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Introduction to Population Ecology quiz #3 Flashcards

Introduction to Population Ecology quiz #3
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  • How does age structure help us predict population growth?
    It indicates the proportion of individuals in reproductive and pre-reproductive age groups, suggesting potential for growth.
  • What happens when a population nears carrying capacity?
    Growth rate slows as resources become limited, leading to increased competition and mortality.
  • Which of the following does not affect a population's size? A) Birth rate B) Death rate C) Immigration D) Color of individuals
    D) Color of individuals
  • Which of the following is a population? A) All the animals in a zoo B) All the humans in a city C) All the plants in a garden D) All the fish in a pond
    B) All the humans in a city
  • What is population ecology and what does it study?
    Population ecology is the study of how and why populations change over time, focusing on population dynamics such as size, density, and factors influencing these changes.
  • What is the difference between population size and population density?
    Population size is the total number of individuals in a population, while population density is the number of individuals per unit area or volume, indicating how crowded a population is.
  • What four factors directly influence changes in population size?
    Births and immigration increase population size, while deaths and emigration decrease it.
  • How do deaths and emigration affect a population?
    Deaths and emigration remove individuals from a population, decreasing its size.
  • How does migration contribute to the stability of a metapopulation?
    Migration allows individuals to move between local populations, enabling recolonization of areas where local populations have gone extinct, thus increasing overall stability.
  • What are the three main patterns of dispersion in populations?
    The three main patterns of dispersion are clumped, uniform, and random.
  • What causes a uniform dispersion pattern in a population?
    Uniform dispersion occurs when individuals are evenly spaced, often due to territorial behavior or competition for resources.
  • How can the observed pattern of dispersion change depending on the scale of observation?
    The dispersion pattern can appear different at different scales; for example, a clumped pattern at a large scale may show uniform spacing within each clump at a smaller scale.
  • Why are population boundaries important in population ecology?
    Population boundaries define the area of study, allowing ecologists to accurately measure and analyze population metrics.
  • How does population density provide insight into the degree of crowding in a population?
    Population density measures the number of individuals per unit area, indicating how crowded or sparse a population is.