BIOL220W Final Flashcards
(153 cards)
Describe why temperature and precipitation vary globally and why some, but not all, portions of our planet show seasonality in temperature and precipitation
Regions near the equation have more direct sunlight year-round. Areas farther from the equator experience more pronounced seasons due to the 23.5 rotational tilt.
Explain how the variation in temperature, precipitation, atmospheric circulations, and/or seasons causes predictable global patterns in climate and distribution of organisms
Different regions with distinct climates support different types of life due to the specific challenges posed by their temperature, rainfall, and seasonal changes
Predict regional wet and dry seasons using your understanding of how/why atmospheric circulation patterns shift as the earth rotates around the sun
Hadley cells affect prevailing winds, which makes intense solar radiation equator, then rises, makes dry air, and returns to equator. During Summer, the sun rays are more direct
Explain the effect of prevailing winds and mountains on regional climate
Rain Shadow Effect: Rising moist air cools, then descending dry air absorbs moisture (Rain comes up a mountain, then peaks, then dry air warms as it goes down the mountain causing a rain shadow and making warm/dry air)
Describe 1-2 key features that make each biome unique
Average annual temp
Average total precipitation
Describe predicted (and already being observed) effects of climate change on the environment and how these changes might affect species interactions and distributions
Coral bleaching (overexposure to sun, temp change, pollution). Algae leaves the coral, so coral turns white and dies.
Also, air pollution, more asthma. Extreme heat, more heat strokes
Northern hemisphere has warmest temps when
June to August (wet season)
Southern hemisphere has warmest temps when
December to February (wet season)
Describe how species accumulation curves are generated and determine if all species have been counted in a community by interpreting species accumulation curve data
Developed by progressively sampling a community. As new species are taken, curve grows rapidly until curve plateaus over time.
Compare/contrast alpha, beta, and gamma species diversity concepts
Alpha-> species diversity within a single ecosytem, count # of species (species richness)
Beta-> Variation in species composition between different habitats
Gamma-> Total diversity at a regional scale, integrating both alpha and beta diversity
If alpha increases,
species richness increases
If beta increases,
communities have fewer shared species
Distinguish between two components of population abundance: size and density
Species density: Number of individual species in a given area
Abundance is number of individuals of species
Describe how population abundance data is collected and make some basic calculations using quadrat or mark-recapture data to estimate population size
To estimate population size, use area based survey (density) or
Line-transect survey (abundance) -> Sampling along a line (such as 20m, indiv. are counted as one moves along a line)
Mark-recapture survey (abundance)-> Used for mobile organisms (captured, marked, released)
Human population census surveys (both)
Quadrat
Sampling area of specific size. Individuals are usually counted in several quadrats
Explain the factors that directly determine population size (BIDE) and how they affect it
B= # of births
I = # of immigrant
D = Death
E = Emigrants
Life table needs age, # individuals in age class, survivorship, and fecundity (mean # of daughters)
Describe demography, including what can be calculated about populations and how it can be used in real life
Statistical study of populations; size, structure, distribution and changes
It can be used for conservation planning, endangered species, and pest/disease management
Compare/contrast the life history characteristics of populations described by the three forms of survivorship curves
Type I: most survive to old age
Type II: Chance of surviving remains constant during lifetime
Type III: High death rates for young, those that reach adulthood survive well
Infer whether a population is increasing, decreasing, or stable from its age structure distribution
Population growth (R) = B-D
Per capita growth rate (r) = (B/N) - (D/N)
Age structure diagram shows proportion of population in each age class
Interpret a cohort life table and calculate parameters (lx, bx, nx, no, mx) using provided ecological data
x=Age
nx= # of individual at age x
lx= survivorship: proportion of individuals that survive from birth (n0) at age x
mx= fecundity
lx= (nx/n0)
mx= (bx/nx) with bx= # born in between age classes
Calculate the net reproductive rate (R0), mean generation time (T), and growth rate (r) of a population using data from survivorship and fecundity and describe what the biological meaning is for each calculated value
R0= Average # of female offspring in a generation
T= Avg time from the birth of a female until the birth of her daughters
Population growth rate (r) = ln(R0)/ G
Net reproductive rate (R0) = sum(lxmx) .
Compare and contrast geometric and exponential growth models, including the relationship between lambda and r
Geometric -> 1 reproductive event per time period
Exponential -> Continuous, overlapping reproductive events
r= intrinsic growth rate
r=ln(lamba)
Predict population size: Nt=N0e^(rt)
For each generation, population size changes by a constant ratio
R0 is lamba in geometric growth models
R0-# of offspring per generation
Describe the meaning of the components (e.g., r, Nt) in growth model equations and use them in calculations
FOR EXPONENTIAL (instantaneous rate of change in pop size)
dN/dt = rN
r= b-d
Resources unlimited, thus per capita rate of change in pop. size = intrinsic growth rate
Describe why the incorporation of a carrying capacity (K) into the exponential equation changes the population growth curve to be logistic: consider this from mathematical and biological perspectives
Logistic is restricted because the carrying capacity is a restriction on the population count
