Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

Ecology > Exam Three: Learning Objectives > Flashcards

Exam Three: Learning Objectives Flashcards

1
Q

Define life history

A

schedule of an organism’s growth, development, reproduction, and survival

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Life history traits include __ strategies and __ of key life events; as well as __ adaptations shaped by __

A

reproductive; timing
reproductive; selection

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

List eight life history traits

A

age at maturity
size at maturity
number of offspring
offspring size
parental care of young
life span
reproductive span
semel- v iteroparity

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

Define fecundity

A

number of gametes, seeds or propagules produced

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

Species with higher fecundity tend to lay __ eggs; describe the trade off

A

small
trade off: can lay many eggs or large eggs, but not many large eggs

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

Define the principle of allocation

A

given limited access to energy, if an organism allocates resources to one function (e.g., growth, maintenance), it reduces the amount of energy available to other functions (e.g., reproduction)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

Describe the proportiaonality between female size and the number of eggs laid; and the number of eggs compared to the number of eggs

A

female size directly proportional with number of eggs - large female = more eggs
indirect relationship between number of eggs and egg diameter, smaller egg diameter = more eggs laid

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

Gene flow is inferred from __ __

A

allele frequency

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

Define a locus

A

position on a chromosome

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

What is a polymorphic locus?

A

site of a gene with many alleles

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

We can use allele frequency similarity between populations to make inferences about __ and _ __ among them

A

dispersal
gene flow

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

Describe the relationship between allele frequencies at a locus and dispersal between populations

A

if several populations of the same species have similar allele frequencies at a locus, then there is probably a lot of dispersal (gene flow) among the populations

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

Species producing larger seeds produce __ seeds

A

fewer

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

The mode of seed dispersal is dependent on __ __. This is important because dispersal is critical for a population to establish its __

A

seed size
range

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

Describe the tradeoff between seed size and number

A

allocating more energy per offspring means a parent organism will produce fewer offspring
in plants, to see the trade off between offspring size and number, you can compare vastly different taxa
You can also compare closely related species, and different populations of the same species
mass of seeds is inversely proportional to number of seeds

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

Discuss the evolutionary implications of life history in terms of allele frequency and darter populations

A

allele frequencies were similar among some species; gene flow among populations was thus probably high for these species
allele frequencies were different among populations of other species; gene flow among populations was probably low for these other species
Gene flow is more common among species with a smaller egg size - shows inverse linear relationship

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

Discuss the different life history strategies of grasses and herbs and trees

A

seedling growth was greater for species that produce larger seeds
in grasses, bigger seedlings had a greater chance of surviving past the seedling stage
for trees, larger seeds germinated earlier in the spring, before the overhead trees put out their leaves and shaded the new plants

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

European magpies tend to lay clutches with 7 eggs, which results in about 3-4 successfully fledged chicks, discuss what happens if eggs are experimentally removed or added

A

fewer eggs = fewer fledged chicks
more eggs = less well-nourished chicks = fewer fledglings

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

Why is clutch size a heritable trait?

A

clutch size of seven yields greatest fitness, and is heritable, then clutch size of 7 becomes common in the population

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

Describe the hypothesis: drought is an evolutionary force that selects for dry-adapted life history strategies

A

collect seeds from naturally wet and naturally dry sites before and after drought (4 populations), rear them and determine when they flower

seeds from dry site flowered around 41 days
seeds from a wet site flowered around 59 days with large phenotypic variability

in a post-drought population, the wet site population will look more like a dry site than a wet site, as the evolutionary conditions act as natural selection

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

Species with delayed reproduction generally have __ adult survival

A

higher

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

High allocation to reproduction is associated with high __

A

mortality

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

T/F: there can be no variation among populations in terms of evolutionary traits

A

false, many species exhibit different survival curves

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

As allocation to reproduction increases, relative rates of adult _ decline

A

survival

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Q

What is the plant CSR system?

