Population Ecology

Question 1

Age-structure pyramids

Answer 1

Graphical representations of populations’ ages

Question 2

Albedo

Answer 2

The fraction of solar energy that is reflected back into space

Question 3

Biotic Potential

Answer 3

The amount that the population would grow if there were unlimited resources in its environment

Question 4

Birth Rate (crude bith rate)

Answer 4

The number of live births per 1,000 members of the population in a year

Question 5

Brownfield Site

Answer 5

An industrial or commercial site that is idle or underused because it is contaminated by hazardous waste or pollutants

Question 6

Carrying Capacity

Answer 6

The maximum population size that can be supported by the available resources in a region

Question 7

Collapse

Answer 7

Severe to catastrophic dieback of a population due to overshoot

Question 8

Death Rate (crude death rate)

Answer 8

The number of deaths per 1,000 members of the population in a year

Question 9

Demographic Transition model

Answer 9

A model that is used to predict population trends based on the birth and death rates as well as economic status of a population

Question 10

Ecological Footprint

Answer 10

The amount of Earth’s surface required to supply the needs of and dispose of the waste from a particular population

Question 11

Food Desert

Answer 11

An area, usually low-income, in which many residents cannot access affordable, healthy food

Question 12

Emigration

Answer 12

The movement of individuals out of a population

Question 13

Genetic Drift

Answer 13

The random fluctuations in the frequency of the appearance of a gene in a small isolated population, presumably owing to chance, rather than natural selecting

Question 14

Immigration

Answer 14

The movement of individuals into a population

Question 15

K-selected

Answer 15

Organisms that reproduce later in life, produce fewer offspring, and devote significant time and energy to the nurturing of their offspring

Question 16

Logistic Population Growth

Answer 16

The condition in which a population is well below the size dictated by the carrying capacity of its region, so it will grow exponentially; but as it approaches the carrying capacity, its growth rate will decrease and the size of the population will eventually become stable

Question 17

Overshoot

Answer 17

When a population exceeds its carrying capacity

Question 18

Population density

Answer 18

The number of individuals of a population that inhabit a certain unit of land or water area

Question 19

Population Momentum

Answer 19

The condition in which a large proportion of women are in childbearing years, so that a country’s population will continue to grow even if the fertility rate falls to replacement levels

Question 20

Replacement birth rate

Answer 20

The number of children a couple must have in order to replace themselves in a population

Question 21

r-selected

Answer 21

Organisms that reproduce early in life and often and have a high capacity for reproductive growth

Question 22

Total Fertility Rate

Answer 22

The number of children an average woman will bear during her lifetime; this information is based on an analysis of data from preceding years in the population in question