Population and Community Ecology Exam 1

True or False: Three types of dispersal are random, clumped, and uniform.

True

What is the most common dispersion pattern in nature?

Clumped/Aggregated

True or False: Emigration is the movement of individuals into an area occupied by the population.

False

True or False: Immigration is the movement of individuals into an area occupied by the population.

True

True or False: The age structure of a population is determined by age-specific rates of natality and mortality.

True

True or False: The per capita natality rate of a population can be expressed properly in terms of the number of individuals born per year.

False

True or False: A life table contains the mean age-specific body weights and annual survival rates of the individuals in the population.

False

Which of the following are among the basic characteristics that ecologists use to describe an animal population? A. Density B. Pattern of dispersion C. Age and sex ratios D. Natality and mortality rates E. All the above

E. All the above

Which of the following is the most common pattern of dispersion of plants and animals found in nature? A. Uniform B. Random C. Lognormal D. Aggregated E. Normal

D. Aggregated

Probable causes of the clumped (or aggregated) patterns of dispersion exhibited by many plants and animals include which of the following? A. Environmental gradients B. Preferred distance to closest individual of the same species C. habitat heterogeneity D. All the above E. None of the above

D. All the above

Important population parameters that affect density include which of the following? A. Natality B. Mortality C. Immigration and emigration D. All the above E. None of the above

D. All the above

Thinking about the three main types of survivorship curves described in your textbook, which of the following statements is correct? A. A Type 1 curve represents age-specific mortality, with relatively low age specific mortality rates until individuals reach a relatively old age B. A Type 2 curve represents age-specific mortality, with relative age-specific mortality decreasing gradually as individuals grow older C. A Type 3 curve represents age-specific mortality, with relatively low age specific mortality until individuals reach a relatively old age D. A and B E. All the above

A. A Type 1 curve represents age-specific mortality, with relatively low age specific mortality rates until individuals reach a relatively old age

which of the following statements is correct? A. The Type 1 curve represents an indefinite lifespan B. The Type 2 curve represents constant per capita mortality across all ages C. The Type 3 curve represents high survival to old age D. All three curves represent the age-specific mean number of offspring produced

B. The Type 2 curve represents constant per capita mortality across all ages