A

classification system based on principles of allocation and trade-offs

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
26
Q

Classification systems use population-level characterisitics such as:

A

growth rate (r), carrying capacity (K)
survival (lsubx), fecundity (msubx), and age at reproductive maturity (alpha)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
27
Q

Describe r-selected species

A

small and fast life style
weedy species good at moving into new, competitor-free environments after a disturbance
operate in the fast ‘exponential’ part of the growth curve, where r is high

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
28
Q

Describe K-selected species

A

big and slow lifestyle
good competitors that eventually dominate in low-disturbance environments
operate in the high-density but slow ‘logistic’ part of the growth curve in the region of K

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
29
Q

Relate the following attribute to r and K species:
intrinsic rate of increase (rmax)
competitive ability
development
reproduction
body size
reproduction
offspring

A

r: high, not strongly favored, rapid, early, small, single semelparity, many small

K: low, highly favored, slow, late, large, repeated iteroparity, few large

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
30
Q

Classification for plants based on life histories adapted to _- and __

A

disturbance; stress

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
31
Q

What are the three CSR life history strategies

A

C - competitive plants
S - stress-tolerant plants
R - ruderals

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
32
Q

Describe stress-tolerant plants

A

allocate to maintence
efficient at using resources
adaptations for temperature and water regulation
high tolerance to stress, low intensity of competition

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
33
Q

Describe ruderals

A

allocate to reproduction, weedy, move in quickly to competitor-free, available habitat
low intensity of stress and high intensity of disturbance

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
34
Q

Describe competitive plants

A

allocate to growth
where disrubance and stress are low (where species interactions are key), these species are the best competitors

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
35
Q

Discuss life history traits associated with response to climate change and fish

A

the larger the species, the less they shift
the longer the age at maturity, the less a species shifts
the larger the length at maturity, the less a species shifts

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
36
Q

Define interference competition

A

takes the form of direct antagonistic interactiosn between individuals (e.g., direct combative contact)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
37
Q

Competition can occur among organisms of the same species (__ competition) or between organisms of different species (__ competiton)

A

intraspecific
interspecific

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
38
Q

Define the effect on species one and two for competition

A

1 -
2 -

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
39
Q

Define the effect on species one and two for exploitation

A

1 +
2 -
includes predation, parasitism, and herbivory

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
40
Q

Define the effect on species one and two for mutualism

A

1 +
2 +

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
41
Q

Define the effect on species one and two for commensalism

A

1 +
2 0

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
42
Q

Define the effect on species one and two for amensalism

A

1 -
2 0

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
43
Q

When does competition occur?

A

when multiple organisms use (or ‘share) a resource that is in scarce supply relative to demands (i.e., a limiting resource)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
44
Q

Poor growth at high density and low resource supply reveals __ competiton

A

intraspecific

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
45
Q

When is a resource considered a limiting one?

A

if adding a resource increases growth, then that resource is limiting

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
46
Q

Describe some evidence for intraspecific competition

A

the quality of plant food declines at high herbivore density, leading to poor herbivore survival and performance at high herbivore density

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
47
Q

Discuss competition/ limiting resources of isopods

A

isopod survival was poor when their density was high
adding food to the high-density group did not increase survival
not competition, actually cannibalism

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
48
Q

If nitrogen is a limiting resource, and the organisms in a population are competing for
nitrogen, describe how population density or organism size will respond to the addition of
more nitrogen.

A

adding nitrogen will increase the growth, giving a more exponential curve

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
49
Q

logistic population growth is an outcome of __ competition

A

intraspecific

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
50
Q

When density is high and resources are scarce, individuals must compete with members of their own population to obtain resources; at high population density, birth rates __ and death rates __, resulting in __ or __ net population growth

A

decline
increase
little; no

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
51
Q

What is the equation for intraspecific competition only (i.e., logistic population growth)

A

dN/dt = rN ((K-N)/K),
dN/dt =0 when N=K

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
52
Q

What’s the equation for intraspecific and interspecific competition

A

dN2/dt = r2N2 ((K2 - N2 - alpha2,1 * N1)/ K2)
dN2/dt=0 when N2 = K2 - alpha 2,1 * N1

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
53
Q

Define a niche

A

set of environmental factors that influence the survival, growth, and reproduction of species, consisting of many factors (temperature), including factors that species may compete for (food, resources, space)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
54
Q

