APS123 Beckerman Flashcards

1
Q

Organismal ecology is concerned with the … … … traits that mediate interactions among individuals, between species and with the environment

A

behavioural, physiological and morphological

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2
Q

A population is a…

A

group of individuals of the same species living and interaction in a given area

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3
Q

Population ecology examines factors that … … population size and composition

A

limit and regulate

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4
Q

A community is…

A

all the individuals of all the species that inhabit a particular geographic area

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5
Q

Community ecology examines..

A

the interactions among populations
- how factors such as predation, competition, disease and environmental factors affect community structure and organisation

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6
Q

Ecosystems also involve..

A

abiotic factors

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7
Q

Unitary organisms have … form

A

determinate

- e.g. a sheep has 2 eyes, 2 ears, 4 legs

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8
Q

Modular organisms have … and … growth, which occurs by repeated production of …

A

indeterminate, unpredictable, modules (leaves, polyps etc)

- not dead until all modules are dead

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9
Q

The traits that affect the birth, maturation, reproduction and death schedule make up the…

A

life history

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10
Q

What is semelparity?

A

Large numbers of offspring are produced in a reproductive event, after which the individual often dies
- e.g. annual plants, many insects

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11
Q

What is iteroparity?

A

some organisms produce several eggs/offspring during repeated reproductive episodes
- most perennial plants

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12
Q

Some seeds are viable for up to…

A

1600 years

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13
Q

Annual plants spend part of the year dormant as..

A

seeds, spores, cysts or eggs

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14
Q

Ephemeral species…

A

lie dormant until environmental conditions are adequate for reproduction

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15
Q

Generally speaking, high juvenile mortality favours…

A

iteroparity - mortality risk once reached adulthood not high any more so can invest in reproduction many times

so high adult mortality favours semelparity

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16
Q

nx =

A

Number of individuals at age x

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17
Q

lx =

A

survival rate to age x (from age 0)

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18
Q

Sx =

A

age specific survival (survival between ages x and x-1)

  • put answer in row that is coming from
  • put dash if n/a
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19
Q

mx =

A

fecundity. Number of female babies/reproductive female (per capita).
Often 0 in early ages - before reached maturity

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20
Q

R0 =

A

net reproductive rate (sum of lx * mx)

  • average number of offspring produced per individual (female) OVER HER LIFETIME
  • if >1 pop increase
  • if <1 pop decrease
  • if =1 stable pop
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21
Q

The average number of people that one sick person will infect is also called…

A

R0

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22
Q

Generation time =

A

Average time between birth of individuals and birth of their offspring

Sum of(xlxmx)/R0

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23
Q

Population growth can be increased by increasing survival, increasing reproduction, or decreasing generation time, but…

A

all cannot be done at once - allocation of limited resources - trade-off

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24
Q

Removing eggs … clutch size the following year.

Adding eggs … clutch size the following year

A

increased

decreased

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25
Q

Change in population size during a time interval =

A

Births during time interval - deaths during time interval

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26
Q

When does exponential population growth occur?

A

In an environment with no limiting factors, no restriction on available energy and no restriction on growth or reproduction

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27
Q

change in N/change in t = bN - dN

A
b = per capita birth rate
d = per capita death rate
N = population size
t = time
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28
Q

if there are 34 births in one year in a population of 1000 individuals, what is b (per capita birth rate)?

A

0.034

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29
Q

r =

A

b - d

therefore: change in N/change in t = rN

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30
Q

if b = d, r =

A

0

r > 0 leads to pop growth
r = 0 leads to stable pop
r < 0 leads to pop decline

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31
Q

K =

A

carrying capacity

  • maximum stable population size that can be supported over a long time
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32
Q

Why does density affect population growth rate?

A

Crowding and resource limitation can reduce per capita birth rate and per capita death rate may increase when energy is low

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33
Q

What is the most common determinant of K?

A

Energy/resource limitation

+ availability of nesting sites, roosting sites, territories, refuges from predators

34
Q

As density increases…

A

per capita resource declines

35
Q

as density increases and per-capita resource declines…

A

births decline and deaths increase

36
Q

Negative feedback prevents…

A

unlimited population growth

37
Q

Also, change in N/change in t =

A

rN(1-N/K)

therefore

= rN - rN^2/K
intraspecific competition
- disproportionate losses as population increases

38
Q

rN is the…

A

exponential phase

straight horizontal line on per capita growth rate graph

39
Q

logistic growth (involving negative feedbacks) gives an…

A

S-shaped curve

and a negative slope on per capita growth rate

40
Q

What traits are associated with high density?

