Question 1

Use the graph to answer the following question.
 
Looking at the data in the figure, what can be said about survival and clutch size?

Accepted Answer

A)  Animals with low survival tend to have smaller clutch sizes. 
B)  Large clutch size correlates with low survival. 
C)  Animals with high survival tend to have medium-sized clutches. 
D)  Probability of survivorship does not correlate with clutch size. 
A)  Animals with low survival tend to have smaller clutch sizes. 
B)  Large clutch size correlates with low survival. 
C)  Animals with high survival tend to have medium-sized clutches. 
D)  Probability of survivorship does not correlate with clutch size.

Question 2

Which of the following causes populations to shift most quickly from an exponential to a logistic population growth?

Accepted Answer

A)  favorable climatic conditions 
B)  removal of predators 
C)  decreased death rate 
D)  competition for resources 
A)  favorable climatic conditions 
B)  removal of predators 
C)  decreased death rate 
D)  competition for resources

Question 3

What is the primary limiting factor that determines why no female animal can produce a very large number of very large eggs?

Accepted Answer

A)  Time is limited. 
B)  There are energy constraints. 
C)  Temperature constraints will prevent females from carrying too many eggs. 
D)  There will be an increase in predation pressure if the females carry too many large eggs. 
A)  Time is limited. 
B)  There are energy constraints. 
C)  Temperature constraints will prevent females from carrying too many eggs. 
D)  There will be an increase in predation pressure if the females carry too many large eggs.

Question 4

Use the graph to answer the following question.
 
Based on the figure, which of the following statements correctly interprets the data?

Accepted Answer

A)  Clutch size is always lowest at a density of about 35 females. 
B)  As female density increases, survivorship decreases. 
C)  Clutch size increases as female density increases. 
D)  Clutch size is inversely related to density. 
A)  Clutch size is always lowest at a density of about 35 females. 
B)  As female density increases, survivorship decreases. 
C)  Clutch size increases as female density increases. 
D)  Clutch size is inversely related to density.

Question 5

You observe two breeding female fish of the same species. One female lays 100 eggs and the other female lays 1,000 eggs. Which one of the following outcomes is most likely, given the limits of fitness trade-offs?

Accepted Answer

A)  The female laying 1,000 eggs breeds more often than the female laying 100 eggs. 
B)  The female laying 100 eggs lives longer than the female laying 1,000 eggs. 
C)  The eggs from the female laying 1,000 eggs have larger yolks than the yolks of the eggs from the female laying 100 eggs. 
D)  The female laying 100 eggs is larger than the female laying 1,000 eggs. 
A)  The female laying 1,000 eggs breeds more often than the female laying 100 eggs. 
B)  The female laying 100 eggs lives longer than the female laying 1,000 eggs. 
C)  The eggs from the female laying 1,000 eggs have larger yolks than the yolks of the eggs from the female laying 100 eggs. 
D)  The female laying 100 eggs is larger than the female laying 1,000 eggs.

Question 6

A population of ground squirrels has an annual per capita birth rate of 0.06 and an annual per capita death rate of 0.02. Using these birth and death rates, calculate an estimate of the total number of individuals added to (or lost from) a population of 1,000 individuals in one year.

Accepted Answer

A)  120 individuals added 
B)  40 individuals added 
C)  20 individuals added 
D)  400 individuals added 
A)  120 individuals added 
B)  40 individuals added 
C)  20 individuals added 
D)  400 individuals added

Question 7

During exponential growth, a population always

Accepted Answer

A)  has a constant per capita population growth rate. 
B)  quickly reaches its carrying capacity. 
C)  cycles through time. 
D)  loses some individuals to emigration. 
A)  has a constant per capita population growth rate. 
B)  quickly reaches its carrying capacity. 
C)  cycles through time. 
D)  loses some individuals to emigration.

Question 8

Use the graph to answer the following question.
 
What conclusion can you draw from the figure?

