2.1 Field Techniques

Question 1

Hazards in fieldwork include

Answer 1

adverse weather
conditions, difficult terrain, problems
associated with isolation, and contact with
harmful organisms.

Question 2

Define a risk

Answer 2

Risk is the likelihood of harm arising from
exposure to a hazard.

Question 3

Define a risk asessment

Answer 3

Risk assessment involves identifying control
measures to minimise risk.

Question 4

Control measures of risk for fieldwork

Answer 4

Control measures include appropriate
equipment, clothing, footwear, and means of
communication.

Question 5

Sampling should be carried out in a way that…..

Answer 5

minimises impact on wild species and
habitats

and

Consideration must be given to rare and
vulnerable species and habitats that are
protected by legislation

Question 6

Describe a point count

Answer 6

A point count involves the observer recording
all individuals seen from a fixed point count
location. This can be compared to other point
count locations or with data from the same
location gathered at other times.

Question 7

Describe remote detection and transect sampling

Answer 7

remote detection - uses sensors e.g. satellites

transect - a line along which samples can be taken

Question 8

Quadrats, of suitable size and shape, or
transects are used for

Answer 8

plants and other
sessile or slow-moving organisms

Question 9

Mobile species are sampled using

Answer 9

capture techniques such as traps or nets.

Question 10

How to sample elusive species

Answer 10

Elusive species can be sampled directly
using camera traps or an indirect method,
such as scat (droppings) sampling

Question 11

Identification of an organism in a sample can
be made using….

Answer 11

classification guides,
biological keys, or analysis of DNA or protein

Question 12

Organisms can be classified by both

Answer 12

taxonomy and phylogenetics

Question 13

Define Taxonomy

Answer 13

Taxonomy involves the identification and
naming of organisms and their classification
into groups based on shared characteristics

Question 14

Classic taxonomy classification is based on….

Answer 14

morphology (study of forms/shapes)

Question 15

Define Phylogenetics

Answer 15

Phylogenetics is the study of the evolutionary
history and relationships among individuals
or groups of organisms

Phylogenetics is changing the traditional
classification of many organisms

Question 16

Describe how phylogenetics helps classify organisms

Answer 16

Phylogenetics uses heritable traits such as morphology, DNA sequences, and protein structure to make inferences about an organism’s evolutionary history and create a phylogeny (or phylogenetic tree) — a diagrammatic hypothesis of its relationships to other organisms. Genetic evidence can reveal relatedness obscured by divergent or convergent evolution.

Question 17

Familiarity with taxonomic groupings allows…..

Answer 17

predictions and inferences to be made about
the biology of an organism from better-known
(model) organisms

Question 18

Nematodes

Answer 18

Round Worms which show great variety. Some parasitic

Question 19

arthropods

Answer 19

Joint-legged invertabrites which are identified by their segmented bodies e.g. wasps, butterflies, spiders and crabs

Question 20

chordates

Answer 20

Sea squirts and all vertabrites (birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and fish)

Question 21

Define model organisms

Answer 21

Model organisms are those that are either
easily studied or have been well studied

Question 22

examples of model organisms

Answer 22

• Bacterium E. coli
• Flowering plant Arabidopsis thaliana
• Nematode C. elegans
• Arthropod Drosophila melanogaster (a fruit
  fly)
• Mice, rats and zebrafish, which are all chordates

Question 23

Benefits of using model organisms

Answer 23

Information obtained from them can be applied to other species that are more difficult
to study directly

Question 24

Describe indicator species

Answer 24

Presence, absence or abundance of indicator
species can give information of
environmental qualities, such as presence of
a pollutant

Question 25

Talk about abundance of species in terms of environmental factors

Answer 25

Absence or reduced population indicates a
species is susceptible to some factor in the
environment. Abundance or increased
population indicates it is favoured by the
conditions.

Question 26

Mark and recapture equation

Answer 26

N = MC/R

Question 27

Describe the method of mark and recapture technique

Answer 27

A sample of the population is captured and
marked (M) and released. After an interval of
time, a second sample is captured (C). If
some of the individuals in this second sample
are recaptured (R), then the total population
N= MC/R

Question 28

Mark and recapture works under the assumption that

Answer 28

This method assumes that all individuals
have an equal chance of capture, that there
is no immigration or emigration, and that
individuals that are marked and released can
mix fully and randomly with the total
population.

Question 29

Methods of marking animals include….

Answer 29

banding
tagging
surgical implantation
painting
hair clipping

Question 30

Some of the measurements used to quantify
animal behaviour are…..

Answer 30

latency, frequency and
duration

Question 31

Define Latency

Answer 31

Latency is the time between the stimulus
occurring and the response behaviour.

Question 32

Define Frequency (in terms of behaviour)

Answer 32

Frequency is the number of times a
behaviour occurs within the observation
period.

Question 33

Describe Duration (in terms of behaviour)

Answer 33

Duration is the length of time each behaviour
occurs during the observation period.

Question 34

An ethogram of behaviour allows

Answer 34

the
construction of time budgets

Question 35

Describe an ethogram

Answer 35

An ethogram lists species-specific
behaviours to be observed and recorded in
the study. Recording the duration of each of
the behaviours in the ethogram, together with
the total time of observation, allows the
proportion of time spent on each behaviour to
be calculated in the time budget.

Question 36

What should you avoid in an ethogram and why

Answer 36

It is important to avoid anthropomorphism as it can lead to invalid
conclusions.