View a FREE sample

This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which of the following ant hormones is found in many vegetable oils?
(a) Lasius Niger.
(b) Acromyrmex.
(c) Triolein.
(d) Tapinorma.

2. Which of the following is NOT a system of kin recognition listed in the novel?
(a) Spatial Distribution.
(b) Recognition by Association.
(c) Sensual Recognition.
(d) Allelic Recognition.

3. During what era did Crozier argue that scientists should not "discard kin selection in favor of parental manipulation" altering the way most scientists deal with kin selection?
(a) 1990's.
(b) 1980's.
(c) 1970's.
(d) 2000's.

4. Which of the following terms expresses the ideal of group production with the disregard of individual needs?
(a) Tershonomics.
(b) Fillionomics.
(c) Hedonomics.
(d) Ergonomics.

5. How do ants communicate?
(a) Through chemical emissions.
(b) Through a complex pattern of squeaks.
(c) Ants do not communicate.
(d) Through antennae movement.

6. How much of the Amazon rainforest is composed of ants and other insects?
(a) One-third.
(b) One-half.
(c) One-fourth.
(d) All of it.

7. According to the study completed in 1984, what other function do the odor glands fulfill in ant colonies?
(a) Food storage.
(b) Enemy alarm.
(c) Nesting map.
(d) Water preservation.

8. What is modulatory communication?
(a) Communication to the queen.
(b) Communication for the purpose of reproduction.
(c) Communication meant to alter another's behavior.
(d) Communication in regards to alien attack.

9. Which of the following is NOT a criterion used to decide that an ant colony is a unit rather than a group of individuals?
(a) It differentiates into germ plasma.
(b) It is precise in execution of planned actions.
(c) It shows idiosyncrasies in behavior, size, and structure.
(d) It undergoes an adaptive cycle of growth.

10. How old is the oldest ant fossil found to date?
(a) 8 million years old.
(b) 80 million years old.
(c) 18 million years old.
(d) 800 million years old.

11. Which of the following is NOT an insect phenomenon documented in the opening of this novel?
(a) The hierarchy in control processes.
(b) The social effects of monarchical rule.
(c) The effects of competition on community structure.
(d) The shaping of castes through natural selection.

12. Which of the following is NOT a segment in an ant's body?
(a) The kampf.
(b) The petiole.
(c) The alitrunk.
(d) The gaster.

13. Which of the following is NOT a category that authors Holldobler and Wilson claim to be extremely complex in ant colonies?
(a) Their social organization.
(b) Their anatomy.
(c) Their behavior.
(d) Their communication.

14. What is another way of defining pheromonal communication?
(a) Liquid communication.
(b) Group communication.
(c) Chemical communication.
(d) Attack communication.

15. Which of the following acts is NOT part of the Founding Stage in an ant colony?
(a) Foraging for food.
(b) Constructing a nest.
(c) Mating.
(d) Rearing young.

Short Answer Questions

1. What type of hierarchy does Wilson use to describe an ant colony?

2. Which of the following types of ants maintain many different nests although they only live in one at a time?

3. What percentage of herbaceous plant species are distributed by ants in New York?

4. What does the stridulatory organ in an ant's anatomy do?

5. Which of the following is NOT an example of ritualized communication?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 493 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample