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Ecology Quizzes, Trivia and Puzzles
Ecology Quizzes, Trivia

Ecology Trivia

Ecology Trivia Quizzes

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14 Ecology quizzes and 170 Ecology trivia questions.
1.
Ralphs Outback Adventure
  Ralph's Outback Adventure   great trivia quiz  
Photo Quiz
 10 Qns
Ralph the llama has decided to visit some cousins who live in central Australia. Help him explore the region.
Average, 10 Qns, looney_tunes, Aug 04 24
Average
looney_tunes editor
Aug 04 24
1227 plays
2.
Plants of the Fynbos
  Plants of the Fynbos   great trivia quiz  
Photo Quiz
 10 Qns
The fynbos is part of the Cape Floristic Region, an area of biodiversity in South Africa that includes a number of unique plants. Nearly 200 plants are endemic to the city of Cape Town.
Average, 10 Qns, looney_tunes, Apr 05 18
Average
looney_tunes editor
Apr 05 18
263 plays
3.
  Symbiosis in Nature   best quiz  
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
The word "symbiosis" means "the living together in more or less intimate association or close union of two dissimilar organisms". This quiz focuses on "mutualism", i.e. symbiotic relationships where both organisms benefit. Enjoy!
Average, 10 Qns, achernar, Nov 21 15
Average
achernar
7050 plays
4.
Intimate Relations Naturally
  Intimate Relations, Naturally    
Photo Quiz
 10 Qns
Welcome to the world of parasites. This quiz takes a brief look at some of the more unusual parasitic relationships. Take your time and enjoy.
Very Difficult, 10 Qns, suomy, Jul 12 16
Very Difficult
suomy
360 plays
5.
  Native to the USA or Not?   great trivia quiz  
Multiple Choice
 25 Qns
Many species of plants and animals have been introduced to the United States- not found here naturally, they have been brought from other countries. Type 'native' if the species is native to the U.S., 'not' if it is not.
Average, 25 Qns, crisw, Jun 30 24
Average
crisw gold member
Jun 30 24
4300 plays
6.
  Principles of Ecology   great trivia quiz  
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
Ecology is the study of how organisms interact with each other and also with the environment. There wasn't many quizzes in this category so I thought I would contribute one of my own. Enjoy!
Tough, 10 Qns, jonnowales, Oct 18 08
Tough
jonnowales gold member
1692 plays
7.
  Hopping through the Sonoran Desert   great trivia quiz  
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
Flopsy the cottontail bunny is lost in the Sonoran Desert of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. Can you help her navigate the flora, fauna and features of the Sonoran Desert as she makes her way home?
Average, 10 Qns, PDAZ, Jan 18 09
Average
PDAZ gold member
1032 plays
8.
  Wetlands   popular trivia quiz  
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
Native American Indians called them 'between-lands', because they are not really land and they are not really water....try this quizzie about wetlands !
Average, 10 Qns, catnippin, Aug 26 24
Average
catnippin
Aug 26 24
3734 plays
9.
  The Polluters    
Multiple Choice
 15 Qns
Though this topic may seem to be of interest to 'Greens', pollution in its many forms is actually quite fascinating. For instance, did you know...well wait til you get inside. Enjoy!
Average, 15 Qns, grisham, Sep 01 24
Average
grisham
Sep 01 24
630 plays
10.
  The Changing Environment    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
Humanity has had a considerable impact on the environment over the centuries, not all of it good. This quiz explores some of the human-induced changes to the environment through plants and animals. Beware the wordy questions!
Difficult, 10 Qns, suomy, Jan 10 22
Difficult
suomy
Jan 10 22
250 plays
trivia question Quick Question
Rainwater that flows over the land and into streams and lakes, often picking up soil particles along the way, is called what?

