Wetland Quiz
Questions: 16 · 10 minutes
1. A coastal community loses a wide belt of salt marsh between developed land and the sea. Which change is most plausible?
The shoreline may have less natural buffering from waves and storm surge
Ocean tides will stop reaching the shoreline
Salt water will immediately become fresh water near the coast
Coastal flooding will occur only during periods of low tide
2. When scientists delineate a wetland in the field, which three categories of evidence are commonly evaluated together?
Water depth, fish abundance, and public land ownership
Annual rainfall, air temperature, and distance from a river
Wetland hydrology, hydric soils, and hydrophytic vegetation
Soil fertility, tree age, and elevation above sea level
3. Which feature most clearly distinguishes a swamp from a marsh?
A swamp always contains salt water, while a marsh contains fresh water
A swamp is dominated by woody plants, while a marsh is dominated mainly by nonwoody vegetation
A swamp has flowing water, while a marsh has completely still water
A swamp forms naturally, while a marsh must be created by people
4. A fast-spreading nonnative plant forms a dense, nearly single-species stand in a wetland. What is the most likely concern?
Native plant diversity and habitat structure may decline
All nutrient cycling in the wetland will stop
The plant will turn fresh water into salt water
The wetland will necessarily dry out within one growing season
5. Runoff carrying suspended sediment enters a vegetated wetland and moves slowly through it. What is most likely to happen?
The vegetation causes all dissolved substances to evaporate
The wetland converts sediment directly into oxygen
The runoff gains speed and carries more sediment downstream
Some sediment settles, and plants or microbes may retain or transform some nutrients
6. During a major rainstorm, a floodplain wetland fills with water that would otherwise move quickly downstream. Which wetland function is illustrated most directly?
Conversion of floodwater into groundwater in every soil type
Permanent removal of all floodwater from the watershed
Temporary water storage that can reduce flood peaks
Prevention of rainfall from reaching nearby rivers
7. A restoration team blocks old drainage ditches, but the site remains dry and upland plants continue to dominate. What should the team investigate first?
Whether more wildlife species can be released at the site
Whether the site needs deeper soil fertilization
Whether the intended wetland hydrology has actually been restored
Whether signs should be installed to classify the area as a wetland
8. A shallow depression holds water mainly in spring and appears dry by late summer. Could it still be a wetland?
Yes, seasonal saturation can support wetland soils and vegetation even when surface water later disappears
No, unless the depression is directly connected to a permanent lake
No, because every wetland must remain visibly flooded throughout the year
Yes, but only if fish live there during the wet season
9. A soil sample from a low area has gray colors, rusty mottles, and other signs of prolonged saturation. What does this most strongly suggest?
The soil formed mainly from recently deposited beach sand
The area experiences frequent wildfire
The soil is too acidic to support wetland vegetation
The soil is hydric and has undergone oxygen-limited conditions
10. Many prairie pothole wetlands in the northern United States occupy depressions created by which process?
Wind erosion during prolonged droughts
Dissolution of deep limestone beds
Repeated shifts in river channels
Glacial movement and melting
11. A wetland beside a stream is drained and replaced with compacted pavement. During intense rain, what change is most likely downstream?
Slower runoff because pavement stores more water than wetland soil
Faster runoff and potentially higher peak streamflow
No hydrologic change because wetlands affect wildlife but not water movement
Lower stream levels because pavement absorbs the rainfall
12. Which United States setting is most suitable for naturally occurring mangrove wetlands?
A high-elevation valley in Colorado
A prairie depression in North Dakota
A warm, sheltered shoreline in southern Florida
A cool inland basin in northern Maine
13. Which description best captures what makes an area a wetland?
It contains standing water every day of the year
Water saturation or inundation shapes its soil conditions and biological community
It lies beside a river, lake, or ocean
It supports trees that tolerate heavy rainfall
14. A true bog receives most of its water directly from which source?
Precipitation
Regular ocean tides
Mineral-rich groundwater
Seasonal river flooding
15. Why do saturated wetland soils often contain little oxygen?
Wetland plants consume all oxygen before it can enter the soil
Sunlight breaks down oxygen beneath shallow water
Clay minerals permanently prevent oxygen from entering any wetland
Water fills soil pores and slows the diffusion of oxygen
16. Beavers build a dam across a small stream, causing water to spread over nearby low ground. What is the most likely ecological result?
The stream becomes a salt marsh because its water level rises
New wetland habitat may develop as hydrology and vegetation change
The flooded area can no longer provide habitat for wildlife
The surrounding soil immediately becomes permanently frozen