Chapter 13 - Conservation Ecology (CHAPTER + SLIDES)

Question 2

What is biodiversity at its simplest definition?

Answer 2

Biodiversity at its simplest means species richness, the number of species present in a defined geographic unit.

Question 3

Name two scales at which biodiversity can be viewed besides species richness.

Answer 3

Besides species richness, biodiversity can be viewed at the genetic level within species (genetic diversity) and at the community or ecosystem level (variety of community types).

Question 4

What is conservation?

Answer 4

Conservation is the collective name given to actions taken to slow down or reverse the losses of species and biodiversity.

Question 5

Briefly describe demographic uncertainty in small populations.

Answer 5

Demographic uncertainty refers to random variations in demographic factors like sex ratio, death rates, or reproductive success that can have a significant impact on the fate of small populations.

Question 6

Briefly describe environmental uncertainty in small populations.

Answer 6

Environmental uncertainty involves unpredictable changes in environmental factors, from rare disasters to year-to-year variations, which can reduce small populations to dangerously low numbers or extinction.

Question 7

What is genetic drift?

Answer 7

Genetic drift is the random changes in gene frequency within a population resulting from sampling effects, rather than natural selection. It is particularly important in small populations.

Question 8

What is inbreeding depression?

Answer 8

Inbreeding depression is the deleterious effects that result from individuals breeding with close relatives, which increases the likelihood of offspring receiving harmful recessive alleles from both parents.

Question 9

What are the three main ways human influence adversely affects habitats?

Answer 9

The three main ways human influence adversely affects habitats are habitat destruction, habitat degradation by pollution, and habitat disturbance by human activities.

Question 10

What is overexploitation?

Answer 10

Overexploitation is when populations are harvested at an unsustainable rate, meaning the rate of removal is faster than the population can replace individuals through reproduction.

Question 11

Give one example of how an introduced species can cause extinction.

Answer 11

The introduction of the brown tree snake onto Guam caused the extinction of 10 endemic forest bird species through nest predation.

Question 12

What is biodiversity?

Answer 12

At its simplest, species richness, the number of species present in a defined geographic unit. It can also include genetic diversity within species and the variety of community types in a region.

Question 13

What is conservation?

Answer 13

The collective name given to actions taken to slow down or reverse the losses of species and biodiversity.

Question 14

What is species richness?

Answer 14

The number of species present in a defined geographic unit.

Question 15

What is genetic diversity?

Answer 15

The variety of genes within a species, including genetically distinct subpopulations and subspecies.

Question 16

What are community types?

Answer 16

The variety of different biological communities present in a region (e.g., swamps, deserts, woodlands).

Question 17

What does critically endangered mean?

Answer 17

A species considered to have more than a 50% probability of extinction in 10 years or three generations, whichever is longer.

Question 18

What does endangered mean?

Answer 18

A species considered to have more than a 20% chance of extinction in 20 years or five generations.

Question 19

What does vulnerable mean?

Answer 19

A species considered to have a greater than 10% chance of extinction in 100 years.

Question 20

What does near threatened mean?

Answer 20

A species close to qualifying for a threat category or judged likely to qualify in the near future.

Question 21

What does least concern mean?

Answer 21

A species that does not meet any of the higher threat categories.

Question 22

What is demographic uncertainty?

Answer 22

Random variations in demographic factors (like sex ratio, birth rate, death rate) that can significantly affect small populations.

Question 23

What is environmental uncertainty?

Answer 23

Unpredictable changes in environmental conditions that can disproportionately affect small populations.

Question 24

What is effective population size (N_e)?

Answer 24

The size of an ideal population that is equivalent to the actual population in genetic terms; often less than the total population size (N).

Question 25

What is genetic drift?

Answer 25

Random changes in gene frequency within a population resulting from sampling effects, more significant in small populations.

Question 26

What is inbreeding depression?

Answer 26

The deleterious effects resulting from breeding between closely related individuals, due to the increased likelihood of homozygous expression of harmful recessive alleles.

Question 27

What is overexploitation?

Answer 27

Harvesting populations at a rate that is unsustainable, exceeding the population's ability to replenish itself through reproduction.

Question 28

What is habitat destruction?

Answer 28

The complete removal of a habitat for other uses (e.g., urban development, agriculture).

Question 29

What is habitat fragmentation?

Answer 29

The division of a continuous habitat into smaller, isolated patches.

Question 30

What is habitat degradation?

Answer 30

The reduction in the quality of a habitat, often due to pollution or disturbance, making it less suitable for certain species.

Question 31

What are introduced species?

Answer 31

Species that have been moved to a new geographic area, often by human actions.

Question 32

What are invasive species?

Answer 32

Introduced species that cause significant negative impacts on native species or communities.

Question 33

What is chytrid disease?

Answer 33

An infectious disease affecting amphibians, caused by a fungus, that has been linked to widespread amphibian declines.

Question 34

What is an extinction vortex?

Answer 34

A process where multiple factors (like small population size, genetic problems, and demographic uncertainty) interact to progressively lower population sizes, leading inexorably to extinction.

Question 35

What is a keystone species?

Answer 35

A species whose impact on its community or ecosystem is disproportionately large relative to its abundance, and whose removal can lead to cascading effects, including extinctions of other species.

Question 36

What is an endemic species?

Answer 36

Species that are native to and found only in a particular geographic area.

Question 37

What are ecosystem services?

Answer 37

The benefits that humans receive from ecosystems, categorized as provisioning, regulating, cultural, and supporting services.

Question 38

What are provisioning ecosystem services?

Answer 38

Direct products obtained from ecosystems (e.g., food, fresh water, timber, genetic resources).

Question 39

What are regulating ecosystem services?

Answer 39

Benefits obtained from the regulation of ecosystem processes (e.g., climate regulation, flood control, disease regulation, water purification).

Question 40

What are cultural ecosystem services?

Answer 40

Non-material benefits obtained from ecosystems (e.g., aesthetic, spiritual, recreational, educational).

Question 41

What are supporting ecosystem services?

Answer 41

Services necessary for the production of all other ecosystem services (e.g., nutrient cycling, soil formation, primary production).

Question 42

What is ex situ conservation?

Answer 42

Conservation efforts that take place outside of a species' natural habitat, such as captive breeding programs, zoos, and seed banks.

Question 43

What is minimum viable population size (MVP)?

Answer 43

The minimum population size for a rare species to be able to preserve its numbers and survive, influenced by genetic diversity, genetic quality, environmental instability, and demographic factors.