenty-five
d. fifty-two
e. seventy-five
15. The area where a mouth of a river meets the ocean is called a(n)
a. bay.
b. gulf.
c. tributary.
d. estuary.
e. marsh.
16. The pelagic zone is BEST described as the
a. concentration of volcanoes in an area in the Pacific Ocean.
b. open ocean waters.
c. ocean floor.
d. ocean waters along the equator.
e. waters that are deeper than 50 meters.
17. Why do headwater streams often limit productivity within an aquatic
ecosystem?
a. They have fast-flowing water which takes all the nutrients downstream.
b. The waters are often cold and well-shaded.
c. They are high-salinity environments.
d. Their riverbeds are too shallow to support life.
e. Plants and animals cannot thrive in higher elevations.
18. Riparian ecosystems occur
a. as the source of first-order streams.
b. in upland zones.
c. only in freshwater wetlands.
d. primarily in temperate climate zones.
e. between upland zones and aquatic zones.
19. A succulent plant
a. stores water for long periods of time in desert regions.
b. produces flowers in polar cap climates.
c. has stiff, evergreen leaves.
d. only grows in rain shadow regions.
e. has thin foliage.
20. Which type of tree would MOST LIKELY be found in a Boreal forest?
a. oak
b. spruce
c. pecan
d. maple
e. mesquite
21. An organism’s niche is
a. its size.
b. where it hides.
c. how it avoids predators.
d. its role in the ecosystem.
e. the nutrients required for its survival.
22. Which of the following is a biotic factor of a niche?
a. rainfall
b. sunlight
c. predators
d. temperature
e. climate
23. Population responds, over time, to changing environments through the process of
a. salination.
b. predation.
c. competition.
d. ecology.
e. evolution.
24. The relationship that describes a group of individuals of the same species living in the same geographic areas at the same time and interact with each other in called
a. phenotype.
b. biodiversity.
c. population dynamics.
d. genotype.
e. biotic environments.
25. Competition occurs between species in a niche when
a. they fight for mates.
b. a new niche becomes available.
c. when a niche expands.
d. when their niche is destroyed.
e. they share the same niche.
26. Species richness refers to the
a. number of different species occurring in a geographical area.
b. number of male species within a community.
c. ratio of males to female within a given species.
d. number of plant material available within a biome.
e. dominant gene characteristics within a species.
27. How many biodiversity hotspots are found in India?
a. thirty-five
b. twelve
c. twenty-one
d. two
e. seven
28. The productivity hypothesis says that
a. large areas have more diversity in the tropics due to greater competition rates.
b. greater diversity exists in places where there is more energy.
c. areas that generate increased biomass have greater biological diversity.
d. large areas have more diversity than smaller land areas.
e. if an ecosystem is disrupted by changes in its resources, some species will be eliminated.
29. Which of the following is NOT a predator?
a. Venus flytrap
b. squirrel
c. mountain lion
d. spider
e. hyena
30. A symbiont is a(n)
a. organism that eats the tissue of a host organism.
b. type of fish that “glows in the dark.”
c. species that feeds off another species.
d. organism that lives alongside another organism.
e. herbivore that feeds on algae.
31. A flea is a type of
a. endoparasite.
b. osteoparasite.
c. microparasite.
d. geoparasite.
e. ectoparasite.
32. A food web represents
a. an organism’s diet.
b. feeding relationships among organisms.
c. an animal’s trophic level.
d. a predator’s hunting method.
e. the amount of food available in a community.
33. Anthropogenic disturbances are caused by
a. insects.
b. fires.
c. disease.
d. humans.
e. predators.
34. How does a ponderosa pine ecosystem maintain its “park-like” appearance?
a. low-intensity fires occur every ten-twenty years and burn understory vegetation.
b. floods occur every year as sweep the understory vegetation from its community.
c. warm climates cause the understory vegetation to decompose rapidly.
d. the large number of herbivores in its community feed on the understory vegetation.
e. high-intensity seasonal freezes keep the understory vegetation from growing.
35. The ability of an ecosystem to recover after a disturbance is called
a. reforestation.
b. reconstruction.
c. stability.
d. succession.
e. recomposition.
36. The first species to establish after a disturbance in a community is known as a(n) _____
species.
a. initial
b. dominant
c. original
d. pioneer
e. adaptive
37. In an ecosystem, gap phase dynamics occur
a. each year with varying levels of intensity.
b. between large disturbance events.
c. simultaneously in adjacent communities.
d. only in areas around the equator.
e. immediately after a large scale disturbance.
38. A jackal that devours the remains of a tiger’s prey BEST describes______.
a. predator-prey cycle.
b. mutualism.
c. amensalism.
d. abiotic relationship.
e. commensalism.
39. Which of the following is the BEST example of a keystone species?
a. squirrels
b. starfish
c. cows
d. deer
e. tigers
40. Which of the following statements about trends and patterns of biodiversity is TRUE?
a. Small island ecosystems have lower biodiversity than large islands.
b. There is a greater variety of tree species in the western part of the North America than in the east.
c. Large islands generally have lower biodiversity than smaller islands.
d. There is a greater variety of bird species in the eastern United States than in western states.
e. The American plains is a hotspot of tree diversity.
41. The formation of new and distinct species by evolution is called
a. diversification.
b. speciation.
c. initiation.
d. fragmentation.
e. origination.
42. Herbivores that eat woody plants are called
a. grazers.
b. foragers.
c. browsers.
d. rummagers.
e. scavengers.
43. A barnacle grows on a whale, doing it no harm. This is an example of
a. vitalism.
b. mutualism.
c. parasitism.
d. commensalism.
e, amensalism.
44. When two organisms attempt to utilize the same resource, the result is:
a. a fundamental niche
b. competition
c. commensalism
d. mutualism
e. parasitism
45. The deer, rabbits, and vegetation in a particular region of eastern Texas together constitute part of a
a. population.
b. community.
c. genus.
d. species.
e. niche.
46. What does the first law of thermodynamics state?
a. Heat flows from warm bodies to cool bodies.
b. Energy cannot be created or destroyed.
c. A body at rest will stay at rest until affected by an outside force.
d. Energy and matter are interchangeable.
e. Energy disperses from local areas to general areas.
47. The diagram to the right BEST depicts a(n)
a. food web.
b. predator-prey cycle.
c. ecosystem.
d. commensalism.
e. trophic pyramid.
48. In the ocean, primary production
a. increases with depth.
b. is not affected by light.
c. stays at consistent levels.
d. decreases with depth.
e. depends on the number of marine mammals.
49. Which of the following is an example of a species experiencing overkill?
a. chickens
b. cows
c. deer
d. humans
e. tigers
50. Which of the following disciplines of ecology is MOST concerned with the decline of biological population?
a. global ecology
b. landscape ecology
c. conservation ecology
d. microecology
e. chemical ecology