Unit 2: Ecology and Biodiversity

Question 1

3 Scales of Biodiversity

Answer 1

1. Genetic Variation
2. Species Diversity
3. Habitat/Ecosystem Diversity

Question 2

Would high or low genetic diversity enable a population to have more resilience after environmental stress/disturbance?

Answer 2

High genetic diversity; It is more likely there are advantageous genes present that will protect individuals and give them a better chance of survival.

Question 3

Bottleneck Effect

Answer 3

A drastic and sudden reduction in the size of a population; leads to change in gene pool

Question 4

What defines a species?

Answer 4

Ability to breed and produce offspring effectively

Question 5

Why is species diversity considered a critical environmental indicator?

Answer 5

When species are more diverse, their likelihood of survival increases because they have more opportunities to survive.

Question 6

Generalist Species

Answer 6

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

Question 7

Specialists Species

Answer 7

Live under very narrow range of conditions or feed on one or very small group of species

Question 8

How would habitat loss effect specialists vs generalists?

Answer 8

Specialists: impact very negatively because limited opportunity of survival
Generalists: wouldn’t effect as poorly because able to survive off of wider range of resources

Question 9

Species Richness

Answer 9

Number of total species

Question 10

Species Evenness

Answer 10

Abundance of individuals within each species

Question 11

Simpsons DIversity Index

Answer 11

D = N (N - 1) / SUM n (n - 1)

N = total number of individuals collected
n = numbers of individuals of a species

Question 12

4 Types of Ecosystem Services

Answer 12

1. Provisioning
2. Regulating
3. Support
4. Cultural

Question 13

Provisioning

Answer 13

Goods that humans use

Lumber, crops, rubber, fur, medicinal plants

Question 14

Regulating

Answer 14

Helps regulate environmental conditions

Nutrient and water cycles

Question 15

Support

Answer 15

Needed to support and maintain services

Pollination, water filtration

Question 16

Cultural

Answer 16

Aesthetic uses

Tourism, real estate, recreation

Question 17

Intrinsic vs Instrumental value

Answer 17

Intrinsic: moral/spiritual/religious/philosophical
Instrumental: has worth in terms of goods and services

Question 18

Island Biogeography

Answer 18

Study of the ecological relationships and distribution of organisms, and of these organisms’ community structures

Question 19

Natural vs anthropogenic ways of new species colonization on islands

Answer 19

Natural: swimming, storms, flying, riding other organisms
Anthropogenic: boats, purposeful bringing

Question 20

Are most island species specialists or generalists?

Answer 20

Specialists, this makes them more vulnerable to invasive species.

Question 21

Theory of Island Biogeography

Answer 21

Increased species richness usually indicates a bigger island size

Question 22

Ranges of Tolerance

Answer 22

Populations thrive within certain ranges of abiotic factors

Zone of Intolerance: NO SPECIES
Zone of Stress: FEW SPECIES
Optimal Range: SPECIES ABUNDANT

Question 23

Limiting factors

Answer 23

Environmental factors that are most often in short supply

Question 24

Resistance vs Resilience:

Answer 24

Resistance: Ability to remain unchanged when being subjected to disturbance

Resilience: Ability and rate to recover from disturbance and return to pre-disturbed state

Question 25

Intermediate Disturbance Hypothesis

Answer 25

Ecosystems require certain levels of distribution for maximum health and diversity

Question 26

What makes modern-day change, with anthropogenic causes, different from all the previous natural change?

Answer 26

Frequency and Intensity

Question 27

Fitness vs Adaptation

Answer 27

Fitness: Differential ability to survive and reproduce Adaptation: Any behavioral or physical characteristic that increases fitness

Question 28

4 Points of Natural Selection

Answer 28

1. There is a struggle for existence among organisms 2. There is physical/behavioral variation in living organisms 3. Organisms with higher fitness are more likely to survive (survival of the fittest) 4. Over time, natural selection will cause certain characteristics to appear more often as they are passed through generations

Question 29

When faced with environmental condition changes, populations may:

Answer 29

M: Migrate to more favorable conditions A: Adapt D: Die

Question 30

How does climate change effect evolution?

Answer 30

Ice age, global warming perceived as cause for migration, extinction, new niches

Question 31

Primary Succession

Answer 31

Starts with airborne lichen on bare rock

Question 32

Secondary Succession

Answer 32

Starts with grass because already has base from primary succession. Occurs much faster

Question 33

Keystone species

Answer 33

Animals that have bigger impact on their ecosystems than others.

Question 34

What happens when you lose keystone species?

Answer 34

Food webs and nutrient cycles disrupted, population crashes, eventual extinction

Question 35

Trophic Casade

Answer 35

Impact every trophic level exponentially (think of wolves at Yellowstone)