Biology Form 3 Topical Revision Questions and Answers (4)

For the preparation of national and local exams, get biology form 3 topical revision questions with answers for free.

These biology topical revision questions are aggregated from the various high school KICD approved textbooks, including KLB biology form 3, Finder biology form 3, Mentors biology form 3, Spotlight biology form 3, Moran biology form 3, Pearsons biology form 3, etc.

The biology topical revision questions with answers cover various topics, as shown below.

The form 3 biological concepts that you can revise with these topical revision questions include;

1. Classification 2
2. Ecology
3. Reproduction in plants and animals
4. Growth and development

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As a bonus, if you need to refresh your knowledge on a topic, EasyElimu has summarized notes, so you won’t have to stress over looking for notes, which makes passing that summative biology form 3 term 3 exam easy.

Whether it’s term 1, 2 or 3, these free biology form 3 revision topical questions will give you that grade A.

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Questions per topic

Classification II Questions and Answers - Biology Form 3 Topical Revision

1. State two ways in which some fungi are harmful to man ( 2 marks)
2. The diagram below represents a fern
   
   Name
   1. Parts labeled A and B ( 2 marks)
   2. The division which the plant belongs ( 1 mark)
3. An organism with an exoskeleton, segmented body, two pairs of legs per segment, a pair of eyes and a pair of eyes and a pair of short antennae belongs to the phylum ( 1 mark)
4. When are two organisms considered to belong to the same species? ( 2 marks)
5. A student caught an animal which had the following characteristics;
   - Body divided into two parts
   - Simple eyes
   - Eight legs
   The animal belongs to the class ( 1 mark)
6. Below is a list of organisms, which belong to classes insecta, myriapoda and arachnida. Tick, centipede, praying mantis, tsetse fly. Millipede and spider. Place the organisms in their respective classes in the table below. Give reasons in each case.
   

   Class	Organisms	Reasons
   Insecta
   Myriapoda
   Arachnida

7. State two characteristics features of members of division bryophyte (2 marks)
8. State two ways in which some fungi are beneficial to humans ( 2 marks)
9. Other than having many features in common state the other characteristics of species ( 1 mark)
10. Beside the abdomen, name the other body part of members of arachnida (1 mark)
11. Name the phylum whose members possess notochord. ( 1 mark)
12. Name the class in the phylum arthropoda which has the largest number of individuals ( 1 mark)
13. To which class does an animal with two body parts and four pairs of legs belong? (1 mark)
14.   
    1. Name two organisms that cause food spoilage ( 2 marks)
    2. Name two methods of food preservation and for each state the biological principal behind it. ( 2 marks)
15.   
    1. List two characteristics that mammals share with birds ( 2 marks)
    2. State two major characteristics that are unique to mammals ( 2 marks)
16. What two characteristics distinguish animals in phylum chordata? ( 2 marks)
17. The diagram below shows a plant
    
    
    1. Name the parts labeled A and B (2 marks)
    2. Name the division to which the plant belongs ( 1 mark)
    3. Which is the dominant generation of the plant in the diagram? (1 mark)
    4. State three characteristics of the organisms in the division named (b) above?
18. What three characteristics are used to divide the arthropods into classes? (3 marks)
19.   
    1. Write two differences between algae and fungi ( 2 marks)
    2. Give the economic importance of algae ( 1 mark)
20.   
    1. What is alteration of generations? ( 3 marks)
    2. Name two divisions in plant kingdom that shows alternation of generation (2 marks)
21.   
    1. A millipede, grasshopper and crayfish all belong to phylum arthropoda.
       Mention three major characteristics that they have in common. (3 marks)
    2. The specific name of Irish potato is solanum Tuberrasum
       1. Identify two errors that have been made when writing the name
       2. What is the species name of Irish potato?
    3. An ecologist came across a plant with the following characteristics, green in colour, non- flowering, compound leaves and sori on the underside of the leaflets. State the probable division of the plant. ( 1 mark)
22. An organism with an exoskeleton, segmented body, two pairs of legs per segment, a pair of eyes and a pair of short antennae belongs to the class ( 1 mark)
23. List the main characteristics that are used to sub- divide arthropods into classes (2 marks
24.  Name the main method of reproduction among bacteria. ( 1 mark)

Ecology Questions and Answers - Biology Form 3 Topical Revision

1. State how excessive use of pesticides may affect soil fertility
2. The graph below represents a population growth of a certain herbivore in a grassland ecosystem over a period of time.
   
