Alaska and Bark Beetles

Paragraph 1：Over the TWentieth century, global temperatures increased by an average of about 0.7 de-
grees Celsius, but some places have warmed a lot more than this, and other places have warmed less.
These temperature increases have been enough to trigger changes in ecosystems all over the world, espe-
cially in places where the warming has been the greatest. In some places, the changes have been subtle,
perhaps a slight shift in vegetation that only a careful observer would notice. In other cases, small changes
in climate have sparked a chain of larger effects, leading to massive changes.

1. The word subtle in the passage is closest in meaning to

O limited
O unimportant
O not obvious
O gradual

Paragraph 2：The biggest climate-caused ecosystem shifts today are happening at the world's most north-
ern latitudes, where the temperature over the last century has been rising about TWo times faster than the
global average. In the northernmost state of the United States, Alaska, for example, warming has paved the
way for a spike in the numbers of spruce bark beetles. Bark beetles have been a pest to Alaskan white
spruce trees for thousands of years, but their numbers were held in check by the cold climate, which forced
the insects to hide in the bark of individual trees for most of the year. As the length of the warm season in-
creased over the 1980s and 1990s, however, bark beetles had more time to fly from one tree to the next,
burrow, and lay their eggs beTWeen the bark and the wood. The beetles had another thing going for them,
too: a multi-year drought had weakened many of the spruce trees, leaving them vulnerable to attack. In the
mid-1990s, the bark beetle population exploded, and over the next few years the pests wiped out white
spruce forests over an area the size of the U.S. state of Connecticut. In the years since, the combined forces
of a longer insect-breeding season and forest management practices that left forests overcrowded gave
way to similar epidemics farther south. Large swaths of pine and spruce have been destroyed by insects in
several other parts of the United States.

2. The phrase paved the way for in the passage is closest in meaning to
O come together with
O made possible
O increased the intensity of
O made absolutely certain

3. The phrase wiped out in the passage is closest in meaning to

O damaged
O threatened
O spread through
O killed off
4. Paragraph 2 suggests that the warming of the Alaskan climate affected bark beetles in which of the fol-
lowing ways？
O By making it possible for a beetle to deposit its eggs in a greater number of trees
O By making it possible for beetles to survive in the bark of trees for longer lengths of time
O By making it unnecessary for a beetle to protect its eggs by laying them beTWeen the bark and the wood
O By increasing the number of spruce trees, thereby providing the beetles with far more places to live

5. According to paragraph 2, all of the following contributed to the destruction of forests in different parts
of the United States EXCEPT
O a drought that had lasted for several years
O a lack of forest management practices
O overcrowding in forests
O a huge increase in spruce tree pest populations

Paragraph 3：In the late 1990s, the effects of the bark beetle epidemic rippled throughout Alaska's white
spruce ecosystem and affected virtually every population of living organisms, but not all of the impacts
were negative. Fewer spruce trees meant a sunnier area in the forest below the treetops, which allowed
grasses to move in and take hold. The grasses, in turn, changed the soil temperature, making the environ-
ment more friendly for some other types of vegetation. Animals that feed on grasses, including moose, elk,
and some birds, also benefited. But the beetle infestation was bad news for organisms that rely on white
spruce for their habitat, like hawks, owls, red squirrels, and voles. Voles — a type of small, mouselike ro-
dent — are an especially vital part of the ecosystem because they help spread mycorrhizal fungi, which at-
tach to the roots of plants and help them take in water and nutrients. Voles are also an important food for
a number of predators.

6. Which of the following statements most accurately describes the relationship of paragraph 3 to para-
graph 2？

O Paragraph 2 explains the causes of the spruce bark beetle epidemic in Alaska, and paragraph 3 discusses
the chain of events that occurred as a result of that epidemic.
O Paragraph 2 shows that warming air temperatures can affect a large number of species, and paragraph 3
shows that warming soil temperatures can have even greater effects.
O Paragraph 2 discusses one explanation for the disappearance of spruce trees from a part of Alaska, but
paragraph 3 shows that an alternative explanation is more likely to be correct.
O Paragraph 2 describes the negative consequences of climate warming for some species, but paragraph 3
shows that there are also some positive consequences for these same species.

7. According to paragraph 3, which of the following effects did the bark beetle epidemic have on moose,
elk, and some birds？
O The epidemic increased the availability of water for these animals.
O The epidemic increased the availability of food for these animals.
O The epidemic destroyed the habitat of these animals.
O The epidemic meant that these animals experienced more competition from hawks, owls, red squirrels,
and voles.