Define the two rules to competitive exclusion principle

A

two species with identical species cannot coexist indefinitely
species that do coexist must have different niches

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
55
Q

Describe the competitive exclusion principle: two species with identical niches cannot coexist indefinitely

A

a shared resource (water, nitrogen, food, space) will eventually be depleted to a level that is too low for the less efficient species to persist

remember, efficiency = ability to continue growing on a small amount of resource)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
56
Q

Describe the competitive exclusion principle: species that do coexist must have different niches

A

two species that coexist by using different resources will have different adaptations

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
57
Q

Relate the competitive exclusion principle to the galapagos finches

A

beaks are important in obtaining food, and beak properties (size) correspond with the type of food that finches (and many other birds) eat, the use of different food sources among co-existing finches should correspond with differences in beak properties

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
58
Q

By using different resources (__ __), the finches don’t have the same feeding _- and they can ___

A

resource partitioning
niches
co-exist

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
59
Q

Define the phenotypic variation that can occur with resource partitioning

A

birds with larger beaks ate harder seeds, birds with smaller beaks ate softer seeds

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
60
Q

Link between __ trait and feeding __; drought resulted in few seeds, all hard - which birds survived?

A

adaptive
niche
only birds with the largest beaks survived - natural selection + environmental influence

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
61
Q

Describe parasitoid resource partitioning

A

many wasps and flies are parasitoids
wasps developed on smaller caterpillars, flies developed on larger catepillars

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
62
Q

Define character displacement

A

an evolutionary shift in a population’s traits to reduce niche overlap and competition

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
63
Q

When two species occur apart (when they are __), they have similar beak sizes, with some degree of overlap in size

A

allopatric

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
64
Q

When populations of the two different species live in the same place (when they are __) their beak sizes __ from each other; and beak sizes of each population is __ when compared with __ populations of their own species; this reflects selection for traits that __ competition because less __ equals greater __

A

sympatric
diverge
shifted
reduce
competition; fitness

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
65
Q

Give some examples of competition that has evolutionary consequences

A

character displacement, resource partitioning, and co-existence

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
66
Q

If two species with identical niches cannot co-exist, then will once species lead to the local extinction (extirpation) of the other species with similar niches?

A

yes, competitive exclusion principle

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
67
Q

Define character displacement

A

an evolutionary shift in a population’s traits to reduce niche overlap and competition

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
68
Q

Give an example of character displacement

A

two allopatric species of finches have similar beak depth, once they become sympatric, there is a differentiation or shift in beak size to reduce competition

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
69
Q

A species that can persist well under certain conditions (within fundamental niche) can be driven to __ under those same conditions when forced to compete with other species (revealing narrow __ of realized niche)

A

exclusion
limits

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
70
Q

T/F: A fundamental niche is the same as a realized niche

A

false; certain conditions might be within a population’s fundamental nice, but not within its realized niche when forced to compete with another species

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
71
Q

Higher resource use efficiency is a cause of __ __

A

competitive exclusion

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
72
Q

Intraspecific competition: at higher snail densities (and thus lower food supplies) snail growth rates __

A

decline

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
73
Q

When does exploitation occur?

A

when one organisms obtains resources, nutrients, or energy by consuming all or part of another (not always lethally)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
74
Q

Exploitation interactions regulate __ __

A

population density

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
75
Q

Does a parasitic infection of a predator species (foxes) allow its prey resource (hares) to increase in abundance?

A

foxes decrease in population due to mange outbreak, hares increase due to no fox regulation

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
76
Q

How does herbivory affect plant populations?

A

intense rainfall increased mortality and reduced flowering of cactus
cacti were unable to produce seeds due to exploitation of flowers by finch, which reduced cactus population in later years

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
77
Q

T/F: Most ecological phenomenon are outcome of one cause

A

false - most ecological phenomenon is the outcome of many causes
the challenge of ecologists is to identify the relative importance of the various causes

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
78
Q

What are three examples of exploitation?

A

predation, parasitism, and herbivory

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
79
Q

what is a top-down control of hare populations?

