Lecture 21

Question 1

Biological definition of species

Answer 1

Groups of potentially interbreeding natural populations which are reproductively isolated from other such groups. Doesn’t explain why many species hybridise, hard for asexual organisms, cant be applied to fossil taxa, sometime hard to reconcile with the range in form of particular species e.g dog.

Question 2

Phylogenetic definition of species

Answer 2

Differ in genetic/DNA profile

Question 3

Morphological definition of species

Answer 3

Overall similarities in looks

Question 4

Dingo

Answer 4

Differs in morphology, ecology, behaviour and genetics. Can interbreed with dogs and grey wolves

Question 5

Counting species

Answer 5

Define area where count is, how much of the area in sample, which kind of organism will be counted. Counts for large, traps for small, cameras/remote sensory genetic methods. Time of day/season/weather conditions are important.

Question 6

Comparing counts

Answer 6

-Management
-New developments
-Distribution

Question 7

Species richness

Answer 7

Simple count (or estimate) of the number of species

Question 8

Diversity

Answer 8

closer to 1 = less diverse
closer to 0 = more diverse