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Ecology > Chapter 20: Landscape Ecology > Flashcards

Chapter 20: Landscape Ecology Flashcards

1
Q

Why are communities often viewed as a mosaic?

A
  • because they are often patchy
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2
Q

What is a patch?

A
  • a relatively homogenous area that differs in structure and composition of species from its surroundings
  • an area that is essentially all the same within that mosaic of a landscape!
  • *size and spatial arrangement helps determine how interactions are occurring
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3
Q

What is landscape ecology?

A
  • new emphasis within ecology, examining these patches and their ecological consequences
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4
Q

What is often the cause of landscape patchiness?

A
  • human activity

-

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5
Q

Patches result from interaction of what two things?

A
  • environmental factors ( natural variations in geology and soil conditions –> natural evens such as fires and grazing) and human development (ongoing fragmentation of large tracks of land) which result in variation in size and shape of patches
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6
Q

Describe patch edges!

A
  • they are conspicuous features of the landscape
  • boundary between patches
  • they mark abrupt areas such as streams
  • where there are long term natural features = edges
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7
Q

Patch Edges:

- What is the border?

A
  • place where one patch meets edge of another
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8
Q

Patch Edges:

- Ecotone?

A
  • transition zone between patches when border is wide

-

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9
Q

Patch Edges:

-edge effect??

A
  • edges often populated by rich diversity of life
  • certain plant and animal species colonize edge habitats and are called edge species
  • ex:Indigo bunting bird
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10
Q

What are the advantages of large patches?

A
  • generally greater carrying capacity and can support more individuals of a species
  • more likely to contain more variations in topography
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11
Q

What is the relationship between body size of an animal and the size of its home range?

A
  • patches below a certain size may not be able to support some species
  • as species get larger their home range needs to be larger for them to continue reproducing etc
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12
Q

What is the relationship between interior area the area of the edge?

A
  • as the interior area increases so does the edge area

- funky shaped patches = way more edge area vs interior area

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13
Q

What are interior species?

A
  • species that require conditions characteristic of interior habitats
  • the probability of detecting these species increases with the size of the forest…aka their occurrence increases with the increase in the interior area.
    ex: worm eating warbler and ovenbird
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14
Q

Theory of Island Biogeography:

- early naturalists and explorers noticed what about islands?

A
  • large islands hold more species than small ones
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15
Q

Theory of Island Biogeography:

- what even is an island?

A
  • a patch of habitat surrounded by dissimilar habitat
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16
Q

Theory of Island Biogeography:

- who discovered this shit?

A
  • Darwin..JK

- MacArthur and Wilson actually bro.

17
Q

Theory of Island Biogeography:

- what even is this theory?

A

-Number of species established on an island is a dynamic equilibrium (s) between immigration and extinction

18
Q

Theory of Island Biogeography:

- what occurs as the number of species increases?

A
  • immigration rate decreases (most species already present)
  • extinction rate increases (more interspecific competition)
    • when you have a brand new island no species are there…every new colonist that comes in succession occurs.
  • as it occurs diversity decreases
  • initially extinction is very low because resources are available to everyone …it increases as more species colonize and compete for them
  • theory: environment should get to and stay at the equilibrium point (when immigration and extinction re equal)
19
Q

Does distance from the mainland and island size affect equilibrium species richness?

A

you bethca

  • the closer the island is to the mainland the more immigration it will have and the higher species diversity it will have at equilibrium with extinction vs being far away.
  • immigration to a large island tends to be higher than to a smaller island - also species diversity is more for a large island at equilibrium point
20
Q

What are the predictions of Island Biogeography with respect to the species in the islands?

A
  • islands should have fewer species than mainland, particularly species that:
  • have poor dispersal ability
  • depend on prior colonization of other species
  • are susceptible to extinction
    • if you can fly or swim etc bc you have low dispersal you will have low diversity …if you cannot move there until another species moves there you will have a lower number
21
Q

What are the applications of island biogeography to landscape patches?

A
  • it does not just apply to oceanic islands
  • landscape patches differ in barriers to dispersal
  • geography, highways, canals, parks etc will stop species from moving across areas (barriers to dispersal)
22
Q

What are corridors for?

A
  • dispersal
  • provide habitat for various plants and animals and permit travel between patches
  • we fragment patches so these allow inter mingling
    ex: animal overpasses in Banff national park
23
Q

Filter effect?

A

caused by gaps in corridors - allow some species but not others to cross
** some species will not go through bc of behaviour etc or how they restrict movement thereby filtering out species that will continue to be connect to both patches. This makes them a little more species friendly

24
Q

What is research on wildlife corridors focused on?

A

attempting to make patches more permeable than they have been due to human interference via fragmenting patches
- Ex: tracking collars on elk to see where they move if they are using the corridors to move through patches

25
Q

What kind of a reserve would you design for conservation, one big one or many small ones? (think in terms of size) Issues with building reserves?

A
  • smaller reserves are a bit of a risk, dispersal could be an issue. They are more at risk for extinction
  • larger one is a better choice it’d be more successful
  • we have been making larger nature parks but building our cities, resorts etc they defeat the purpose
26
Q

Metapopulations and landscape dynamics. Whats up with that?

A
  • a central concept in landscape dynamics
  • these can get fragmented
  • when habitats are very fragmented, species can only exist as partially isolated populations
  • they become more speculated because the are separated from the mainland
27
Q

What is a relic population?

A
  • one or two age classes because they are not able to successfully establish/reproduce and when they re gone they are gone. They can survive but not ideal enough to reproduce
28
Q

What can disturbances be described in terms of?(3)

A
  • intensity - proportion of biomass or population killed
  • scale: how big it is; how long it lasts
  • frequency: how often it happens
  • some species are adapted to periodic disturbance
    • opportunistic species will be able to survive short term in areas with lots of disturbances but if there are fewer disturbances they will be out competed by other species that are more long term
  • *example: forest fires
29
Q

What are some examples of disturbances?

A
  • wind and ice storms
  • floods
  • grazng
  • fire
  • outbreaks of insects
30
Q

Describe fires as a disturbance!

A
  • vegetation in many areas has evolved with periodic fires
  • some species are fire dependent
  • humans have changed the recency of fires
    • some are fire dependent for reproductive success etc
31
Q

What is the typical range (year wise) we expect to have a natural forest fire in NB?

A
  • every 70-100 years
32
Q

Human disturbances?

A
  • some of the most lasting disturbances

- ex: clear cutting

33
Q

The landscape is a shifting/non-shifting mosaic?

A
  • shifting
  • mosaic of communities in landscape change constantly due to disturbance and succession
  • average composition may stay in a steady state (fairly constant)
34
Q

Whats it mean to be a shifting mosaic landscape?

A
  • not every area of the landscape is in the same stage of succession
  • when you clear an area off you can re establish the area fairly quickly by reintroducing species
  • if a fire for example came into a forest…that are will be in a very different successional stage than an adjacent area

Ecology (24 decks)

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