A

predators impact hare population

80
Q

what is an example of a bottom-up approach?

A

food (plants) regulate hare density

81
Q

What is a natural experiment and why is it helpful?

A

mother nature does the manipulation for you
broad scales are often too difficult to manipulate - can’t do a whole exclusion experiment at the scale of an entire country

82
Q

What are three examples of exploitation?

A

excluding caddisflies allowed algae/bacteria populations to increase
excluding foxes allowed hare populations to increase
excluding insectivorous birds and bats allowed insect densities to increase

83
Q

Define interaction between experimental factors

A

arises when the effect of one factor depends on whether the other factor is imposed

84
Q

Is predation the number one important factor in regulating population density?

A

no - food supply is

85
Q

Define a factorial experimental design

A

both treatment levels in one of the experimental factors were present within each treatment level of the other experimental factor

86
Q

Give an example of a 2x2 factorial design

A

predators present v. predators excluded
supplemental food v. ambient food under each predators (present and excluded)

87
Q

Interactive suggests __

A

non-additive

88
Q

Discuss the life cycle of plagiorhynchus

A

adult plag. (parasitic worm) lay eggs in primary host (european starling)
parasite eggs released into environment in bird feces
secondary host (pill bugs) eat bird feces and become infected with plagiorhynchus, which matures within the pill bug
mature plag. infect the primary host (starlings) when starlings eat pill bugs
cycle repeats

89
Q

What increases the chance of a pill bug being eaten?

A

infected pill bugs spent less time in sheltered areas and more time on light-colored substrates
these behavioral changes increase the chance a pill bug is seen and eaten by a bird, enhancing its own transmission to a primary host

90
Q

T/F: exploitation can change the outcome of competition

A

true

91
Q

Dynamics within a population are often?

A

cyclic

92
Q

Describe the cyclic population density pattern in exploiter-resource interactions

A

incr predator densities causes prey to decline
depletion of food (prey) causes predator density to decline
declining predator population allows prey population to recover
abundant prey allows predator numbers to begin increasing

93
Q

What are three types of refuge

A

places that are difficult for predators to find or access
high densities (predator confusion and satiation)
being big

94
Q

Refuges allow the persistence of prey or hots in the face or __/__

A

predation/ parasitism

95
Q

T/F: Even incomplete protection enables coexistence of predator and prey

A

true - refuge

96
Q

Discuss the paradox of refuges

A

no refuge - both predator and prey go extinct
perfect refuge for prey - predator goes extinct
incomplete refuge - cyclic populations

97
Q

Define mutalism

A

an interaction between species in which each receives a benefit (resources, habitat, protection) from the other

98
Q

Define a commensal interaction

A

one species benefits, the other is neither benefitted or harmed

99
Q

What is a facultative mutalist

A

organisms that can live without their mutualistic partner

100
Q

What is an obligate mutualist?

A

organism that cannot live in the absence of the other partner

101
Q

What is the endosymbiotic theory?

A

Eukarya arose from symbiotic relationships between primitive eukaryotes and bacteria (prokaryotes)

102
Q

modern __ (which convert sugars to APT) and __ (which perform photosynthesis) arose from these bacterial partners

A

mitochondria; chloroplasts

103
Q

How are mitochondria and chloroplasts similar to a free-living bacterial cell?

A

have double membranes
have their own genetic material
genomes have bacterial-type genes for ribosomes

104
Q

What are three benefits to plants in a mutualist relationship?

A

nutrient and water acquisition
protection from herbivores
pollination and seed dispersal

105
Q

Nitrogen is often a __ __ for plant growth

A

limiting resource

106
Q

Describe the relationship between plants and N fixing bacteria

A

n-fixing bacteria pull atomospheric N into soil, fertilizing these plants

107
Q

Most atmospheric N is present as an N _ bonded to N, which requires __ to break; this bond can be broken by bacteria, which fix N, bringing it ino a biologically usable form; in return, N-fixing bacteria get some of the __ (__ __) they need from the plant

A

triple
energy
energy (organic carbon)

108
Q

What is the advantage to having mycorrhizal fungi?

