MISA - Maryland Integrated Science Assessment Ecosystems Matter and Energy Questions and Answers

Question 1

In a forest ecosystem, a deer eats plants, a wolf eats the deer, and fungi break down the wolf's remains after it dies. Which of the following correctly describes the flow of energy in this ecosystem?

Accepted Answer

Energy flows from the sun to the plants, then to the deer, and then to the wolf. Energy is transferred to the fungi from the wolf's remains.

Answer

Energy flows from the plants to the deer, then to the wolf, and is finally recycled by the fungi back to the plants.

Answer

Energy flows from the sun to the plants, then to the deer, and then to the wolf. The fungi do not use energy.

Answer

Energy flows from the plants to the sun, is absorbed by the deer and wolf, and is destroyed by the fungi.

Question 2

A biomass pyramid models the amount of living organic matter at each trophic level. In a stable grassland ecosystem, which trophic level would be expected to have the greatest amount of biomass?

Accepted Answer

Producers (e.g., grasses)

Answer

Secondary consumers (e.g., snakes)

Answer

Tertiary consumers (e.g., hawks)

Answer

Primary consumers (e.g., grasshoppers)

Question 3

A student is designing a model to illustrate the cycling of carbon in an ecosystem. To accurately represent the process, which of the following components is essential to include as a mechanism that returns carbon dioxide to the atmosphere?

Accepted Answer

Cellular Respiration

Answer

Photosynthesis

Answer

Transpiration

Answer

Nitrogen Fixation

Question 4

If the primary producers in a marine food web store 25,000 kcal of energy, approximately how much energy would be available to the tertiary consumers in that same food web?

Accepted Answer

25 kcal

Answer

2,500 kcal

Answer

250 kcal

Answer

2.5 kcal

Question 5

Which of the following statements best describes the primary difference between how matter and energy move through an ecosystem?

Accepted Answer

Matter is cycled within the ecosystem, while energy flows through it.

Answer

Matter flows in one direction, while energy is recycled.

Answer

Energy is created by producers, while matter is created by consumers.

Answer

Matter and energy are both fully recycled by decomposers.

Question 6

In an aquatic ecosystem, a sudden increase in agricultural runoff leads to eutrophication and a subsequent 'dead zone' where dissolved oxygen levels are extremely low. This condition is known as hypoxia. Which process is most directly inhibited in organisms living in this dead zone?

Accepted Answer

Aerobic cellular respiration

Answer

Anaerobic respiration

Answer

Photosynthesis

Answer

Chemosynthesis