   Suggest three factors that could have caused the population change between C and D (3 marks)
3. A biologist carried out a study to investigate the growth of a certain species of herbivorous bony fish and the factors influencing plant and animal life in four lakes A, B, C and D. The lakes were located in the same geographical area.
   Two of the lakes A and B were found to contain hard water due to presence of high content of calcium slats. The mean body length of 2 year old fish, amount of plant life and invertebrates biomass in each lake were determines. The data was as shown in
   

   Lakes	Mean body length (cm)	Type of water	Amount of plant life	Inveertebrate biomass (g/cm3)
   				Insects	Snails	Crabs	Worms
   A B C D	31.2 28.6 18.4 16.3	Hard Hard Soft Soft	1050 950 1.2 0.5	11 72 97 99	300 100 0 0	10 9 2 1	180 90 20 10

   1. Describe the procedure that may have been used to determine the mean body length of the fish ( 6 marks)
   2. What are the likely reasons for the difference in the mean body length of the fish living in lakes A and D? ( 4 marks)
   3. Suggest one reason for the absence of snails in lakes C and D? (1 mark)
   4. 1. Name any six abiotic (physical) factors that are likely to influence the plant and animal life in lake A. ( 3 marks)
      2. Explain how each of the factors named in (i) may influence the plant and animals life in Lake A. ( 6 marks)
4. During an ecological study of a lake a group of students recorded the following observations.
   (i) Planktonic crustaceans feed on planktonic algae
   (ii) Small fish feed on planktonic crustaceans worms and insect larvae
   (iii) Worms feed on insect larvae
   (iv) Bird species feeds on small fish planktonic crustaceans and worms
   (v) Insect larvae feed on small fish
   1. From this record of observations construct a feed web (5 marks)
   2. From the food web you have constructed in (a) above isolate and write down a food chain that ends with
      1. Bird species as a secondary consumer (1 mark)
      2. Large fish as tertiary consumer (1 mark)
   3. The biomass of the producers in the lake was found to be greater than that of primary consumers. Give an explanation for this observation? (1 mark)
   4. Using either the observations recorded by the students or the food web you have constructed name (1 mark)
      1. Two organisms that compete for food in the lake. (2 marks)
      2. The source of food the organisms in d (i) above compete for (1 mark)
   5. 1. State three ways by which many may interfere with this lake ecosystem ( 3 marks)
      2. Explain how each of the ways you have states may affect life in the lake? ( 6 marks)
5. In an investigation, a student collected two plants A and B. Plant A had hairy leaves and epidermis. Leaves of plant B
   1. Plant A ( 1 mark)
   2. Plant B ( 1 mark)
6. An investigation was carried out between 1964 and 1973 to study the changes of fish population in a certain small lake. Four species of fish A, B, C and D were found to live in this lake. In 1965 a factory was built near the lake and was found to discharge hot water into the lake raising the average temperature from 25⁰C to 30⁰C. In 1967 sewage and industrial waste from a nearby town was diverted into the lake was stopped. The fish population during the period of investigation is shown in the table below.
   

