APES Final Exam FRQs

4a. Based on the information above, is the western lowland gorilla and r-selected or K-selected species? Provide evidence to support your answer.

- K selected - slow to reach reproductive maturity - produce only one offspring at a time

2c. Justify the solution you described in (a)(2) with an additional environmental benefit.

- agricultural buffer zones = more trees planted = cleaner air, reduced CO2

2b. Propose a realistic solution to prevent eutrophication of waterways near CAFOs.

- agricultural buffer zones: areas around the banks of waterways near CAFOs - trees and shrubs are planted in zones to filter nutrients from runoff before it enters waterways

1a. On the basis of the article above, indicate one human activity that releases mercury into the environment. Describe how mercury is transported from that source and enters aquatic systems, often hundreds of miles away.

- burning of coal - mercury is emitted into the atmosphere moves with winds and enters the atmosphere - enters waterways with precipitation

2a. Describe how eutrophication negatively affects waterways.

- excess nutrients in water - mass algae blooms - algae consumes oxygen, reduced oxygen levels - animal populations die from lack of oxygen

4b. Identify and explain 4 community interactions that involve the Western lowland gorilla.

- feed on plants fruits and leaves - feed on insect populations (ants and termites) - leopards are true predators, feed on gorillas - ebola is a parasite, lives inside species

1c. Explain why there are greater health risks associated with eating large predatory fish, such as tuna and sea bass, than from eating small nonpredatory fish.

- large fish have greater concentrations of mercury in them - biomagnification: larger organisms at the top of the food chain have higher concentrations of a toxin than organisms at the bottom of the food chain - older fish also have higher concentrations of mercury - mercury is stored in fat/muscle tissue, larger fish have more so it's harder to get rid of

1d. Identify a toxic metal other than mercury that has a negative impact on human health and describe how it is introduced into the environment. Describe an acute sublethal effect on humans that results from exposure to this metal.

- lead - causes neurological damage - severe brain damage and birth defects - can be introduced to an environment from plumbing that uses lead pipes

3a. Explain what is meant by a metapopulation and how it relates to bighorn sheep.

- metapopulation: group of spatially distinct populations that are connected by occasional movements of individuals between them - desert bighorn sheep form metapopulations

4c. Explain what is meant by secondary succession and describe how it may be initiated in a tropical forest.

- secondary succession: event destroys an ecosystem, maintains the soil, allows plants and animals to recolonize an area - in tropical forests: when areas are deforested by humans for lumber, habitat is destroyed and populations decrease but soil is maintained

3c. Explain the consequences to the desert bighorn sheep population if the plan to connect the mountain habitat islands is not implemented.

- sheep could face extinction - isolated populations would have no genetic diversity - could not be recolonized

1b. Describe TWO ways that the amount of mercury released into the environment from the source in part (a) could be reduced.

- switch to wind power or solar power instead of relying on coal to make electricity - practice energy-conserving habits such as turning off lights when you leave a room. also place regulations on utilities.

3d. Explain how the theory of island biogeography applies to the mountainous areas of southeastern California.

- theory: habitat size and distance from mainland are key factors in determining species richness - populations of sheep living in larger habitat islands will have more types of species and larger species populations; larger populations less prone to extinction - habitat islands that are closer to each other and to the mainland will have larger, more genetically diverse sheep, higher migration rates between islands

3b. Identify two density-dependent factors and one density-independent factor that could affect the populations of desert bighorn sheep.

dependent: - disease - lack of food/resources independent: - wildfires