Biodiversity (OCR A Level Biology)

Exam Questions

3 hours35 questions
1
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Sampling of plant species was carried out in two different regions. The results of the sampling are shown in the table.

Plant species Region A Region B

Mean number of individuals per quadrat

Mean number of individuals per quadrat

Grass 6 7
Dandelion 3 8
Ground Ivy 2 7
Clover 1 8

Which of the following statements about the data is correct?

  • Region A is more diverse

  • Region A has a higher species richness

  • Region B has a higher species evenness

  • Both regions show the same level of diversity

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2
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Which of the following correctly describes a systematic sampling method?

  •  A student divides a habitat into a series of smaller areas and takes a representative number of samples from each area

  •  A student places quadrats at 2 m intervals along a belt transect and records the abundance in each quadrat

  • A student places quadrats at coordinates on a grid

  • A student uses a camera trap to record the presence of large mammals

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3
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Which of the following describe(s an) advantage(s) of an in situ conservation method?

1 Organisms are provided with the best resources to grow
2 Genetic diversity of the population is easier to maintain
3 Populations have the opportunity to adapt to changing environmental conditions

  • 1, 2 and 3

  • Only 1 and 2

  • Only 2 and 3

  • Only 1

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4
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Which of the following is not a definition of biodiversity?

  • Genetic variation that exists within a species

  • The range of different ecosystems or habitats within a particular area or region

  • The number of different species in an ecosystem

  • The evolution of a species over time

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5
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Which of the following deals with the global trade in endangered species?

  • CITES

  • IUCN

  • CSS

  • CBD

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1
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Which of the following is most likely to increase biodiversity?

  • captive breeding programmes

  • climate change

  • human population growth

  • monoculture

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2
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Barnacles are small animals that live on rocky shores.

Adult barnacles are fixed to rocks and do not move about. They catch passing food in the water with modified limbs called cirri when the tide comes in.

Chthalamus stellatus is a species of barnacle found around UK shores.

Two students wished to estimate the population size of C. stellatus on a rocky shore near their school.

Which of the following could the students use for estimating the C. stellatus population?

  1. an abundance scale, such as ACFOR
  2. quadrat sampling
  3. mark-release-recapture
  • 1, 2, and 3

  • Only 1 and 2

  • Only 2 and 3

  • Only 1

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31 mark

Turtle doves, Streptopelia turtur, were once common in farmland in the UK but their numbers have recently been in decline.

Farmers can claim money from the UK government if they farm in ways that encourage the survival of species such as the turtle dove.

Which of the following agreements is/are relevant to the example described above?

  1.  The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES)
  2.  The Rio Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)
  3. The Countryside Stewardship Scheme (CSS)
  • 1, 2 and 3

  • Only 1 and 2

  • Only 2 and 3

  • Only 1

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4
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Which of the statements, A to D, best defines the term species evenness?

  • the number of species in an area

  • the relative abundance of each species in an area

  • the relative number of individuals of a species in an area

  • the spread of species over an area

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5
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Simpson's index of diversity can be calculated using the following formula:

D space equals space 1 space minus space open parentheses straight capital sigma open parentheses straight n over straight N close parentheses squared close parentheses

Sampling of insect species was carried out in a back garden. The results of the sampling are shown in the table below:

Species Number of individuals
Ladybird 11
Bumblebee 5
Peacock butterfly 2

Which of the following is the correct Simpson's index of diversity for the results shown above? 

  • 0.4626

  • 0.5374

  • 18

  • 0.3721

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6
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The image below shows an example of a wetland habitat. Wetlands are areas of habitat that are either permanently or seasonally saturated with water. 

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Bob Embleton / Lower Moor Wetland, St. Mary's. Licensed under https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en and shared via wikimedia commons

Which of the following is an ecological reason for conserving wetland biodiversity?

  • Maintaining the number of tourists who come to see rare birds.

  • Ensuring that wetlands continue to absorb rainfall in order to prevent flooding.

  • Maintaining wetlands' ability to capture and store carbon dioxide.

