Download lec4.dsc

Sept 19 Environmental gradients and landscape pattern
Text, Chapter 4 pgs 71-83.
Melis, C., et.al. 2009. Predation has a greater impact in less productive
environments: variation in roe deer, Capreolus capreolus, population density
across Europe. Global Ecology and Biogeography 18:724–734.
Hansen, A.J., L.B. Phillips, C.H. Flather and J. Robison-Cox. 2011. Carrying
capacity for species richness as a context for conservation: A case study of North
American breeding birds. Global Ecology and Biogeography 20, 817-831.
Discussion Questions
1. What are examples of abiotic factors that drive landscape pattern? How do we
measure and quantify these factors?
2. How do these abiotic factors interact with disturbance and succession to influence
landscape pattern?
3. In what ways does the performance of individual organisms vary with abiotic factors?
How do these individual responses ultimately influence the dynamics of populations? In
what ways do abiotic factors influence species richness?
5. If classical ecologists organized their thinking around how climate and soil influenced
ecological communities, then why do you suppose that modern ecologists and
conservation biologists have tended to ignore the effects of abiotic factors?
6. What are the implications of the Melis et al. 2009 paper for the classical debate in
ecology as to whether “top-down” or “bottom-up” process control ecosystems?
7. Critically evaluate the concept of “carrying capacity of species richness” as
summarized in the Hansen et al. 2011 paper.
8. Think of abiotic factors in terms of your project. How might abiotic factors influence
or affect your question of interest and how will you address this in your data collection
and analysis?
9. Species abundance, home range, population dynamics, etc. vary with different levels
of energy within ecosystems. How do you think energy levels would differ for marine
systems? Would there still be areas considered to have high, medium and low energy
levels?
10. Is it possible to have artificial abiotic conditions in order to create an ecosystem (to
create artificial hot spot for example)?