From Quiz "Wetlands"




11.
  Ecology 102    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
I have to study for my Biology 102 midterm, and this seems like the most fun way to do it! The quiz will be mostly definitions.
Tough, 10 Qns, dicentra, Jan 27 08
Tough
dicentra
4065 plays
12.
  The Yucatan Peninsula   great trivia quiz  
Multiple Choice
 15 Qns
This is a quiz on the geography, ecology and wildlife of the Yucatan. I am taking a vacation this winter to Cozumel. In preparation, I have been studying the flora and fauna of this region of great biodiversity.
Tough, 15 Qns, crisw, Jun 29 07
Tough
crisw gold member
1016 plays
13.
  We're the Planeteers    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
Remember the Planeteers, those loyal teenagers who accompanied Captain Planet? Well they're back, and they need your help answering some ecology questions. Good luck!
Average, 10 Qns, Lpez, Jul 24 22
Average
Lpez gold member
Jul 24 22
218 plays
14.
  Ecoquiz    
Multiple Choice
 15 Qns
Hi welcome to my ecoquiz. Enjoy!
Difficult, 15 Qns, RIPPED, Jun 14 07
Difficult
RIPPED
3956 plays

Ecology Trivia Questions
1. What is the most common way that non-native species are introduced to new countries?

From Quiz The Changing Environment

Answer: On ships

There have been numerous accidental introductions over the centuries. Small creatures and seeds in ship cargoes is the obvious way. When British ships sailed to the American colonies, soil was used as the ships ballast, to be dumped on arrival to make way for the return cargo. This was how the earthworm arrived in America. The change to steel-hulled ships saw seawater becoming the ballast of choice. It is estimated that 7 billion tonnes of seawater ballast are carried around the world each year. At any one time, an estimated 7,000 different species are travelling this way.

2. The first thing the Planeteers need to know is all about the term "ecology". They are all arguing on who was born in a land closer to Ernst Haeckel, the man who coined the term. Which planeteer would win this argument?

From Quiz We're the Planeteers

Answer: Linka, from Europe

Ernst Haeckel was born in Potsdam, Germany in 1834, when it was still known as Prussia. Haeckel, a biologist, philosopher and naturalist, to name a few of his occupations, published the book "Generelle Morphologie der Organismen" in 1866, where he defined ecology as "the whole science of the relations of the organism to the environment including, in the broad sense, all the 'conditions of existence.'" The word "ecology" derives from the Greek words "house" and "study", which would literally define ecology as the study of our house, Earth.

3. To be true to the title of the quiz, we will start with a question about the book - "The Polluters" by Benjamin Ross and Steven Amter. The book starts with a true story from 1949 about the deadly effects of air pollution in what American locale?

From Quiz The Polluters

Answer: Donora, Pennsylvania

In 1949, few people knew or cared much about air pollution or its effects. It was mostly in the realm of politicians, conservationists and industrialists. Due to a combination of topography and weather conditions, polluted air from local industry got trapped in the valley where Donora, 30 miles out of Pittsburgh, was situated. Twenty people died during this disaster, 50 more in the weeks following (including Lukas Musial, father of baseball great, Stan Musial) while many others suffered for a long time after from the effects of that week. Some call this event one of the most pivotal in raising public awareness to the dangers of air polltuion.

4. Flopsy's home is under an oil-secreting bush that gives the Sonoran Desert its musky scent -- particularly after a rain shower. Under which Sonoran Desert plant has Flopsy made her burrow?

From Quiz Hopping through the Sonoran Desert

Answer: Creosote bush

Creosote bush is one of the most common plants in the Sonoran Desert. It is extremely drought-tolerant; in severe droughts, it will drop all of its leaves and go dormant until rain arrives. Its ability to pull all available moisture out of the ground can prevent other plants from prospering near it. It also has a long life span; a bush can live a hundred years, and it will produce offshoots called clones which will create a ring around the area of the original bush. These clones can regenerate for many generations. The oldest known clone is the "King Clone" in southern California -- estimated to be 11,700 years old, it is considered to be one of the oldest living things on earth. Incidentally, the turpentine bush also has a unique scent, but its leaves must be crushed to release it, while the leaves of the creosote bush naturally emit a scent.