A

acquire many resources that are already in the soil

109
Q

Why do plants form partnerships with mycorrihizae fungi?

A

to increase plant access to soil resources by fungi increasing the root surface area and so enhance the ability of plants to take up nutrients and water; may also help protect plants from root predators

110
Q

What do mycorrhizae fungi get in return from plants?

A

carbon

111
Q

What kind of effect does mycorrhizae fungi have on leaf water potential?

A

infected plants (with fungi) maintained a higher water potential; removal showed reduced rates of transpiration

112
Q

When a soil nutrient (phosphorus) is __, the maize plant strongly depends on mycorrhizae. When P is __, the plant does not need the mutualism as much. Plants give __ to fungi, which helps fungi explore soil and get P for plant to use, if plants can get P on their own, their is little value in giving away __ to fungi

A

scares
abundant
C
C

113
Q

When would mutualists turn parasitic?

A

if plant is being stingy and not giving away enough C, the fungi will parasitize the plant

114
Q

Benefit for plants is __ when paired with fungi that developed in unfertilized soil than when paired with fungi that developed in fertilized soil

A

greater

115
Q

Fungi are less beneficial if they come from the __ where plants are stingy

A

environment

116
Q

Describe the mutualistic relationship between swollen thron acacia and pseudomyrmex ants

A

ants give significant defensive response to any attack on home tree
trees give soft pith easily dug out by ants, provides shelter, water, sugar, fats and proteins

117
Q

New sprouts of acadia tree with ants grew seven times __ than those without ants

A

faster - demonstrates mutualistic relationship

118
Q

What is likely a reason that new acadia trees with ants had a better survival rate?

A

ants provided defense against herbivores
ants also prune away leaves from nearby plants, likely reducing competition

119
Q

Discuss the mutualistic relationship between coral polyps and zooxanthelle (algae)

A

coral animals (polyps) catch and kill prey, supplying nutrients to the zooxanthellae
zooxanthellae photosynthesize, supplying organic compounds to the coral in return

120
Q

How does coral control zooxanthellae?

A

coral uses signal compounds that alter the permeability of the algae’s cell membrane

121
Q

Coral controls the population __ rate of zooxanthellae

A

growth

122
Q

Zooxanthellae heavily use the _ provided by the coral polyp animal. so the __ stays inside the polyp/algae unit

A

N;N

123
Q

Describe the obligate mutualist relationship between coral and crusaceans

A

crabs and shrimp protect coral from predators and receive food and shelter in return
lipid packaged into fat bodies that are fed to the crustaceans are only in the presence of crustaceans

124
Q

The diversity of a community is an outcome of… (3)

A

the abiotic environment and fundamental niches of species
population dynamics: dispersal and extinction
interactions among species

125
Q

Diversity is also (2)

A

a building-block of the structure of communities
a factor that affects how ecosystems function

126
Q

Most species are __ or of modest __

A

rare; abundance

127
Q

Very few species are present at __ population density

A

high

128
Q

If you use a lognormal distribution, patterns of diversity are shaped like a __ distribution if you use a __ scale on the _ axis

A

normal
logarithmic
x

129
Q

what does a rank abundance curve show?

A

abundance of each species, sorted by abundance rank

130
Q

a community is more diverse when both the species __ and __ is higher

A

richness; eveness

131
Q

What is a species eveness?

A

how even the most abundant species is across a community

132
Q

What is species richness?

A

total number of species in an area

133
Q

Species diversity is just one aspect of __

A

biodiversity

134
Q

How do you measure biodiversity?

A

through genetic diversity among populations within a species and among members of a population

135
Q

Define biodiversity

A

variety of living things and their functions

136
Q

Define species diversity

A

number and eveness of species

137
Q

define community diversity

A

variety of communites; across a broad area, there can be many distict types of species groupings

138
Q

Define functional species

A

a. types of species (diversity of niches and tropic levels) or
b. things species do (diversity of processes, like nitrogen fixation)

139
Q

Define species (biological)

A

a group of individuals that can interbreed and have offspring capable of reproduction

140
Q

Define species (phylogenetic)

A

a group of individuals whose members are descended from a common ancestor and who all possess a combination of certain defining, or derived, traits

141
Q

What are the two concepts for defining a bacterial species?