   Fish species	Fish population during the period
   	1964	1966	1969	1970	1971	1972	1973
   A B C D	6102 208 36 4521	223 30 100 272	26 11 0 23	106 22 0 27	660 63 0 79	4071 311 0 400	7512 405 0 617

   1.  
      1. In which year were the fish populations lowest?
      2. State the factors that might have caused the lowest fish populations during the year you have stated in (a) (i) above ( 3 marks)
      3. Explain how each factor you have stated in (a) (ii) above could have brought about the changes in fish populations (11 marks)
   2. 1. What is the difference in the rate of population recovery of species A and D? (1 mark)
      2. Suggest two biological factors that could have led to this difference (2 marks)
   3. 1. State a method that might have been used to estimate the fish population in the lake ( 1 mark)
      2. State one disadvantage of the method you have stated in (c) (i) above (1 mark)
7. Industrial wastes may contain metallic pollutants. State how such pollutants may indirectly reach and accumulate in the human body if the wastes were dumped into rivers.
8. State three measures that can betaken to control infection of man by protozoan parasites ( 3 marks)
9. The chart below shows a feeding relationship in a certain ecosystem
   
   
   1. Construct two food chains ending with a tertiary consumer in each case (2 marks)
   2. Which organisms has the largest variety of predators in the food web? (1 mark)
   3. Name secondary consumers in the food web ( 2 marks)
   4. Suggest three ways in which the ecosystem would be affected if there was prolonged drought ( 3 marks)
10. To estimate the population size of crabs in a certain lagoon, traps were laid at random. 400 crabs were caught, marked and released back into the lagoon. Four days later, traps were laid again and 374 crabs were caught. Out of the 374 crabs, 80 were found to have been marked.
    1. Calculate the population size of the crabs in the lagoon using the formula below
       N = n x M
                M
       Where
       N= Total population of crabs in the lagoon
       n= Total number of crabs in the second catch
       M= Number marked crabs during the first catch
       M= Number of marked crabs in the second catch. ( 2 marks)
    2. State two assumptions that were made during the investigation ( 2 marks)
    3. What is the name given to this method of estimating the population size? (1 mark)
11. The figure below represents a feeding relationship in an ecosystem
    
    
    1. Write down the food chains in which the guinea fowls are secondary consumers (1 mark)
    2. What would be the short term effects on the eco- system of lions invaded the area? ( 3 marks)
    3. Name the organisms through which energy from the sun enters the food web. (1 mark)
12. The diagram below represents a simplified nitrogen cycle
    
    
    1. Name the organisms that causes processes E and J ( 2 marks)
    2. Name the processes represented by F and H (2 marks)
    3. Name the group of organisms represented by c (i)
13. 1. Distinguish between a community and a population (2 marks)
    2. Describe how a population of grasshopper in a given area can be estimated (5 marks)
14. Explain how the various activities of man have caused pollution of air ( 20 marks)
15. Explain how birds of prey are adapted to obtaining their food ( 2 marks)
16. 1. Name the crop infested by phytophthora infestants and the disease it causes
       Crop -
       Disease -
    2. State four control measures against the diseases ( 4 marks)
17. Explain why the carrying capacity for wild animals is higher than for cattle in a given piece of land ( 2 marks)
18. 1. What is meant by
       1. Autecology ( 1 mark)
       2. Synecology ( 1 mark)
    2. The number and distribution of stomata on three different leaves are shown in the table below
       

       Leaf	Number of stomata
       	Upper epidermis	Lower epidermis
       A  B  C	300 150 02	0 200 13

       
       Suggest the possible habitat of the plants from which the leaves were obtained. (3 marks)
       Leaf               Habitat
       A                   ____________________
       B                   ____________________
       C                   ____________________
    3. State the modification found in the stomata of leaf C
19. Name the organism that causes amoebic dysentery.
20. After an ecological study of feeding relationships students constructed the food web below
    
