What is Mullerian mimicry?
Two species share similar anti-predator characteristics and co-mimic each other
What is Batesian mimicry?
A behavior in which preys look like or behaves like a distasteful or poisonous species
What is a Population?
Groups of individuals of the same species living in the same area
What is a species range?
The area where a particular species can be found during its lifetime
What is a demography?
Quantitative study of changes in the characteristics of populations
What is population size?
Number of individuals in the population
What is abundance?
The number of individuals in the population
What is complete enumeration?
Count every individual in the population
What is population sampling?
Count individuals in many small portions of the area then calculate density
What is mark recapture?
Recapturing individuals within a restricted period soon after marking
What is radio telemetry?
Spatial patterns and movements and activity pattern (temporal)
What is population density?
Number of individuals in a given area or volume
What is dispersion?
Pattern of spacing among individuals in the population
What is a clumped dispersion?
Individuals aggregate in patches; influenced by resource availability and behavior
What is a uniform dispersion?
Individuals are evenly distributed; influenced by social interactions
What is a random dispersion?
Position of each individual is independent of other individuals
What is age structure?
Number of individuals at different ages
What is age distribution?
Proportion of individuals at different ages
What is sex ratio?
Proportion of individuals of each sex
What is population variability?
Differences among individuals in the population
What is sexual dimorphism?
Sexes differ greatly in appearance
What is metamorphosis?
Dramatic transformation as they age
What is immigration?
Simply to movement of an organism to an area
What is emigration?
The movement of something away from a location
What is a J shaped curve?
Curve shape that reflects exponential growth
What is an exponential curve?
Initial lots of offspring then levels out
What is a S shaped curve?
Cure shape that reflects limiting factors/ limits resources to population growth
What is a logistic curve?
Lots of offspring
What is carrying capacity?
Maximum of number of individuals habitats can sustain
What are limiting resources?
Food, water, light, nesting sites, refugia, dens
What is a r strategy?
Many, small young. Little or no parental care. Low survival
What is a K strategy?
Few, large young. Parental care. High survival
What is a density dependent factor?
Intensify as the size of population increases. Correlated with crowding
What is a density independent factor?
Factor limiting populations that are independent of the size of those populations (winter temperatures)
What is predation?
Density dependent fact, predator increase and prey decrease
What is competition?
Density dependent factor. Competition for critical resources
What is interspecific competition?
Competition between RCW and other non-RCW cavity using species
What is intraspecific competition?
Competition between RCW and RCW
What is resource partitioning?
A way to reduce competition
What is territoriality?
Area from which individuals of the same species are excluded especially the same sex
What is migration?
Moving to another habitat for food, better conditions, or reproductive needs
What is a metapopulation?
Two or more unique, discontinuous population linked by immigration and emigration
What is life history?
Series of events from birth through timing of reproduction to death of an organism
What is iteroparity?
Fewer offspring per reproductive episode and many reproductive episodes over lifetime
What is semelparity?
One large reproductive effort with many young during lifetime
What is altricial?
Stays with parent for weeks on
What is precocial?
Leave immediately after being born
What is a life table?
Age specific summary of the survival pattern of a population
What is a cohort?
Group of organisms born at the same time
What is mortality rate?
The ratio of the total number of deaths to the total population
What is survivorship?
Probability of newborn individuals of a cohort surviving to a particular age
What is a survivorship curve?
Graph or plot of survival/ time using data from a life table
What is a Type I curve?
Convex high early survival, high late adulthood mortality
What is a Type II curve?
Straight survival and mortality constant throughout life
What is a Type III curve?
Concave low early survival, low late adulthood mortality
What is a Community?
All population of different species interacting with one another in the same environment
What is scale?
Size of a community
What is spatial structure?
Distribution of species relative to each other
What is temporal structure?
The timing of the appearance and activity of species
What is species richness?
The number of species in a community
What is species diversity?
The relative abundance of different species
What is a dominant species?
Most successful and competitive and the highest abundance or biomass a community
What is a keystone predator?
A predator that controls the population of a dominant species
What is a fundamental niche?
Set of resources and habitats an organism could theoretically use under ideal conditions
What is a realized niche?
Set of resources and habitats an organism actually uses
What is the competitive exclusion principle?
When two species compete for the same limiting resource, one will survive and the other will be driven to extinction
What is neutralism?
Any interactions that do occur are indirect or incidental
What is amensalism?
One species suffers and the other interacting species experiences no effect
What is commensalism?
One species benefit and the other is unaffected
What is mutualism?
Benefits both members; grow, survive, and reproduce at a higher rate together
What is optimal foraging theory?
Optimal pattern of foraging
What is the hierarchical model of habitat selection?
Physical/ geographical range, home range of individual or social group, usage of habitat within home range, microhabitat/ specific food resources
What factors influence habitat selection?
Breeding, nesting/cover/hibernacula/refugia, foraging/feeding areas
What is habitat fragmentation?
Break up of habitats into smaller patches
What is ecotone?
Different species of plant will occur on the different soil types
What is primary succession? Give some examples.
Begins in a virtually lifeless area where soil has not yet been established (Glaciers, Volcanic eruptions, Sand dunes,)
What is secondary succession? Give some examples.
Occurs after disturbance that leaves the soil intact (floods, fires, increasing salinity of Great Salt Lake)
What is a pioneer species?
Early colonizers that carry out life processes and begin to modify habitat
What is a climax community?
More or less permanent and final stage of a particular succession, often characteristic of a restricted area
What species dominate a climax community?
Trees
What is biogeography?
The study of the distribution of species and ecosystems
What is relative abundance?
The number of individuals of each species and some combinations of these two factors
What do we see in latitudinal species richness gradients?
Fewer species at the pole and more at the equator
What do we see in species area relationships?
The larger the geographic are, the greater the number of species
How does the number of species influence immigration and extinction?
Immigration decreases; extinction increase
How does island size influence immigration and extinction rates?
Immigration increase, extinction decrease
How does distance from the mainland influence immigration and extinction rates?
Immigration increase, extinction decrease
What is the greatest limiting factor for RCW populations?
Lack of cavity trees
What is unique about the pine trees in which RCWs nest, compared to those in which other woodpecker species nest?
Heartwood decay helps birds to excavate cavities into pine heartwood
What is the best measure of RCW population size (how would you determine the population size)?
Population size and trend is determined by the number of breeding groups rather than the annual reproduction and survival (new young born into the population and surviving to adulthood)
What is an Ecosystem?
A community and its physical environment
What is the biosphere?
The zone of life on earth, all ecosystems on the planet
What are biomes?
Major ecosystems on earth characterized by flora, fauna, climatic conditions, physical features, geography
Which biome has the least rainfall?
Desert
Which biome has the greatest number grazing mammals?
Temperate Grasslands
What is the local ecosystem in Escambia, Co., AL?
Pine forest
The ultimate goal of conservation biology is ________ in the wild instead of _________ of species in museums and zoos (see last slide of PPT).
conversation, preservation