Lab Midterm #2 Flashcards
Mark and Recapture
Used to estimate population size
Capture individuals, mark them and release
Recapture and count marked individuals
Absolute Abundance
The overall abundance of an ecosystem, not looking at different abundances in individual taxa
Petersen Method
When a population is closed and a single mark is used then we employ this method
Schnabel Method
This is an extension of the Petersen method were multiple samples are used
Jolly-Seber Method
When populations are open we use this method
Individuals are marked and location/time is recorded
When it is resampled you can understand how much it has moved
6 Assumptions of the Petersen method
The marking method does not affect the individual
Mark must last for the entire sample period
Marked animals must disperse completely between the time of release and the time of the next sample
The likelihood of an animal being captured must not change with its age
The population is closed (no immigration or immigration)
There are no births or deaths during the study`
Biogeography
A part of ecology that attempts to document and explain where organisms live, what diversity is present, and biological reasons why they are found in certain areas
Robert MacArthur and E.O. Wilson
combined some of the ideas that were observed for patterns of diversity on islands.
Formalization of Theory of Island Biogeography (IBT)
Island Biotas
The plants and animals that you find on island areas (isolated habitats)
What does island diversity reflect?
Diversity of mainland (source area), size of the island and distance the island is from source (mainland)
Relationship between island size and distance from the source?
Larger islands tend to have higher species #’s as do islands that are closer to the mainland.
Biodiversity
the measure of the relative density among organisms present in different ecosystems
Broadened biodiversity statement
the integration of biological variability across all scales (from genes to landscapes) and can be thought of as processes that occur at the structural, compositional and functional levels of biological organization
The ultimate goal of recording biological diversity
build a factual foundation for answering basic questions about evolution and ecology
What is accelerating the global biodiversity crisis? (2)
Habitat loss and the consequence of species assemblages that cannot adapt to large and rapid habitat alterations
Factors that influence the collection of biodiversity? (6)
Temporal sequencing Size of area Sample design Type of collecting method used Environment sampled Taxa of interest
The distinction between the two sampling strategies? (Individual-based or sample-based)
Individual-based: represented by collector curves
Sample-based: Represented by the choice of sampling methods
Bear feeding behaviour at Bag Harbour
They selectively choose females during the day for their eggs
Capture most of their salmon at night, these are normally males as they are larger (easier to catch)
Most salmon consumed is male
Most predation is on post-reproductive salmon, has minimal effect on reproduction however
This is because they mostly have already spawned
d15N
This is the amount of nitrogen that exists within organisms
This varies from ecosystem to ecosystem
The atmospheric nitrogen is constant, but what gets into soil is variable
Theory of Island Biogeography (IBT)
Diversity on islands reflects the diversity of the mainland source, distance from the mainland and size of the island
Bigger distance from the island and smaller island have lower biodiversity
The goal of recording biological diversity?
build a factual foundation for answering basic questions about evolution and ecology
Factors that influenced the collection of biodiversity data (6)
Temporal sequencing Size of area Type of sample design Type of collecting method Environment sampled Taxa of interest
2 Sampling Strategies
Individual-based protocols (collector curves)
Sample-based protocols: choice of sampling methods (transects and quadrants)
What determines the Immigration rate on the island (2)
Distance, # spp. remaining in mainland pool (probability of species to disperse)
What determines the extinction rate on the island (2)
Island area, # of species on the island (probability of species to go extinct)
Hypothetical Model Curves (4)
Broken Stick model
Log-normal series
Log series
Geometric series
The goal of the FACE project
Free air carbon enrichment
To establish a roadmap for implementing metagenomic analysis of soil communities across several FACE sites
Effects of fragmentation on species diversity (5)
Loss of original habitat Reduction of remnant patch size Increasing isolation of remnant patches Degree of connectedness Edge effects
Diptera
Two-winged flies or true flies
Coleoptera
These are the beetles
Hard bodied
Collembola
There are the springtails
Widest distribution of any hexapod group
Psocoptera
Barklice or booklice
Hymenoptera
Bees, wasps, ants
Lepidoptera
These are the butterflies and moths
Thysanoptera
Thrips
Perhaps the smallest of the flying insects
Araneae
These are the spiders
Acari
These are the mites
Opiliones
Daddy long-legs or harvestmen spiders
Not true spiders
Terrestrial Isopoda
Pill bugs
Chilipoda
These are the centipedes
Diplopoda
Milipedes
Pseudoscorpiones
These are small predacious arachnids
They lack the telson of a true scorpion
Terrestrial Gastropoda
These are the slugs and snails
Oligochaeta
These are the worms often called earthworms
3 Important Parts of Conservation
Knowing the ecology of the animal
The ethical framework
Having a good population estimate
Negative Effects of Edges on Biodiversity (5)
Edges can cause new species to migrate into the interior forest habitat and increase competition and force out native species
The species living on the edge can become increasingly stressed by the new abiotic environment, making them more prone to disease, predation, and parasites
Amphibians that are adapted to the cool/damp interior may not be able to survive the harsher edge environments
Migratory birds will likely decrease as with specialist bird species, due to more predation
Large mammals will suffer more during winter months with less interior habitat and reduce their numbers
What is macroecology
Study of broad-scale geographic patterns and processes
What general conclusions can you make about species abundances in communities
At any given location some species may be very abundant while others may be moderate to low abundance
What preservative is typically used in a pitfall trap?
50/50 mix of propylene glycol and 70% ethanol
Denatonium benzoate is added to deter mammals
4 Methods for Estimating Snow Leopard abundance
a. Predator:Prey biomass ratios
b. Capture-recapture density estimation
c. Photo-capture rate
d. Individual identification through genetic analysis
7 Points Relating to Wildlife Monitoring using drones
Regular monitoring is essential, so drones are beneficial, the drawback is the low operational distance
Studies note the success of drones
Focussed on 4 aspects of what drones could provide: available systems/sensors, survey plans/detection possibilities, anti-poaching, legislation/ethics
Drones are mainly used for cost-effectiveness
Mostly line transects have been used
Contribution to anti-poaching not well documented could be a breakthrough
Legislation is preventing testing all possibilities
Multitaxa Approach
Using many different taxa that are trophically and taxonomically diverse to look at dominance and species richness
Causes of edge in BC forests (4)
Logging
Urbanization
Agriculture
Fires
Model rank abundance curves (4)
Trends within them
Broken stick model (closest nature gets to maximal eveness)
Log Series
Log-normal series
Geometric series
Evenness increases: Geometric:Log:Log-normal: Broken stick
Dominance decreases: Geometric:Log:Log-normal: Broken stick
When would Petersen give you a bad estimate (4)
Population not closed
Marked animals likely to be re-trapped
Marked animals likely to die
Marks fall off
3 Components of Biodiversity
Structural
Compositional
Functional
Causes of Extinction (6)
Habitat loss Change in habitat quality Habitat fragmentation Persecution and exploitation of populations Change in the biotic environment Climate change
2 Components of Diversity
Richness and Eveness
Simpson diversity index points to note (3)
Heavily weighted towards the most abundant species
Less sensitive to species richness
Captures variance of species abundance distribution (Whittaker Plots)
Shannon index notes (4)
One of the most common diversity indexes
Rare species are taken into account
Sample size is not a major concern
Comparisons of community diversity
3 Rules for a Meaningful Hypothesis
Reasonably consistent with well-established facts
It is capable of being tested and repeatable
It is falsifiable
