Lesson 3.1.6.4

3.1.6.4 Ecosystems in the British Isles over time Quiz: AQA Geography, Unit 1

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

In partnership with Revision Ninja

Lesson 3.1.6.4, Ecosystems in the British Isles over time: 20 multiple choice questions for the AQA Geography (7037), Unit 1: Physical geography, written with Revision Ninja.

Host it live on the board and students join with a game code on their own devices, or revise alone with Free Play. The answers are revealed in the game.

Host this setFree Play

The 20 questions

  1. Lithosere and hydrosere are both examples of:

    • Primary succession beginning on bare rock or open water
    • Permanent climax communities that never change once they have become established in the area
    • Plagioclimax communities maintained by grazing and burning over many generations of management
    • Marine food chains with multiple predators that compete for prey in the open water column

  2. A hydrosere begins in which environment?

    • Dry desert sand, which has very little organic matter and receives less than 100 mm of rain each year
    • Waterlogged peatland drained by humans for agriculture over several decades of management
    • Bare volcanic rock on a mountain summit, exposed to strong winds and temperatures below freezing
    • Open water, such as a lake or pond

  3. The climatic climax in much of lowland Britain is best described as:

    • Tropical rainforest with dense lianas and evergreen trees that form a closed canopy over the ground
    • Temperate deciduous woodland, typically dominated by oak and ash
    • Tundra with permafrost and mosses that persists through the cold winters of the upland regions
    • Savanna grassland with scattered baobabs and a long dry season each year in the lowland areas

  4. A plagioclimax in the British Isles is maintained mainly by:

    • Deposition of volcanic ash from distant eruptions that buries vegetation and prevents seedlings from growing
    • Tidal flooding that removes all vegetation each day and prevents trees from establishing on the land
    • Continuous permafrost that stops plant growth and keeps the soil frozen for most of the year
    • Burning and grazing that prevent woodland from regenerating

  5. Which feature is characteristic of heather moorland in Britain?

    • Coral communities in shallow tropical seas where water temperatures remain above 25 degrees
    • Permanent snow and ice throughout the year on the summits of the highest mountains
    • Dense tropical forest with an evergreen canopy that shades the ground throughout the year
    • Dominance of heather and grasses on acidic, often peaty soils

  6. Which human activity has the greatest effect on the natural succession of British woodland?

    • Movement of tectonic plates beneath the British Isles, which shifts the position of the land over time
    • Eruptions from volcanoes in the British Isles, which bury woodland under ash and lava flows
    • Increase in the sea's salinity around the coast, which kills trees near the shore over many years
    • Land management such as grazing, burning and clearance

  7. Which statement about succession in the British Isles is most accurate?

    • Succession stops once a species becomes established, so the first community remains permanently
    • Succession moves from pioneer species towards a stable climatic climax if undisturbed
    • Succession in Britain always leads directly to tropical forest, because the climate is warming steadily
    • Succession has no stages and occurs instantly, so the final community appears at once after colonisation

  8. Which pioneer species is typical of early succession on bare rock or sand?

    • Large tropical trees with buttress roots that support the trunk in shallow soils
    • Lichens and mosses that tolerate harsh, nutrient-poor conditions
    • Mature oak trees that dominate forest canopies and shade the ground below them
    • Coral polyps that build reef structures in shallow, warm and clear tropical seas

  9. Which feature of the British climatic climax is most significant for its wildlife?

    • Year-round dry grassland with no trees, which supports grazing mammals and ground-nesting birds
    • Permanent water cover that prevents woodland growth and creates a habitat for aquatic plants
    • Dense tropical canopy with no seasonal change, which supports the same species throughout the year
    • Seasonal leaf fall and deciduous structure supporting diverse woodland fauna

