Population Ecology Flashcards
age structure pyramids
graphical representations of populations’ ages
albedo
fraction of solar energy reflected back into space
biotic potential
the amount that the population would grow if there were unlimited resources
birth rate
CBR, the number of live births per 1000 members of population in a year
carrying capacity
max pop size that can be supported by available resources
death rate (CDR)
number of deaths per 1000 members of pop in a year
demographic transition model
used to predict population trends based on birth and death rates as well as economic status
ecological footprint
amount of earth’s surface that’s required to supply the needs of and dispose of the waste from a particular population
emigration
the movement of individuals out of a population
genetic drift
the random fluctuations in the frequency of the appearance of a gene; in a small isolated population, presumably owing to chance, rather than natural selection
immigration
move into a pop
k-selected
organisms that reproduce later in life, produce fewer offspring, and devote significant time and energy to the nurturing of their offspring
logistic population growth
when a population is well below the size dictated by the carrying capacity of its region, will grow exponentially, the decrease and stabilize
population density
the number of individuals of a pop that inhabit a certain unit of land or water area
replacement birth rate
the number of children of a couple must have in order to replace themselves in a population