8. According to paragraph 3, a decline in the vole population in Alaska may have which TWO of the follow-
ing consequences？ To receive credit, you must select TWO answer choices.

O Some predators may have less to eat.

O Hawk and red squirrel populations may be more successful.
O Plants may find it more difficult to absorb water and nutrients.
O Mycorrhizal fungi numbers may increase.

Paragraph 4：Ecosystem changes always hurt some living creatures and help others. It's hard to say, there-
fore, whether a change is good or bad overall. Instead, ecologists (people who study ecosystems) often fo-
cus on the impacts on a single species: for instance, us. In the short term, the Alaskan spruce beetle epi-
demic supplied a lot of people with firewood, but only by destroying tons of otherwise valuable timber and
threatening the livelihoods of loggers. And no one knows for sure what the long-term impacts on the forest
will be. Ecosystems tend to return to their previous states after disturbances like pest outbreaks, fires, or
major storm events, but if the Alaskan spruce ecosystem is disturbed too often or too much, it might shift
to a different type of forest, a woodland, or a grassland instead.

9. Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence in the
passage. Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.

O Ecosystems like the spruce ecosystem in Alaska tend to return to their previous states after disturbances
such as pest outbreaks, fires, or major storm events.
O While ecosystems tend to return to their previous states after disturbances, the Alaskan spruce ecosys-
tem might not if it is disturbed too often or too much.
O Ecosystems tend to return to their previous states after disturbances, so Alaska might again become cov-
ered with woodlands or grasslands.
O After certain types of disturbances such as pest outbreaks, ecosystems do not always return to their pre-
vious states but shift to being woodlands or grasslands instead.

Paragraph 5：In extreme cases, major assaults on ecosystems can lead to a total collapse in which the
ecosystem doesn't bounce back to the way it was or transition to a new, healthy state. The result is an area
with very little life; in the oceans, biologists refer to these areas as dead zones. One such example is the
coral reef die-off that happened in the Indian Ocean in the late 1990s.
10. The phrase assaults on in the passage is closest in meaning to

O imbalances in
O changes in
O problems for
O attacks on

11. In paragraph 5, coral reefs in the Indian Ocean are presented as an example of which of the following？

O Ecosystems that totally collapsed

O Ecosystems that transitioned to a new, healthy state
O Ecosystems that bounced back to the way they were
O Ecosystems that were affected by a nearby dead zone

12. The passage provides an answer to which of the following questions？

O Why has the temperature at northern latitudes been rising faster than the global average？
O Why did corals in the Indian Ocean die off in the late 1990s？
O What types of vegetation benefited from the change in soil temperatures in Alaska？
O What were some of the effects of the bark beetle epidemic for humans？

Paragraph 4：■Ecosystem changes always hurt some living creatures and help others. ■It's hard to say,
therefore, whether a change is good or bad overall. ■Instead, ecologists (people who study ecosystems)
often focus on the impacts on a single species: for instance, us. ■In the short term, the Alaskan spruce bee-
tle epidemic supplied a lot of people with firewood, but only by destroying tons of otherwise valuable tim-
ber and threatening the livelihoods of loggers. And no one knows for sure what the long-term impacts on
the forest will be. Ecosystems tend to return to their previous states after disturbances like pest outbreaks,
fires, or major storm events, but if the Alaskan spruce ecosystem is disturbed too often or too much, it
might shift to a different type of forest, a woodland, or a grassland instead.

13. Look at the four squares that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.

But even from this limited perspective, the answer is not completely straightforward.

Where would the sentence best fit？ Click on a square to add the sentence to the passage.
14. Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete
the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the passage.
Some answer choices do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented in
the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points. Drag your choices to the spa-
ces where they belong. To review the passage, click on View Text.

O Global warming has led to changes in ecosystems all over the world, with ecosystems at northern lati-
tudes being affected the most.
O A longer warm season in Alaska caused a sharp increase in the number of bark beetles, leading to the de-
struction of spruce forests, which in turn seriously affected many other species.
O Sometimes ecosystems are able to recover from disturbances or to develop into different, but healthy,
systems, but in extreme cases, they may collapse completely.
O The loss of spruce forests caused an epidemic in mycorrhizal fungi, and these fungi damaged the roots of
many plants, making them unable to take in water and nutrients.
O Whereas some types of changes are good for the majority of species in an ecosystem, ecologists believe
that most disturbances to ecosystems are bad overall.
O Coral reefs may die off as a result of the global increase in temperatures, but after a transition period as a
dead zone, they are able to return to their original state.

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