  • Protecting waterfowl such as mallard ducks, which are thought to be a keystone species.

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7
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Which of the following measures indicate a high level of genetic diversity?

  1. A gene locus that has multiple alleles, the most common of which has a frequency of 99 %
  2. A high level of heterozygosity at a gene locus
  3. A high value of P
  4. The presence of many observable differences between phenotypes
  • Only 1, 2 and 3

  • 1, 2, 3 and 4

  • Only 2 and 3

  • Only 2, 3 and 4

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8
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Which of the following statements can be correctly applied to ex situ conservation?

  • Only animals can be conserved ex situ.

  • Habitat diversity can be conserved.

  • Captive breeding can aid with the conservation of genetic diversity.

  • The lack of natural habitat means that valuable research cannot be carried out.

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9
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Limpets are aquatic snails that are found in rocky shore habitats. When the tide goes out they remain stationary and seal themselves onto rocks to reduce water loss, and when the tide comes in they move slowly along the surface of the rocks to graze on algae.

A student wanted to investigate the abundance of limpets on a north facing and a south facing rocky shore. The two sites had not been studied in this way before.

Which method and type of sampling would be most appropriate for this investigation?

  • Random quadrat sampling.

  • Systematic quadrat sampling.

  • Random trap sampling.

  • Stratified trap sampling.

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10
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Two areas of farmland were studies by biologists and Simpson's index of diversity was calculated for each. 

For area A, D was calculated to be 0.86 and for area B, D was calculated to be 0.65.

Which of the following can be concluded from these results?

  1. Area A has a higher species diversity than area B
  2. Area A has a higher species richness than area B
  3. Area A has a higher genetic diversity than area B

  • Only 1

  • Only 1 and 2

  • Only 2 and 3

  • 1, 2 and 3

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1
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The images show four pieces of apparatus that could be used to collect data about biodiversity in the field.4-2-biodiversity-hard

Which row, A to D, includes the most appropriate piece of apparatus that could be used to measure the distribution and abundance of species in a meadow?

Row Measuring species distribution Measuring species abundance
A P QRS
B PQR RS
C PQS PQR
D RS S
  • Row A

  • Row B

  • Row C

  • Row D

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2
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A student is investigating species richness of aquatic creatures along a river stream from upstream to downstream. They are testing the hypothesis that ‘species richness increases further downstream from the river’.

Which of the sampling methods, A to D, would the student use?

  • Opportunistic

  • Random

  • Stratified

  • Systematic

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3
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Garo Hills of Meghalaya, India has established its first gene sanctuary for wild citrus relatives. 

Which of the options, A to D, describes the type of conservation carried out at the gene sanctuary in Garo Hills of Meghalaya, India?

  • in-situ conservation of species biodiversity

  • in-situ conservation of habitat biodiversity

  • ex-situ conservation of species biodiversity

  • ex-situ conservation of habitat biodiversity

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4
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Simpson’s index of diversity can be calculated using the following formula:

straight D space equals space 1 space minus space open parentheses straight capital sigma open parentheses straight n over straight N close parentheses squared close parentheses

Sampling of insect species was carried out in a back garden. The results of the sampling are shown in the table:

Species Number of individuals
Black ants 20
Earthworms 11
Swallowtail butterfly 4

Which of the following is the correct Simpson’s index of diversity for the results shown above?

  • 0.4331

  • 0.5669

  • 35

  • 0.3249

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5
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The genetic diversity of a population can be estimated using the following formula:

P = number of polymorphic gene loci ÷ total number of loci investigated

A study estimated the genetic diversity of four different populations of tigers. They recorded the number of gene variants at a selection of gene loci in each population. 

Which of the following populations of tigers has the greatest proportion of polymorphic gene loci?

  • Siberian tiger: 73 polymorphic loci out of 1927

  • Bengal tiger: 1110 polymorphic loci out of 2156

  • Malayan tiger: 1030 polymorphic loci out of 2315

  • Indochinese tiger: 1004 polymorphic loci out of 2008

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