Download Population Dynamics and Ecosystems Review What factors must be

Population Dynamics and Ecosystems Review
1.
What factors must be considered when looking at population dynamics?
2.
What information do you need to calculate the population change?
3.
What age ranges are used when constructing a population pyramid?
4.
What is the difference between density dependent and density independent population controls? Give examples.
5.
What are the types of dispersion patterns in an ecosystem?
6.
Explain biotic potential and intrinsic rate of increase (r).
7.
How is biotic potential limited by environmental resistance?
8.
What is carrying capacity? Why do organisms tend to stabilize around their carrying capacity?
9.
What happens when a population exceeds carrying capacity?
10. Explain the difference between exponential and logistic growth. Be able to diagram or read a diagram of both
types of growth.
11.
Describe the different types of population fluctuations. What could be a cause of each?
12. What is meant by minimum viable population? What problems do populations face when their numbers get too low?
13. Differentiate between K and r strategists. Give examples.
14. Describe the three types of survivorship curves and give examples of organisms.
15. What is birth rate and death rate? How are these calculated and how does this information enable one to calculate
the percent rate of natural increase?
16. What is the rule of 70 and how can you use this to calculate the doubling time for a population?
17. Explain the difference between the total fertility rate and replacement level fertility.
18. Why is the replacement level fertility over 2? How do developed vs. developing nations compare?
19. What are the factors that tend to increase the number of children in a population?
20. What are the two main indicators of health in a population? Define them and explain.
21. Describe the different kinds of population pyramids seen for human societies. Give examples. Explain how you
know which ones are rapidly growing, slowly growing, at zero pop. Growth or negative growth.
22. Explain the stages of the demographic transition. Be able to read a diagram and understand what is happening at
each stage.
23. What factors tend to help reduce population size?
24. Compare and contrast the various population case studies presented in your text for countries.
25. How do our eating habits affect the carrying capacity for humans on the planet? Explain. What should we be
eating to maximize global population?
26. In 2010, the population of Upper Fremont is 200,000 and growing at a rate of 2% each year.
27.
a.
If the rate of population growth remains constant, calculate the population in 2045.
b.
If the rate of population growth remains constant, calculate the population in 2080.
In the year 2010, a country had a population of 10 million people, a birth rate of 7.2% and a death rate of 2.2%.
If the birth and death rates remain constant, in what year will the population be approximately 40 million? (Hint:
since birth rate and death rates are already in percents you do not have to divide by 10 first).
28. What causes genetic variability in a species?
29.
Describe the process of natural selection.
30. What is evolution?
31. How does the process of natural selection lead to evolution?
32. What is meant by an adaptation?
33. What is really meant by the concept of “survival of the fittest”?
34. What is biodiversity? What two factors influence biodiversity?
35. What is the difference between species richness and species evenness?
36. How does species richness affect the sustainability of an ecosystem?
37. What is the difference between a species’ niche and its habitat?
38. What is the usual cause for the realized niche of an organism to be smaller than its fundamental niche?
39. What is coevolution and what types of organisms go through this process?
40. What are the three types of natural selection? Describe .
41. Discuss how natural selection could be occurring within a population of bacteria or mosquitoes.
42. Compare and contrast a generalist and a specialist.
43. Which of the two is more likely to become endangered and why?
44. Compare and contrast native and non-native species. What are the other names for non-native species?
45. What is an invasive species and why aren’t all non-native species invasive? What characteristics does an invasive
species possess? Give examples.
46. What would make a non-native/invasive species become a pest in its new home? Give examples.
47. What is an indicator species? Give examples.
48. What is a keystone species? Give examples.
49. What is a foundation species? Give examples.
50. What is a predator/prey relationship? Give examples.
51. What is symbiosis? Describe the three types of symbiotic relationships. Give examples.
52. What is competition? Give examples.
53. How can competition be reduced?
54. Discuss the importance of sea otters and kelp forests.
55. How are parasites different from predators?
56. Describe the process of speciation including geographic and reproductive isolation.
57. What is extinction?
58. Differentiate between mass extinction and background extinction. How many mass extinctions have occurred?
When was the most recent?
59. What is an adaptive radiation? How long does this process take?
60. What is a species vs. a population vs. a community?
61. Describe succession and the process of organisms moving in?
62. How does primary succession differ from secondary succession?
63. Describe what happens to solar energy as it flows to and from the earth? What is the natural greenhouse effect
and why is it important for life on earth?
64. Distinguish between the abiotic and biotic components of ecosystems and give two examples of each. What is the
range of tolerance for an abiotic factor? Define and give an example of a limiting factor. What is the limiting
factor principle?
65. What is a trophic level? Distinguish among the producers (autotrophs), consumers (heterotrophs), and
decomposers and give an example of each. Distinguish among primary consumers (herbivores), secondary consumers
(carnivores), high level (third-level and above) consumers, omnivores, scavengers, decomposers, and detritus
feeders (detritovores) and give an example of each by generating a food chain/web.
66. Distinguish among photosynthesis, chemosynthesis, aerobic respiration, and anaerobic respiration (fermentation).
What two processes sustain ecosystems and the biosphere and how are the linked. Give examples of products
anaerobic respiration. Explain the importance of microbes. Know the reactions for aerobic respiration and
photosynthesis.
67. Explain what happens to energy as it flows through the food chains and food webs of an ecosystem. Distinguish
between a food chain and a food web. What is biomass? What is ecological efficiency? What is the pyramid of
energy flow? Discuss the difference between gross primary productivity (GPP) and net primary productivity (NPP)
and explain their importance. Which ecosystems are the most productive and which are the least?