5/24/24 - Lecture 28: Diversity

Question 1

Intermediate disturbance hypothesis

Answer 1

High disturbance frequency results in more r-selected species. Low disturbance results in more k-selected species.

With disturbance frequency comes a bell curve with highest diversity levels at medium disturbance frequency.

Question 2

Intermediate predation hypothesis

Answer 2

Diversity is maximized at intermediate levels of predation

Question 3

Intermediate productivity hypothesis

Answer 3

Diversity is maximized at intermediate levels of productivity

Question 4

Competitively transitive

Answer 4

Whenever species A excludes species B and species B excludes species C, it follows that A excludes C. If not, competitively intransitive

Question 5

What does higher species diversity result in?

Answer 5

Higher production of biomass and less susceptibility to invasion of other species (more niche overlap makes it harder for new species to establish themselves)