    
    1. Name the process through which energy from the sun is incorporated into the food web ( 1 mark)
    2. State the mode of feeding of the birds in the food web (1 mark)
    3. Name two ecosystem in which the organisms in the food web live( 2 marks)
    4. From the information in the food web construct a food chain with the large bird as a quarter – nary consumer ( 1 mark)
    5. What would happen to the organisms in the food web if bird N migrated?
    6. Not all energy from one trophic level is available to the next level. Explain (3 marks)
    7. 1. Two organisms, which display a role in the ecosystems, are not included in the food web. Name them. ( 1 mark)
       2. State the role played by the organisms named g (i) above. (1 mark)
    8. 1. State three human activities that would affect the ecosystems ( 3 marks)
       2. How would the activities stated in h (i) above affect the ecosystems? (3 marks)
21. How is aerenchyma tissue adapted to its functions? ( 2 marks)
22. Explain how abiotic factors affect plants ( 20 marks)
23. What is the importance of the following in an ecosystem? ( 3 marks)
    1. Decomposers
    2. Predation
24. Chart below represents a simplified nitrogen cycle
    
    What is represented by X, Y and Z? ( 3 marks)
25. 1. Distinguish between pyramid of numbers and pyramid of Biomass (2 marks)
    2. Give three reasons for loss of energy from one trophic level to another in a food chain. ( 3 marks)
    3. Describe how the belt transect can be used in estimating the population of a shrub in a grassland ( 2 marks)
26. 1. Distinguish between population and community ( 2 marks)
    2. Name a method that could be used to estimate the population size of the following organisms
       1. Fish in a pond ( 1 mark)
       2. Black jack in a garden ( 1 mark)
27. State two ways in which schistosoma species is adapted to parasitic mode of life
28. Describe causes and methods of controlling water pollution ( 20 marks)
29. 1. What is biological control of population growth? ( 2 marks)
    2. Describe one example where biological control has been used successfully (2 marks)
    3. Explain why the number of predators in nay ecosystem is less than the number of their prey ( 1 mark)
30. Suggest reasons to account for the following observations.
    1. Antelopes are more commonly found in open grassland while giraffe while giraffes are commonly found in wooded areas. ( 2 marks)
    2. In the savannah there is a wider variety of herbivores in wooded areas than in open grassland ( 1 mark)
    3. Removal of predators for an herbivore may in the long run lead to a decrease in its population
31. Explain why primary productivity decreases with depth in aquatic environments. (2 marks)
32. The following is a simplified drawing of nitrogen cycle.
    
    
    1. Identify the compound named A ( 1 mark)
    2. Name the processes
       X _________________
       Y _________________
       Z _________________
    3. In what form is nitrogen found in plants and animals?
33. An investigation was carried out to study the type of food eaten by birds found in forest and savannah in a certain area. The table below compares the feeding habitats of the birds found in a closed forest area and an open dry savannah of the area.
    

    Diet	Percentage of birds
    	Forest	Savannah
    Insects only Vertebrates Seeds Fruits Other plant materials Number	60 10 5 25 5 120	50 10 20 10 5 60

    1. Work out the difference in the number of bird species the feed on:
       1. Fruits found in forest and savannah ( 2 marks)
       2. Seed found in forest and savannah ( 2 marks)
    2. State two factors that may cause this difference in (a) above ( 2 marks)
    3. In another investigation two vertebrate species from the savannah were counted and recorded on monthly basis as shown below.
       

       Year	Month	Species A	Species B
       1998 1998 1998 1998 1998 1998 1998 1998 1998 1998 1998 1998	July August September October November December January February March April May June	96 79 75 87 - 99 129 96 99 79 135 104	240 590 900 750 230 80 200 330 300 320 90 450

       1. Which species show more fluctuation in numbers? ( 1 mark)
       2. Suggest an explanation of this ( 3 marks)
    4. Suggest two ways by which the savannah environment can be destroyed and how it can be conserved ( 4 marks)

Reproduction in Plants and Animals Questions and Answers - Biology Form 3 Topical Revision