A

Large, few offspring
Delayed reproduction
Large size
Long lived

41
Q

What traits are associated with low density?

A

Many small offspring
Early reproduction
Small
Short-lived

42
Q

When do individuals compete?

A

When resources are limited

43
Q

How do we measure competition?

A

Change in population growth rate or size caused by another population

44
Q

What is the competitive exclusion principle?

A

No two species can share the same resource and coexist - one will always outcompete other

45
Q

What is the fundamental niche?

A

Intrinsic requirements of a species on its own

46
Q

What is the realised niche?

A

What happens to “limits” when other species are around. Competitors may get sections of niches from others

47
Q

No two species can occupy the same…

A

niche

48
Q

Two species cannot coexist when…

A

they have identical needs of a limited resource

49
Q

How do you incorporate interspecific competition into

rN1(K1-N1)/K1 ?

A

rN1(K1-N1-aN2)/K1

exponential growth - intraspecific competition - interspecific competition

50
Q

N1 =

A

K1-a12N2

a12 is the gradient

51
Q

Exclusion: isoclines…

A

do not cross

52
Q

What is exploitation?

A

Depleting resources

53
Q

What is overgrowth?

A

Species growing over another and depriving the other of light

54
Q

What is territorial behaviour?

A

Fighting or behaviour in defence of space

55
Q

What is an encounter?

A

Transient interaction directly over a specific resource

56
Q

Coexistence: isoclines..

A

cross

57
Q

Coexistence occurs when interspecific competition is…

A

weak

58
Q

No two species can coexist unless they…

A

use different resources, use the same resource in different locations, or use the same resource at different times

59
Q

Why is predation important in ecology?

A

Structures communities and changes dynamics (macarthur paper)

60
Q

Why is predation important in evolution?

A

Major driver, selection pressures change morphology, physiology, behaviour

61
Q

Why is predation important in agriculture?

A

Pest control and pesticides

62
Q

Predators can promote…

A

biodiversity - richness and evenness

63
Q

Optimal foraging: animals will eat the most … item, i.e. the item with the most energy per…

A

profitable, unit time of foraging (searching and handling)

64
Q

Predators add new items (item 2) if…

A

the profit of the item 2 is >= the cost of ignoring it and searching for another of item 1

65
Q

Add items until the profit of new items is…

A

less than the average cost of searching and handling items currently in the diet

66
Q

Do consumers choose the most profitable items?

A

Yes

67
Q

Are the most profitable items the most common?

A

No - non-random selection of food

68
Q

Prey death function =

A

predator growth function

-conversion of prey into predators

69
Q

Type 1 functional response is a..

A

straight line. Whatever the density of prey, 10% will get eaten for example (the same proportion) - consumption rate constant

70
Q

Type II functional response…

A

plateaus - accounts for satiation effects - if very high prey density then not enough predators to eat them all, so consumption rate is lower

71
Q

Type III functional response is an..

A

s-shaped curve - accounts for difficulty finding prey at low density - more space between

72
Q

Which is the most common functional response?

A

Type II

73
Q

In the absence of a predator, it allows certain competitors..

A

to dominate

74
Q

Keystone predation…

A

increases diversity

75
Q

Generalist predation can…

A

decrease diversity

76
Q

Sometimes predation can change the … of competitors, but not change diversity

A

ranking

77
Q

What is a trophic cascade?

A

Predators have an impact on the trophic levels below them, including more than one trophic level below (indirect impact)

78
Q

What is the behaviourally mediated trophic cascade?

A

Predators simply scaring prey has an effect on the trophic levels below

79
Q

How do spiders alter grasshopper activity?

A

Compress activity to certain (hotter) parts of day, rather than many spread out points. And overall less activity (even more reduction in juveniles)

80
Q

The spiders with less active (sit and wait) hunting behaviours (nursery web spiders) lead to..

A

different plant diversity, NPP, decomposition rates and N mineralisation than active hunting spiders (wolf spiders)