Biodiversity Week 1

Question 1

Species diversity

Answer 1

The number of species in a region or in a particular ecosystem

Question 2

Habitat diversity

Answer 2

The variety of habitats that exist in a given ecosystem

Question 3

Specialists

Answer 3

Species that only live under a narrow range of biotic or abiotic conditions

Question 4

Generalists

Answer 4

Species that can live under a wide range of biotic or abiotic conditions

Question 5

Ecosystem diversity

Answer 5

The variety of ecosystems that exist in a given region

Question 6

Species richness

Answer 6

The number of different species in a given area

Question 7

Species evenness

Answer 7

The relative proportion of individuals within the different species in a given area

Question 8

Ecological tolerance

Answer 8

The suite of abiotic conditions under which a species can survive, grow, and reproduce. Also known as fundamental niche

Question 9

Realized niche

Answer 9

The range of abiotic conditions under which a species actually lives

Question 10

Geographic range

Answer 10

Areas of the world in which a species lives

Question 11

Mass extinction

Answer 11

A large number of species that went extinct over a relatively short period of time

Question 12

Periodic disruption

Answer 12

Occurring regularly, such as the cycles of day and night or the daily and monthly cycles of the moon’s effect on ocean tides

Question 13

Episodic disruption

Answer 13

Occurring somewhat regularly, such as cycles of high rain and low rain that occur every 5 to 10 years

Question 14

Random disruption

Answer 14

Occurring with no regular pattern, such as volcanic eruptions or hurricanes

Question 15

Resistance

Answer 15

In an ecosystem, a measure of how much a disruption can affect the flows of energy and matter

Question 16

Resilience

Answer 16

The rate at which an ecosystem returns to its original state after a disruption

Question 17

Intermediate disturbance hypothesis

Answer 17

The hypothesis that ecosystems experiencing intermediate levels of disturbance will favor a higher level of diversity of species than those with high or low disturbance levels