5. Also known as 'K' what is the term for the maximum maintainable population of an area?

From Quiz Ecology 102

Answer: Carrying capacity

(K-N)divided by K. N is the population size. As N gets close to K, the growth rate slows to zero.

6. What is the wetland ecosystem that is highly acidic and has an accumulation of decomposed plants known as peat?

From Quiz Wetlands

Answer: bog

Cranberries are grown in bogs.

7. An interaction in which one organism beneficially affects a second organism, but the second has no effect on the first.

From Quiz Ecoquiz

Answer: Commensalism

An interaction in which one organism adversely affects a second organism, but the second has no effect on the first is known as a amensalism. Parasitism describes an interaction in which one organism obtains nutrients from a host causing harm but not causing death immediately.

8. What Mexican states comprise the majority of the Yucatan peninsula?

From Quiz The Yucatan Peninsula

Answer: Yucatan, Quintana Roo, Campeche

Most of the familiar vacation spots, like Cancun and Cozumel, are in Quintana Roo.

9. Ringneck pheasant, a game bird common in the Midwestern cornfields.

From Quiz Native to the USA or Not?

Answer: Not & Not native

They were brought from China. Game departments spend hundreds of thousands of dollars every year raising and releasing them to be shot by hunters.

10. Which American government agency was set up to deal with different kinds of pollution?

From Quiz The Polluters

Answer: EPA

All of these are in fact govenment agencies: EPA - Environmental Protection Agency - established in 1970 during the Nixon presidency. PMB -Office of Policy, Management and Budget FDA - Food and Drug Administraion GPO - Government Printing Office

11. Flopsy starts her journey near the Mexican border where she encounters the largest cat in the western hemisphere. Oh no, Flopsy -- hide! What rare, spotted resident of the Sonoran Desert has Flopsy met?

From Quiz Hopping through the Sonoran Desert

Answer: Northern jaguar

Jaguars are mainly associated with South America, but the northern jaguar once roamed throughout the lower southwest United States. The Sonoran Desert jaguar population is estimated by The Nature Conservancy to be around 100 cats, and although they reside in northern Mexico, they have been captured crossing into Arizona by border cameras.

12. This type of biome (habitat) has very long cold winters, short warm summers and typically has acidic soils as a result of the cold temperatures and litter fall.

From Quiz Ecology 102

Answer: Taiga (Coniferous forests)

There are two types of taiga. High latitudes receive little precipitation, where as in the Pacific Northwest they can receive up to 40 cm.

13. Which wetland is characterized by trees and shrubs?

From Quiz Wetlands

Answer: swamp

Pocosins and heaths are two examples of swamps.

14. The limits, for all important environmental features, within which individuals of a species can survive, grow and reproduce.

From Quiz Ecoquiz

Answer: Niche

A territory refers to an area established by an animal from which other individuals are partially or totally excluded.

15. What is the topography of the Yucatan Peninsula?

From Quiz The Yucatan Peninsula

Answer: Mostly flat, with some hills in the south.

The further south you go, the more mountainous it gets.

16. Rhododendron, a bush familiar for its beautiful flowers.

From Quiz Native to the USA or Not?

Answer: Native

Many species of rhododendrons are found on both coasts.

17. Gaylord Nelson, a U.S. Senator and governor of Wisconsin, was a main force behind the celebration of this day in the U.S. It was held for the first time in 1970.

From Quiz The Polluters

Answer: Earth Day

The idea, first documented during the Kennedy administration, took a while to gather some steam. By the end of the decade though, it was already recognized in the UN and was celebrated in 1970 in many locales across the U.S. - notably in San Francisco where Saint Francis (San Francisco) was recognized as the patron saint of the environment. By 1990, 141 countries were observing Earth Day.

