Ecology, Niche Theory, Food Flashcards
What is an ecosystem?
Community of living organisms interacting
with each other and their non-living
environment
What are the 2 main factors in an ecosystem’s structure? What are examples of each?
Describe this graph and explain where wildlife managers would focus most of their efforts along this spectrum
We would focus our management efforts on the production side of things. This is where all the energy enters the system, and also the easiest phase of the system for us to manipulate. As you move up the system from plants/producers to carnivores, less and less of the energy that was introduced into the system is available to the consumer.
Discuss the relationships between speciation, biodiversity, and healthy ecosystems. What are the 4 mechanisms for speciation?
Why are some species able to co-exist when they would otherwise be competing for the same resources? Who created the niche hypervolume model?
In a healthy ecosystem, the abundance of resources allows for niche partitioning, where species that compete for similar resources will really focus in on what their specific niche/specialty is. A note: if a species has a specialty that overlaps with competing species specialty and its lower fitness options (see hypervolume diagram), that species will win out. This is often why invasive species are able to outcompete native species.
What are some factors that affect nutritional needs?
Age
Season - ex: deer antler growth in summer, nursing young in summer, rebuilding fitness pre-post rut, etc.
Species
What are 4 categories of wildlife food preference?
Summarize the 3 main components of food
What are some ways plants might defend themselves from consumption by animals, or at least balance consumption or make sure it happens at appropriate times?
What are some ways herbivores can damage ecosystems?
What’s the relationship between nutrition and torpor/hibernation/migration?
