Module1; lecture 7, pandemics Flashcards
How to deal with pandemics?
Monitor globally for the appearance of a virus in humans with pandemic potential
Once a pandemic emerges what to do(2)?
1.Quickly produce a vaccine
2.Limit exposure and transmission Modern communication is quick ( we are no longer waiting for the newspaper to get information)
a. Wearing masks, social distancing, quarantine, etc
b. Limit travel to limit spread
Why is it a challenge to quickly produce vaccines? What helps vaccine development?
Huge challenge, not easy because vaccines constantly mutating. ( this has worked in the past) = still a slow and difficult process. New knowledge about viruses helps vaccine development and new methods for vaccine production being tested.
Herd immunity
When a large part of a community is immune, virus has limited hosts
What are useful for promoting herd immunity?
Vaccines
Why do we monitor the “Viral Chatter” in animals?
In order of determining which things may be likely to become problematic…
In what areas do we monitor Viral Chatter?
Monitoring across the globe; in places where there are frequent interactions between humans and wild animals ( hunters or wet market)
Example given of real life monitoring viral chatter, who do we work with to monitor such thing?
Monitoring in sub-Saharan Africa; working with hunters, convincing them not to collect already dead animals ( since they don’t know what killed them)
Why hunters?
- Because we can get info from the hunters about the animals they encounter
- Hunters can actually collect blood samples from the animals they kill
By what method can hunters collect blood samples from animals?
Card method; making it possible to isolate viruses.
Humans greatly influence the environment, and in turn this influences the other organisms in that environment. What are two known aspects of this?
1.Global warming/climate change
2.Habitat alteration/destruction
when faced with selection pressure, species can ______or________or________
Show phenotypic plasticity or evolve (or adapt) or Go extinct
Showing phenotypic plasticity
change their phenotype to one that better deals with the selection pressure. The idea that some organisms can alter their phenotype, and express different traits depending on the environment conditions. Does not require change or evolution.
Trophic Mismatch
Timing of migration and breeding need to coordinate with the timing of food availability.
Why can temperature and climate can have big effects on breeding?
- Animals evolved to use cues; like temperature and daylight to determine when to breed
- shaped by natural selection: Selection will favour individuals that can maximize their reproductive output.
Timing of breeding is full of _____
Trade-offs in order to maximize number of offspring, minimize costs ( finding food, mates, shelter)
Example of trophic mismatch
caribou example no phenotypic plasticity: caribou not flexible in when they give birth— gestation time is long, can’t make last minute changes
Has the caribous made any progress in evolutionary changes? what could this result in?
NO, So far in caribous, there hasn’t been any evolutionary change in the timing of births, so if no evolution or plasticity.. could lead to extinction.
Changes in global temperature could drive speciation?
YES, Two populations that are becoming genetically divergent…
Habitat alteration/destruction happens as a consequence of what?
-as a consequence of humans
-as a consequence of noise pollution
Example of noise pollution and its effect birds
In urban areas our sounds will influence the sounds that birds make. This can be an example of
- Phenotypic plasticity
- cultural evolution ( since birds learn their songs from the birds)
- genetic evolution
Lombard effect
Humans will increase the amplitude (loudness) and frequency (pitch) of our speech when ambient noise increases. This is also called the “cocktail party” effect
Lombard effect is also known as the _____ effect
“Cocktail party effect; You will raise your voice in order to be heard, consequently, the people around you will raise their voices and so on…
Birds example of lombard/cocktail party effect
Birds do this when singing in a noisy environment but females chose males based on their songs, so male birds have to sing louder to be heard but doing so may alter aspects of their song, so this can affect how the animal reproduces ,etc
Habitat fragmentation
Lots of habitat fragments or land “islands”; animal populations are separated from each other.
term food chain can be misleading, what is it really?
Term food chain can be misleading, its really a food pyramid
Primary producers vs consumers
-Lots of individuals at the base ( primary producers)
-Fewer individuals as you move up levels ( consumers)
What is the apex predator
The one at the top of the pyramid
Do apex predators have big population sizes?
the population size of each apex carnivore species is going to be much smaller than the population size of species at other trophic levels + The diversity in the number of types of carnivores will be smaller than the diversity of life at other levels
Why large predators require particularly large habitats?
- Because large predators use a lot of resources:
- Food: apex predators need other organisms filling in the base of the pyramid
Why are apex predators important?
Apex predators are important for keeping many aspects of the ecosystem in balance
