Bio 311D Final Exam
mutualism
(+/+)
facilitation
(+/+) or (+/0)
herbivory
(+/-)
parasitism
(+/-)
predation
(+/-)
commensalism
(+/0)
competition
(-/-)
What is mate choice copying?
A behavior in which individuals in a population copy the mate choice of others
density independent
A birth rate or death rate that does not change with population density
Biological community
A group of populations of different species living close enough to interact. The boundaries of a particular community are designed by ecologists to fit their research questions.
What is a metapopulation?
A group of spatially separated populations of one species that interact through immigration and emigration. Local populations in a metapopulation can be thought of as occupying discrete patches of suitable habitat in a sea of otherwise unsuitable habitat.
Batesian Mimicry
A palatable, or harmless species mimics an unpalatable or harmful one to protect itself
What do we mean by evolutionary time?
Adaptation of organisms to their environment via natural selection over the time frame of many generations
Explain why there is rapid growth in Afghanistan compared to now growth in Italy.
Afghanistan is in rapid growth because there is a very large number of individuals at or below the reproductive age (so a lot of individuals to sustain future population growth). In Italy, individuals younger than reproductive age ar relatively underrepresented, contributing to projections of a population decrease.
How does density-dependent regulation provide negative feedback to population growth?
As population density increases, many density-dependent mechanisms slow or stop population growth by decreasing birth rates or increasing death rates.
How does density-dependent regulation provide that negative feedback?
As population density increases, many density-dependent mechanisms slow or stop population growth by decreasing birth rates or increasing death rates.
obligate mutualism
Association in which at least one species has lost the ability to survive without its partner
What are the factors affecting population density ?
Births , immigration , deaths , emigration.
facultative mutualism
Both species can survive alone
How does clump dispersion come about?
Can be associated with localization of food source/substrate or result of mating behaviors, grouping to increased effectiveness or protect from predation
How does uniform dispersion come about?
Can result from territoriality (behavioral-animals or through secretion of chemicals that inhibit germination/growth of nearby individuals- plants.)
The type of dispersion in which individuals are aggregated in patches is called
Clumped
List few density-dependent mechanisms that regulate population growth.
Competition for resources, Predation, Toxic wastes, Intrinsic factors, territoriality and death.
What is k-selection?
Density dependent selection - Selection for traits that are sensitive to population density and are favored at high densities. Operates when populations are living at a density near the limits imposed by the resources (the carrying capacity, k), where competition among individuals is stronger.
What is r-selection?
Density independent selection - Selection for traits that maximize reproductive success in uncrowded environments. Said to maximize r, the per capita rate of increase, and occurs in environments in which population densities are well below carrying capacity or individuals face little competition.
r-selection
Density-independent selection
Iteroparity is favored
Dependable environments, where adults are more likely to survive to breed again and where competition for resources is intense.
Exponential Growth Model
Describes population growth under ideal conditions when the resources are unlimited (abundant food and are free to reproduce) The size grows exponentially at a constant rate. J - shaped curve of exponential growth is characteristic of some population that are introduced into a new environment.
What are the three main variables of life history?
Evolutionary outcomes reflected in its development, physiology, and behavior.
If a species transplant is successful , we can conclude that the actual range of the species is greater than its potential range
False
Infant mortality is figured as infant deaths per 100 live births.
False
K-selection is density-independent selection while r-selection is density-dependent.
False
Some organisms can produce as many offspring as a semelparous species and provision them as well as an iteroparous species
False
Two species with the same ecological niche can coexist permanently.
False
What all does foraging include?
Food obtaining behavior. Eating AND any activities an animal uses to search for, recognize, and capture food.
How does random dispersion come about?
Happens in absence of above mentioned factors or when there is no control of localization.
What is a demographic transition?
In a stable population, a shift from high birth and death rates to low birth and death rates. Tends to accompany industrialization and improved living conditions.
What is facilitation and what kind of interaction is it?
Interaction in which one species has a positive effect on the survival and reproduction of another species without the intimate association of symbiosis. (+/+ or +/0).
Interspecific interactions
Interactions with individuals of other species in the community. These include competition, predation, herbivory, symbiosis (mutualism, if parasitism, commensalism), and facilitation.
What could be some consequences of a species transplant?
It could damage the community and disrupt the ecosystem to which they have been introduced. They can spread beyond the area of introduction.
Logistic Growth Model
It incorporates changes in growth rate as the population size nears the carrying capacity. The per capita rate of increase approaches zero as the carrying capacity is reached.
What do you mean by species transplant?
It refers to introduction of species into new geographical locations. It can happen by accident or intentionally. For a transplant to be successful, the organism must not be able to survive in the area but also be able to reproduce. When the transplant is successful, the potential range is greater than the actual range.
Density-dependent selection
K-selection
What do we mean by ecological time?
Minute-to-minute time frame of interactions between organisms and the environment.
What is dispersal?
Movement of individuals or gametes away from their area of origin or from centers of high population density.
What are keystone species?
Not usually abundant in a community, but exert strong control on community structure by their pivotal ecological roles, or niches.
In polyandrous species
One female mates with multiple males
Biotic factors
Other species (Herbivores / predators) that might limit the growth and survival of species. E.g.: The presence or absence of predators, food resources, parasites, pathogens and competing organisms.