1. At what stage of mitosis do chromosomes replicate to form daughter chromatid? (1 mark)
2. Fill in the blank spaces in the statement below
   After fertilization of an ovule _________ develops into a testa and _________ develops into a testa and _____________ develops into endosperm. ( 2 marks)
3. State the difference between the composition of maternal blood entering the placenta and material blood leaving the placenta ( 3 marks)
4. After four months of pregnancy the ovaries of a woman can be removed without terminating pregnancy. However during the first four months of pregnancy the ovaries must remain intact if pregnancy is to be maintained. Explain these observations ( 3 marks)
5. Name two mechanisms that prevent self pollination in flowers that have both male and female parts ( 2 marks)
6. State three characteristics that ensure cross pollination takes place in flowering plants ( 3 marks)
7. Give a reason why it is necessary for frogs to lay many eggs ( 1 mark)
8. A flower was found to have the following characteristics
   - Inconspicuous petals
   - Long feathery stigma
   - Small light pollen grains
   1. What is the likely agent of pollination of the flower? ( 1 mark)
   2. What is the significance of the long feathery stigma in the flower ( 1 mark)
9. State two ways by which the human Immuno Deficiency virus (HIV) is transmitted other than sexual intercourse? ( 2 marks)
10. Explain why sexual reproduction is important in organisms ( 3 marks)
11. State two disadvantages of self- pollination ( 2 marks)
12. The chart below shows the number of chromosomes before and after cell division and fertilization in a mammal.
    
    
    1. What type of cell division takes place at Z? ( 1 mark)
    2. Where in the body of a female does process Z occur? ( 1 mark)
    3. On the chart indicate the position of parent and gametes ( 2 marks)
13.   
    1. What is meant by the terms
       1. Epigynous flower ( 1 mark)
       2. Staminate flower (1 mark)
    2. How are the male parts of wind- pollinated flowers adapted to their function? (4 marks)
14. Name the part of a flower that developed into:
    1. Seed (1 mark)
    2. Fruit (1 mark)
15.   
    1. State two processes which occur during anaphase of mitosis ( 2 marks)
    2. What is the significance of meiosis? (2 marks)
16.   
    1. Explain how the following prevents self- pollination:
       1. Protoandry ( 1 mark)
       2. Self- sterility ( 1 mark)
    2. Give three advantages of cross- pollination ( 3 marks)
17. The diagram below represents a human foetus in a uterus
    
    
    1. Name the part labeled S ( 1 mark)
    2.   
       1. Name the types of blood vessels found in the structure labeled Q (2 marks)
       2. State the difference in composition of blood in the vessels named (b) (i) above ( 2 marks)
    3. Name two features that enable the structure labeled P carry out its function (2 mark)
    4. State the role of the part labeled R ( 1 mark)
18. The diagram below represents a stage during cell division
    
    
    1. 1. Identify the stage of cell division ( 1 mark)
       2. Give three reasons for your answer (a) (i) above ( 2 marks)
    2. Name the structure labeled M ( 1 mark)
19. State two disadvantages of sexual reproduction in animals ( 2 marks)
20.   
    1. What is meant by the following terms?
       1. Protandry ( 1 mark)
       2. Self- sterility ( 1 mark)
    2. The diagram below shows a stage during fertilization in plant
       
       
       1. Name the parts labeled Q, R, and S ( 3 marks)
       2. State two functions of the pollen tube ( 2 marks)
    3. On the diagram, label the micropyle ( 1 mark)
21.   
    1. Describe how insect pollinated flowers are adopted to pollination (6 marks)
    2. Describe the role of each of the following hormones in the human menstrual cycle.
       1. Oestrogen
       2. Progesterone
       3. Luteinizing hormone ( 3 marks)
22. Describe the role of hormones in the human menstrual cycle (20 marks)
23. What part does the placenta play in the
    1. Nutrition of the embryo
    2. Protection of the embryo ( 4 marks)

Growth and Development Questions and Answers - Biology Form 3 Topical Revision

1. Explain why several auxiliary buds sprout when a terminal bud in a young tree is removed.
2. Account for loss in dry weight of cotyledons in a germinating bean seed.
3. What is the effect of gibberellins on shoots of plants?
4. A student set up an experiment as shown in the diagram below
   
   The set up was left at room temperature for a week
   1. What was the aim of the experiment?
   2. What would be the expected results at the end of the experiment?
5. State two advantages of metamorphosis to the life of insects
6. During germination and early growth, the dry weight of endosperm decreases while that of the embryo increases. Explain
7. In an experiment, a group of student set up four glass jars as shown in the diagram below jar A, B and C were maintained at 250C for 7 days. While Jar D was maintained at 0⁰ c for the same period of time.
   