18. Most flowering plants depend on insects like honeybees, butterflies, etc., to transport certain 'grains' from one part of a flower to another. What are these 'grains' better known as?

From Quiz Symbiosis in Nature

Answer: pollen

Insects like butterflies and bees are attracted to flowers because of the bright colour of their petals and their scent. In this example of mutualism, the insects drink the flower's nectar, and in the process, pollen grains get stuck to their bodies. They carry these pollen grains to flowers of plants that could be quite far away, fertilising the ovules in those flowers with the pollen grains, in a process called cross-pollination. In this way, both the plants and the insects benefit.

19. What is 'an interacting group of individuals of the same species'?

From Quiz Ecology 102

Answer: Population

They use common resources and are regulated by the same natural occurrences.

20. What is the community of plants living in salty soil that is flooded and exposed by alternating tides found along the shores of oceans, bays and rivers?

From Quiz Wetlands

Answer: salt marsh

A common salt marsh plant is cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora). It really thrives in this salty wetland. It deals with the salt by taking it up into its tissues and then excreting it through leaf pores. You can actually see the salt crystals on the Spartina grass !

21. An organism whose body temperature is strongly correlated to that of its external enviroment.

From Quiz Ecoquiz

Answer: Poikilotherm

Poikilotherms are usually cold blooded organisms whose activity declines with ambient temperature.

22. What is geographically unusual about the Yucatan Peninsula?

From Quiz The Yucatan Peninsula

Answer: It is primarily composed of limestone

The peninsula is basically a limestone rock covered wth plantlife! This leads to little water aboveground, despite the lush plant growth.

23. The wild turkey, a familiar bird.

From Quiz Native to the USA or Not?

Answer: Native

Benjamin Franklin wanted to make the turkey the national bird!

24. What table was devised in order to better evaluate pollution from electrical appliances in the environment?

From Quiz The Polluters

Answer: Pollution Degree

It measures the amount of pollution, usually from an electrical appliance with the amount of moisture in the air that can conduct electricity. For instance, Degree 1 means that there is little or no pollution and the air contains only dry air or non-conductive pollution. It has no effect on the environment. An example of this would be a clean room environment or sealed electrical components. The higher the degree, the more dangerous it will be.

25. What ecological name is given to species that are the first to establish a population in a particular habitat? Initially, the habitat is generally harsh with extreme abiotic factors such as water and pH.

From Quiz Principles of Ecology

Answer: Pioneering Species

Pioneering species are usually microorganisms that colonise in extreme conditions in which most species would not be able to survive. Due to the lack of nutrients in the area the microorganisms (pioneering species), such as phytoplankton, often have to create their own food by photosynthesising. The succeeding species are all created using the foundations of the pioneers and environmental stability is generally the end result.

26. Stability is the response of a community to disturbance. One type of response is resilience, which is the ability to recover. The other type of response is resistance which is the ability to avoid what?

From Quiz Ecology 102

Answer: change

Those that are better able to avoid change have a better chance of surviving.

27. Which wetland is found in the grasslands of central North America?

From Quiz Wetlands

Answer: prairie pothole

Many birds use the prairie potholes as breeding grounds, and resting places during winter migrations.

28. The production, in some years, of exceptionally large crops of seeds by trees and shrubs.

From Quiz Ecoquiz

Answer: Masting

A tactic used by some species to escape seed predation by starving predators with small seed crops and capitalising in later years by producing large crops when predator numbers are low.

29. Fresh water in the Yucatan is often found in large sinkholes where the substrate has collapsed over an underground river. What are these sinkholes called?

From Quiz The Yucatan Peninsula

Answer: Cenotes

The cenotes were often a part of Mayan rituals. Sacrificial objects (and people!) were tossed into them.

30. The most common tumbleweed, tumbling across the screen in countless Western movies.

From Quiz Native to the USA or Not?

Answer: Not & Not native

Really called the 'Russian thistle', the tumbleweed was probably introduced in grain shipments from Asia.

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