  10. Which evaluation is most accurate about the effect of human activity on British ecosystems?

    • Human activity has no effect on the British ecosystem, since natural processes determine all vegetation change
    • Human activity can maintain plagioclimax communities that differ from the natural climax vegetation
    • Human activity always restores the natural climatic climax quickly, so management is never needed in Britain
    • Human activity only affects coastal ecosystems in Britain, leaving inland habitats completely unchanged

  11. Which of these represents a seral stage in a hydrosere?

    • Reed swamp that colonises shallow water and gradually fills the lake with sediment and organic matter
    • A coral reef in a tropical sea that has been growing for thousands of years on the seabed
    • Heather moorland maintained by burning that has persisted for many decades on the upland slopes
    • Oak woodland fully established on dry, well-drained soils that has reached the climatic climax

  12. Which of these best describes sub-climax vegetation?

    • A stable community that persists because of local conditions such as drainage or soil type rather than climate
    • A community that exists only in tropical regions, where the heat and rainfall favour continuous growth
    • The first community to appear on bare rock, which is replaced by lichens and mosses within a few years
    • A community that never changes under any conditions, regardless of disturbance or management

  13. Which statement about the British climatic climax is most accurate?

    • It would develop across much of lowland Britain without human interference, given time
    • It is found only in the Scottish Highlands, where the climate is cool enough to support woodland cover
    • It is always replaced by permanent snow cover, which prevents the development of any vegetation
    • It is a desert community without trees, adapted to the dry conditions of the south-east of England

  14. Why do lithoseres take a long time to develop soil?

    • Weathering of bare rock into fine material is slow, so little organic matter builds up initially
    • Rock never weathers at all, so no soil can form on bare rock surfaces under any conditions
    • Soil forms instantly from bare rock with no time needed for weathering or biological activity
    • Lichens prevent any soil from forming by covering the rock surface completely with a thick crust

  15. Which measure would most help restore a heather moorland towards woodland?

    • Increasing the burning frequency each year to remove the heather and create space for new growth
    • Adding more grazing animals to the moorland to keep the vegetation short and prevent woody growth
    • Stopping burning and grazing so that tree seedlings can establish
    • Draining the peat to create farmland that can be used for growing crops and rearing livestock

  16. A hydrosere in a lake gradually fills in with sediment. Which change is most likely in later stages?

    • The site becomes a permanent coral reef, as the lake water becomes saline and warm over time
    • Woodland develops as the land becomes drier and more stable
    • The site returns to bare water with no vegetation, as the sediment is carried away by currents
    • The lake becomes deeper and more open, with more water and fewer plants at the edge over time

  17. Which statement best explains why lowland British soils support different vegetation from upland soils?

    • Upland soils are always more fertile than lowland soils, so they support a far greater range of plant species
    • Soil acidity has no effect on plant communities, which depend only on the amount of sunlight received
    • Differences in drainage, altitude, temperature and soil acidity change which species can grow
    • Vegetation is the same everywhere because of the same climate, which is uniform across the whole of Britain

  18. Which of these is an example of a primary succession?

    • Regrowth of heather after an annual burn that has removed the old plants from the surface
    • Regrowth of woodland after a managed felling operation that has removed the existing trees
    • Vegetation colonising bare rock exposed by a retreating glacier
    • Recovery of a field after the crop is harvested and the stubble is left in place until spring

  19. A site that was bare rock becomes covered by pioneer lichens and mosses over 20 years. Which stage has the site reached?

    • A tropical rainforest, which develops quickly on any rock surface covered by lichens in warm climates
    • The climatic climax, which has been reached because the site is now covered by vegetation
    • An early seral stage in the lithosere
    • A marine coral reef, which forms on rock exposed by the retreat of the sea over the same period

  20. Which evaluation best reflects the value of studying succession in Britain?

    • It shows how human management can redirect ecosystems away from their natural climax
    • It removes the need to conserve any habitats, since succession will restore them automatically over time
    • It proves that ecosystems never change, since the same communities persist for thousands of years
    • It shows that succession only occurs in the tropics, so British ecosystems are fixed in their form

All AQA Geography quizzes