   
   1. What was this set up supposed to investigate?
   2. Why was pyrogallic acid included in glass jar A?
   3. Explain why glass jar C and D were included in the experiment
   4. What result would you expect in glass jar A and B at the end of the experiment?
   5. State two artificial ways of breaking seed dormancy
8. Removal of the apical bud from the shrub is a practice that results in the development of the lateral buds which later from the branches.
   1. Give reasons for the development of the lateral braches after the removal of the apical bud
   2. Suggest one application of this practice
   3. What is the importance of this practice?
9. In an experiment some germination seeds were placed in large airtight flask and left for four days
   1. Suggest the expected changes in the composition of gases in the flask on the fifth day
   2. Give four reasons for your answer in (a) above
   3. Name two factors that cause dormancy in seeds
10.   
    1. Distinguish between epigeal and hypogeal germination (1 mark)
    2. Why is oxygen necessary in the germination of seeds? (2 marks)
11. An experiment was carried out to investigate the effect of hormones on growth of lateral buds of three pea plants
    The shoots were treated as follows:
    Shoot A - Apical bud was removed
    Shoot B - Apical bud was removed and gibberellic acid placed on the cut shoot
    Shoot C - Apical bud was left intact.
    The length of the branches developing from the lateral buds were determines at regular intervals
    The results obtained are as shown in the table below
    

    Time (days)	Length of bbranches in mm
    	Shoot A	Shoot B	Shoot C
    0	3	3	3
    2	10	12	3
    4	28	48	8
    6	50	90	14
    8	80	120	20
    10	118	152	26

    
    
    1. Using the same axes, draw graphs to show the length of branches against time (8 marks)
    2.   
       1. What was the length of the branch in shoot B on the 7th day? ( 1 mark)
       2. What would be the expected length of the branch developing from shoot A on the 11th day? ( 1 mark)
    3. Account for the results obtained in the experiment ( 6 marks)
    4. Why was shoot C included in the experiment? ( 1 mark)
    5. What is the importance of gibberallic acid in agriculture? ( 1 mark)
    6. State two physiological processes that are brought about by the application of gibberellic acid on plants. ( 2 marks)
12.   
    1. State tow environmental conditions that can cause seed dormancy
    2. Name the part of a bean seed that elongates to bring about epigeal germination (1 mark)
13.   
    1. “True growth is not simply an increase in size” State four different ways in which true may be defined.
    2. State two external factors, which influence growth in plants and describe one effect of each.
    3. Fill in the spaces in the following table, which refers to hormones involved in growth processes.
       

       Name hormone	Site of hormone production	Effect
       	Thyroid gland
       		Maturation of Graafin follicles
       Auxins
       Gibberellins

14. Seedling from 100g of maize seed was grown in the dark for 10 days. The seedlings were then analyzed and compared with 100g of ingeminated maize. The following results were obtained.
    

    	Dry mass of ingeminated seeds	Dry mass of seedling after 10 days
    Cellulose Starch Other organic Material Ash	2g 63g 13g 2g	5g 9g 27g 4g
    Total dry mass	80g	45g

    
    
    1. Why is dry mass used for comparison?
    2. How would one ensure that the drying process had been completed
    3. Account for the decrease in the total dry mass of the seedlings
    4. Why did the seedling contain more cellulose than the underminated seeds?
    5. What is the most likely source of the carbon used to form this new cellulose?