A

recombination
ecological species

142
Q

Define the recombination concept

A

emphasizes the homogenizing mechanism of sharing genome fragments, somewhat akin to sexual recombination

143
Q

Define the ecological species concept

A

emphasizes a microbial taxon’s ecological niche as a set of environmental conditions that maintains cohesive lineages

144
Q

Bacteria and archea form coherent __ clusters that are chacterized by distinctive __ properties; clusters are created by __ and __

A

genomic; phenotypic
selection; recombination

145
Q

__ __ is one factor regulating diversity

A

environmental complexity

146
Q

High environmental complexity is often characterized by higher __ __

A

species richness

147
Q

Even ecosystems that appear simple and homogeneous can actually be __ and __

A

complex; heterogeneous
abandoned agricultural field

148
Q

Many fertilized soil had __ fungal diversity

A

lower

149
Q

Why would fungal diversity decrease with fertilizer increase?

A

as the farm field became more fertilized over time, rank abundance curves became steeper (less evenness) and shorter (less richness)

150
Q

What area has the highest plant diversity?

A

tropical rainforests - Ghana

151
Q

Describe the biome in tropical Ghana

A

rainy areas; acidic soils; low nutrient concentration

152
Q

List evolutionary reasons that show diversity declines as environment becomes enriched in nutrients

A

1 nutrients are typically in scarce supply, and the limiting nutrient is super scarce
2 natural selection has thus resulted in adaptations for acquiring nutrients from nutrient-poor environments
3 but when nutrients are made highly abundant (thru human activities) these adaptive traits are no longer an advantage
4 in fact, principles of allocation and evolutionary tradeoffs suggests these adaptations have become a burden
5 the small number of species that don’t invest in such traits can invest in fast growth when resources are abundant
6 these few species will competitively displace most others that cant convert resources directly to growth

153
Q

List spatial reasons that show diversity declines as environment becomes enriched in nutrients

A

1 spatial heterogeneity in resource availability creates environmental complexity and supports high diversity
2 lots of patches with different levels of resource supply, and with differences in which particular resource is scarce = lots of distinct niches
3 high nutrient availability everywhere reduces spatial heterogeneity
4 where soil resources are high, light is the only limiting resource
5 life becomes a race for light, a few species that can get tall fast will prevail

154
Q

Define disturbance

A

discrete event that disrupts ecosystems, communities, or population structure changes resources, substrate availability, or the physical environment

155
Q

Disturbances result from both abiotic factors (__) and biotic factors (__ __)

A

volcano
disease outbreak

156
Q

What is the intermediate disturbance hypothesis

A

low intensity of disturbance - competitive exclusion, keeps diversity low
high intensity of disturbance - community becomes limited to rapid colonizers and quick reproduces
only an intermediate level of disturbance shows highest species diversity

157
Q

Environmental variation supports high __ diversity

A

biological

158
Q

What is alpha diversity

A

amount of different species within a given area

159
Q

What is gamma diversity?

A

total species diversity in a landscape - will only count new species in each alpha group

160
Q

If the community were to change a lot from one mountain to the next, species turnover would be __

A

high

161
Q

as you move from mountain to mountain, the communities are mostly made up of the same species suggesting __ species turnover

A

low

162
Q

the diversity of a community is a balance between __ by new species and __ of species that are already present

A

colonization; extinction

163
Q

Define insular

A

any area of habitat suitable for a specific ecosystem that is surrounded by an expanse of unsuitable habitat (mountaintop, island, nature preserve)

164
Q

We should expect many species where colonization rates are high and extinction rates are low in (2 habitats)

A

1 habitats that are well connected to colonization sources
2 large habitats with a diversity of niches

165
Q

We would expect few species where colonization rates are low and extinction rates are high in two habitats

A

isolated habitats that potential colonists have a hard time reaching
small habitats with a few niches

