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Population Demography quiz #3 Flashcards

Population Demography quiz #3
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  • What is a life table and what demographic information does it typically include?
    A life table is a statistical table that summarizes survivorship, mortality, and reproductive rates of a cohort, often focusing on females in sexually reproducing populations.
  • Define a cohort in the context of population demography.
    A cohort is a group of individuals of the same species born around the same time and followed through their lives in demographic studies.
  • How is mortality rate determined in a life table?
    Mortality rate is calculated by dividing the number of individuals that die during an age interval by the number alive at the start of that interval.
  • What is a survivorship curve and what does it graphically represent?
    A survivorship curve is a graph that shows the number of individuals in a cohort surviving at each age, with age on the x-axis and number of survivors on the y-axis.
  • What defines a type 2 survivorship curve and which organism is a typical example?
    A type 2 survivorship curve has a constant mortality rate throughout life; a typical example is the northern cardinal.
  • Why are survivorship curves considered a spectrum rather than strictly three types?
    Most populations display survivorship patterns that fall between the classic type 1, 2, and 3 curves, making survivorship a spectrum.
  • What demographic information is typically included in a life table?
    A life table typically includes survivorship, mortality rates, and reproductive rates of a cohort, often focusing on females in sexually reproducing populations.
  • In population demography, what is a cohort?
    A cohort is a group of individuals of the same species born around the same time and followed through their lives in demographic studies.
  • How do you calculate the mortality rate for an age interval in a life table?
    Mortality rate is calculated by dividing the number of individuals that die during an age interval by the number alive at the start of that interval.
  • What does a survivorship curve represent and how is it typically graphed?
    A survivorship curve is a graph that shows the number of individuals in a cohort surviving at each age, with age on the x-axis and number of survivors on the y-axis, often using a logarithmic scale.