Topic 26 Flashcards
Extinction of animal and plant species is often linked to..
human activities
3 types of extinction
- background extinction
- mass extinction
- anthropogenic mass extinction
Background extinction
species disappear and others take their place as environmental conditions change
Mass extinction
dying off of large numbers of species as result of natural catastrophes
Anthropogenic mass extinction
dying off of a large numbers of species as a result of human activities
Information from fossil record (long term perspective) tells us
- background rate: 1 species/year
- present anthropogenic
Extinction
disappearance of all individuals of a species (elimination of a species)
Extirpation
the disappearance of population of a particular species from a local area (elimination of a population)
A population may be extirpated but..
spices is not extinct
Extirpation is a natural process that expresses the..
failure of a species to adapt to changing environmental conditions (change may happen too quick for adaptions to occur)
Deaths > births =
populations decline r < 0
Smaller populations have a greater risk of extinction than larger ones because
genetic drift, inbreeding and the allee effect
Allee effect
with species that derive benefits from naturally aggregating smaller populations sizes can further decrease their chances of success
Extinction vortex
cyclic chain of events that result in small population continues to get smaller as a result of being small
The larger the geographical range of a space the lower..
risk of extinction
Ubiquitous
widespread over larger area
Endemic
only occur in a small area
Loss of habitat in one region leads to
loss of the species
The more age structure of a species the lower
the risk of extinction