Accepted Answer

A)  Hares decrease in number just before lynx population size increases. 
B)  Lynx control hare population size. 
C)  Lynx and hare populations are independent of each other. 
D)  The relationship between the populations cannot be determined only from this graph. 
A)  Hares decrease in number just before lynx population size increases. 
B)  Lynx control hare population size. 
C)  Lynx and hare populations are independent of each other. 
D)  The relationship between the populations cannot be determined only from this graph.

Question 9

Consider two old-growth forests: One is undisturbed while the other is being logged. In which region are species likely to experience exponential growth, and why?

Accepted Answer

A)  old growth, because of stable conditions that would favor exponential growth of all species in the forest 
B)  old growth, because each of the species is well established and can produce many offspring 
C)  logged, because the disturbed forest affords more resources for increased specific populations to grow 
D)  logged, because the various populations are stimulated to a higher reproductive potential 
A)  old growth, because of stable conditions that would favor exponential growth of all species in the forest 
B)  old growth, because each of the species is well established and can produce many offspring 
C)  logged, because the disturbed forest affords more resources for increased specific populations to grow 
D)  logged, because the various populations are stimulated to a higher reproductive potential

Exam 53: Population Ecology

Use the graph to answer the following question. Looking at the data in the figure, what can be said about survival and clutch size?

Which of the following causes populations to shift most quickly from an exponential to a logistic population growth?

What is the primary limiting factor that determines why no female animal can produce a very large number of very large eggs?

Use the graph to answer the following question. Based on the figure, which of the following statements correctly interprets the data?

You observe two breeding female fish of the same species. One female lays 100 eggs and the other female lays 1,000 eggs. Which one of the following outcomes is most likely, given the limits of fitness trade-offs?

A population of ground squirrels has an annual per capita birth rate of 0.06 and an annual per capita death rate of 0.02. Using these birth and death rates, calculate an estimate of the total number of individuals added to (or lost from) a population of 1,000 individuals in one year.

During exponential growth, a population always

Use the graph to answer the following question. What conclusion can you draw from the figure?

Consider two old-growth forests: One is undisturbed while the other is being logged. In which region are species likely to experience exponential growth, and why?

Evolution, the Themes of Biology, and Scientific Inquiry

The Chemical Context of Life

Water and Life

Carbon and the Molecular Diversity of Life

The Structure and Function of Large Biological Molecules

A Tour of the Cell

Membrane Structure and Function

An Introduction to Metabolism

Cellular Respiration and Fermentation

Photosynthesis

Cell Communication

The Cell Cycle

Meiosis and Sexual Life Cycles

Mendel and the Gene Idea

The Chromosomal Basis of Inheritance

The Molecular Basis of Inheritance

Gene Expression: From Gene to Protein

Regulation of Gene Expression

Viruses

DNA Tools and Biotechnology

Genomes and Their Evolution

Descent with Modification: A Darwinian View of Life

The Evolution of Populations

The Origin of Species

The History of Life on Earth

Phylogeny and the Tree of Life

Bacteria and Archaea

Protists

Plant Diversity I: How Plants Colonized Land

Plant Diversity II: The Evolution of Seed Plants

Fungi

An Overview of Animal Diversity

An Introduction to Invertebrates

The Origin and Evolution of Vertebrates

Vascular Plant Structure, Growth, and Development

Resource Acquisition and Transport in Vascular Plants

Soil and Plant Nutrition

Angiosperm Reproduction and Biotechnology

Plant Responses to Internal and External Signals

Basic Principles of Animal Form and Function

Animal Nutrition

Circulation and Gas Exchange

The Immune System

Osmoregulation and Excretion

Hormones and the Endocrine System

Animal Reproduction

Animal Development

Neurons, Synapses, and Signaling

Nervous Systems

Sensory and Motor Mechanisms

Animal Behavior

An Introduction to Ecology and the Biosphere

Community Ecology

Ecosystems and Restoration Ecology

Conservation Biology and Global Change

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