166
Q

Larger islands support more __

A

species

167
Q

T/F: Species richness is greater on smaller island

A

FALSE; more area probably represents a greater variety of habitats (more environmental complexity), yielding more niches and thus more species (extinction < colonization)

168
Q

There is greater bird species richness observed on __-isolated islands

A

less

169
Q

__ doesn’t reduce colonization, __ does

A

distance; isolation

170
Q

Isolation results from the __ of __ corridors

A

absences; dispersal

171
Q

species richness of mammals is greater on __ mountaintop areas

A

larger; more area = greater variety of habitats

172
Q

As the number of species on an island increases, the extinction rate __, because with more species-an more exploitation and competition, its __ likely that some species will go extinct

A

increases;
more

173
Q

Community diversity stabilizes at an equilibrum _ __ (S)

A

species richness

174
Q

At some __ __, the rate of colonization by species equals the rate of extinction present on the island

A

species richness (S)

175
Q

As species richness increases, the rate at which new species arrive will __

A

decline

176
Q

Define species turnover

A

refers to a change in which species are present because of ongoing colonization and extinction; species richness doesn’t have to change

177
Q

The equilibrium model of biogeography predicts __ __

A

species turnover

178
Q

What is an equilibrium model of biogeography?

A

model that tracts the number of extinctions and immigrations (species turnover) in various areas over time

179
Q

List three postulates that will hold true if a species supports the equilibrium model

A

as the islands aged, species richness on each island approached an equilibrium
on each island, there is an ongoing colonization and extinction despite little further change in species richness
larger islands eventually do accumulate more species than smaller islands do

180
Q

Describe evidence for the equilibrium model in the florida keys

A

all insects experimentally removed (fumigated)
afterwards .. insect diversity recovered, but did not continue increasing without end, returned to about the pre-fumigation equilibrium species richness and then leveled off
richness was lower on the more isolated island

181
Q

Size reduction of islands led to rapid __, with no compensating increase of __, leading to a __ final S

A

extinction; colonization
lower

182
Q

T/F: the area-diversity pattern applies beyond small insular areas like lakes, mountaintops, and islands

A

true
greater species richness is observed on larger continents and regions, rather than smaller ones

183
Q

Define the latitudinal richness gradient

A

species richness of many groups is highest near the equator (in the tropics) and declines with latitude (toward the poles)

184
Q

What is one hypothesis for the latiudinal richness gradient?

A

there is way more land area in the tropics than in other climate zones

185
Q

__ regulates __

A

area; richness

186
Q

Species richness can be a __ of __

A

legacy
history

187
Q

Describe species richness as a legacy of history

A

Mediterranean-type climate of the Cape used to be found in huge areas of central Africa (large source of species) so even though it is small today, it is representative of a once-large area where we would therefore expect high diversity

188
Q

Diversity today may reflect __ episodes of speciation

A

past

189
Q

Why are East Asia’s temperate forests 3-6 times more diverse?

A

center of temperate tree speciation, maybe explaining really high diversity in that region
history matters for diversity more so than the current size of a region does

190
Q

__ and the orienation of __ ranges appear to influence diversity

A

glaciation; mountain

191
Q

Why is species diversity so low in europe?

A

most european mountain ranges have an E-W orientation

192
Q

What is an E-W orientation, and what does it mean for diversity?

A

orientation would have blocked southward retreat for tree species as glaciers advanced; this inference is backed up by estimates of plant extinction rates in three regions (the highest is in europe)

193
Q

During periods of cooling and glacial advance, species in the northern hemisphere need to travel __ to remain in their __ zone

A

southward
climate

194
Q

Bird diversity is highest where the foliage height diversity was the __ (in argentina)

A

lowest

195
Q

Foliage high diversity in northern temperate forests shows bird specie diversity is highest when foliage height diversity is __

A

high

196
Q

Why would the two birds and foliage height diversity show different patterns?

A

island biogeography effects were more important than the effects of environmental complexity in determining diversity

197
Q

What factors may break the rules?

A

importance of area, isolation, and environmental heterogeneity for controlling diversity

Ecology (5 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2025 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions