Lecture 7 - patches, diets and food webs

Question 1

what is diet breadth/ width?

Answer 1

the range of food types consumed by a predator

Question 2

what predicts diet breadth?

Answer 2

energy
handling time
encounters

Question 3

definition of connectance

Answer 3

the fraction of all possible links that are realised in a network

Question 4

what is a generalist?

Answer 4

individual with a broad diet - consume a large proportion of prey they encounter
little search time yet low profitable items in diet - low relative intake

Question 5

what is a specialist?

Answer 5

individual with a narrow diet - continue searching except when they encounter prey of their specifically preferred type
large search time yet high profitable items - high relative energy intake

Question 6

3 predictions of the optimal diet model:

Answer 6

1 - predators with handling times that are short compared to their search times should be generalists
2 - predators with handling times that are long compared to their search times should be specialists
3 - a predator should have a broader diet in an unproductive environment