Iteroparity
Repeated reproduction. Generally, organisms produce few, but relatively large offspring and take better care of them. They have better chance of survival. Eg: lizards
Semelparity
Reproduction in which an organism produces all of its offspring in a single event. An adaptation to survive harsh environmental conditions. Eg: Salmon, Agave.
K-selection
Selection for traits that are sensitive to population density and are favored at high densities; operates near carrying capacity.
r-selection
Selection for traits that maximize reproductive success in uncrowded environments
What is altruism?
Selflessness. A behavior that reduces an animal's individual fitness but increases the fitness of other individuals in the population.
________ is reproduction in which an organism produces all of its offspring in a single event, while _________ is repeated reproduction over an organism's lifespan
Semelparity; Iteroparity
How does female mate choice affect variation in males?
Since the females always chooses the best male , this tends to reduce the variation in males.
Ecological Footprint
Summarizes the aggregate land and water area required by each person, city or nation to produce all the resources it consumes and to absorb all the waste it generates.
What is sexual dimorphism?
The extent to which males and females differ in appearance.
Abiotic factors
The physical conditions that might affect the species distribution and not allow them to grow. E.g.: Water, salinity, temperature, oxygen, Sunlight, rock and soil.
Define population dynamics:
The study of how complex interaction between biotic and abiotic factors influence variations in population size.
Ecological niche
The sum of a species' use of biotic and abiotic resources in its environment
What is inclusive fitness?
The total effect an individual has on proliferating its genes by producing its own offspring and by providing aid that enables other close relatives, who share many of those genes, to produce offspring.
What is life history?
The traits that affect an organism's schedule of reproduction and survival
What are ecosystem engineers (foundation species)?
Those that dramatically alter their environment
A biological community is a group of populations of different species living close enough to interact. The boundaries of a particular community are designed by ecologists to fit their research questions.
True
Infant mortality rate is figured as infant deaths per 1,000 births.
True
Without some type of negative feedback between population density and the rates of birth and death, a population would never stop growing.
True
What are the different patterns of dispersion?
Uniform, Clumped and Random.
competitive exclusion
When populations of two similar species compete for the same limited resources, one population will use the resources more efficiently and have a reproductive advantage that will eventually lead to the elimination of the other population.
Semelparity is favored
Where the survival rate of offspring is low, typically in high, variable, or unpredictable environments
What is a reproductive table and how is one constructed?
age specific summary of the reproductive rates in a population and it's constructed by measuring the reproductive output of a cohort from birth until death.
What is agonistic behavior?
an often-ritualized contest that determines which competitor gains access to a resource, such as food or mates
Polyandry
association of one female with many males. The females generally tend to be more ornamented than males
Polygyny
association of one male with many females. The males generally tend to be more ornamented than females.
Ecological niche is the sum of a species' use of the ____ and ______ resources in its environment
biotic; abiotic
Cryptic coloration
camouflage; makes prey difficult to see
What is intrasexual selection?
competition between members of one sex for mates
density dependent
death rate that rises as population density rises and birth rate that falls with rising density
The sum of a species' use of the biotic and abiotic resources in its environment is called its__________. Two species _______ coexist permanently in a community if their niches are identical. The differentiation of niches that enables similar species to coexist in a community is called ____________.
ecological niche; cannot; resource partitioning
What is intersexual selection?
mate choice based on characteristics of other sex
What is carrying capacity?
maximum population size that a particular environment can sustain
prey adaptations for avoiding predators
mechanical defense, chemical defense, aposematic coloration, cryptic coloration, Batesian mimicry, and Mullerian mimicry
An optimal foraging model is based on the idea that natural selection should favor foraging behavior that _________ the cost of foraging and __________ the benefits .
minimizes; maximizes
What is species richness?
number of different species in the community
ectoparasites
parasites that feed on the external surface of their host, such as ticks
endoparasites
parasites that live within the body of their host, such as tapeworms
What is population dispersion?
pattern of spacing among individuals within the boundaries of the population
How is life expectancy figured?
predicted average length of life at birth
What is relative abundance?
proportion each species represents of all individuals in community
adaptive radiation
rapid evolution of an ancestral species into new species that fill many ecological niches
What is biogeography?
scientific study of the past and present geographic distributions of species
What are dominant species?
species that are most abundant or that collectively have the highest biomass
What is the energetic hypothesis?
suggests that the length of a food chain is limited by the inefficiency of energy transfer along the chain. (only about 10% transfer/ trophic level)
character displacement
tendency for characteristics to diverge more in sympatric than in allopatric populations of two species
resource partitioning
the differentiation of niches that enables similar species to coexist in a community
funndamental niche
the niche potentially occupied by that species
realized niche
the portion of a species' fundamental niche that it actually occupies in a particular environment
What is sociobiology?
the study of social behavior based on evolutionary theory
Mullerian Mimicry
two or more unpalatable species, such as the cuckoo bee and yellow jacket, resemble each other,
Aposematic coloration
warning coloration, exhibited by animals with bright colors that posses effective chemical defenses
symbiosis
when individuals of two or more different species live in direct and intimate contact with one another
