Which order of diagrams would show primary succession in an area that had never before been occupied by living organisms?

A. A, C, B, D, E
Incorrect. Primary succession begins on a bare surface.

B. D, C, B, A, E
Correct! Primary succession occurs on an area that has never before been occupied by living organisms (bare rock). It continues with grassland, shrubland, young forest, and finally mature forest which would be the climax community.

C. D, E, B, C, A
Incorrect. Although primary succession begins on a bare surface (no life present), it continues in a slow progression until the climax community is developed.

D. B, A, E, C, D
Incorrect. Primary succession begins on a bare surface.

Many of the forests of the United States have been cleared for farmland. Which of these would least affect the time it would take to return a farm to forest conditions?

A. The number of viable tree seeds on the land
Incorrect. The number of viable tree seeds would decrease the time it took for a farm to return to forest conditions.

B. The amount of available nutrients in the soil
Incorrect. The amount of available nutrients in the soil would affect the rate of growth as the plants would depend on nutrients in the soil rapid return to forest conditions.

C. The density of the original forest on the farm
Correct! Since the land had been completely cleared of forest, the amount of trees originally present would have no effect on how fast the farm returned to forest conditions.

D. The ability of the farmland to retain moisture
Incorrect. Growing plants need water to survive, so the ability of the farmland to retain moisture would be a factor in the amount of time it took for the farm to return to forest.

Which of the following types of succession would most likely occur following a forest fire?

A. primary succession
Incorrect. Primary succession occurs where there was no previous growth.

B. old field succession
Incorrect. Old field succession would occur on land that has been plowed for farmland.

C. secondary succession
Correct! Secondary succession occurs where there was previous growth (ex. the forest).

D. lake succession
Incorrect. Lake succession would occur in a pond or lake.

Each drawing represents different stages of community succession in a typical pond. Which of the following pictures represents the climax community in this succession pattern?

A.

Incorrect. A climax community is fully developed with trees and a diversity of animals and is not continuing to develop.

B.

Correct! A climax community is a biological community of plants and animals which, through the process of ecological succession has reached a steady state.

C.

Incorrect. A climax community includes a variety of plants and animals that have reached a steady state.

D.

Incorrect. A climax community includes a variety of plants and animals that have reached a steady state.

An example of a plant that would be found early in a forest succession would be_________ while an example of a plant that would be found in the forest climax community would be ____________ .

A. grass, oak
Correct! Grass is found as one of the first plants in ecological succession and hardwoods such as oak could be found in a climax community.

B. oak, shrub
Incorrect. Oak is a hardwood that takes years to grow to full height and would most likely be found in a climax community. Shrubs are found after grass in ecological succession.

C. herb, young pine
Incorrect. Although herbs can be found early in a forest succession, pines are usually found previous to the climax community of established long-growing trees.

D. lichens, reeds
Incorrect. Lichens are not plants. They are an algae and fungus that have a mutualistic relationship. Reeds are found only in wetland areas.