AP Environmental Science - Population Dynamics

Flashcards covering key concepts from the Population Dynamics unit in AP Environmental Science.

What are specialist species?

Specialists have a smaller range of tolerance and are more prone to extinction due to specific food requirements and less ability to adapt.

What are generalist species?

Generalists have a larger range of tolerance and are less prone to extinction, with broad food requirements and high adaptability.

List characteristics of specialist species

Narrow niche, less adaptable, more likely to become extinct.

List characteristics of generalist species

Broad niche, adaptable to many environments, less likely to become extinct.

How does a narrow niche make specialist species more likely to become extinct?

A narrow niche means specialists have fewer options for food and are more vulnerable if their food source disappears.

What are the characteristics of K-selected species?

Few offspring, heavy parental care, long lifespan, low biotic potential.

What are the characteristics of r-selected species?

Many offspring, little to no parental care, short lifespan, high biotic potential.

What is the lifespan of a K-selected species?

Long

What is the lifespan of a r-selected species?

Short

What is the Time to reproductive maturity of K-selected species?

Long

What is the Time to reproductive maturity of r-selected species?

Short

What is the Number of reproductive events of K-selected species?

Few

What is the Number of reproductive events of r-selected species?

Many

Why are K-selected species more vulnerable to invasives and disturbances?

Low biotic potential makes it hard for the population to recover after a disturbance, high parental care increases offspring vulnerability if a parent dies, and they are easily outcompeted by invasives.

Why are r-selected species more resilient to disturbances and more likely to be invasive?

High biotic potential allows for rapid population recovery after a disturbance, low parental care means offspring are not as impacted by the death of a parent, and they are more likely to be the invasive species.

What characteristic of r-selected species increases their likelihood of becoming successful invasive species?

High biotic potential/rep rate leading to a more rapid recovery after a disturbance

What is the relationship between Zebra Mussel and Unionid Mussel population density in the Hudson River?

Higher Zebra Mussel population density leads to smaller Unionid Mussel population density.

What is a survivorship curve?

A line that shows the survival rate of a cohort from birth to death.

Describe a Type I survivorship curve

High survivorship early and mid-life, rapid decrease in survivorship in late life.

Describe a Type II survivorship curve

Steadily decreasing survivorship throughout life.

Describe a Type III survivorship curve

High mortality early in life, slow, steady decline in survivorship in midlife, even fewer make it to adulthood.

Describe the trend in survivorship shown in this graph. Justify which type of survivorship curve these data represent.

This shows type 3 survivorship as there is a peak in population at younger ages and then it decreases very quickly then decreases slower, making a curve.

What is carrying capacity (K)?

The maximum number of individuals in a population that an ecosystem can support based on limiting resources.

What is overshoot?

When a population briefly exceeds carrying capacity.

What is die-off?

Sharp decrease in population size when resource depletion leads to many individuals dying.

Describe the predator-prey relationship between hares and lynx.

Increased hare population, increased lynx population, decreasing hare population, decreasing lynx population.

Explain the impact that the canine virus had on the moose population based on the graph.

When more wolves were struck by the canine virus there was a smaller moose population, when there were less wolves struck by canine virus there was a higher moose population.

What is population size (N)?

Total number of individuals in a given area at a given time.

What is population density?

Number of individuals per area.

What is population distribution?

How individuals in a population are spaced out compared to each other (random, uniform, clumped).

What is sex ratio?

Ratio of males to females.

What are density-dependent factors?

Factors that influence population growth based on size (food, competition, disease).

What are density-independent factors?

Factors that influence population growth independent of their size (natural disasters).

What is biotic potential?

Maximum potential growth rate with no limiting resources.

How do you calculate population size?

(Initial pop + births) - (deaths + emigration) + immigration

What are age cohorts?

Groups of similarly aged individuals.

What are the age ranges for prereproductive, reproductive, and post-reproductive cohorts?

0-14 = prereproductive; 15-44 = reproductive age; 45+ = post reproductive

What does the size difference between 0-14 and 15-44 cohorts indicate about growth rate?

Larger 0-14 cohort indicates current and future growth; roughly equal 0-14 & 15-44 indicates slight growth/stable; larger 15-44 indicates population decline.

How do population pyramids reflect growth rates?

Extreme Pyramid shape = rapid growth; Less extreme pyramid = slow stable growth; House = stable little to no growth; Narrowest @ base = declining population.

Which country has the highest to lowest growth rate: india>us>china>germany?

India>US>China>Germany

How do population pyramids reflect a nation’s past? How can population pyramids predict future growth?

Pyramids show the past population spikes and growth rates. We can make inferences using trends.

Identify the country with the slowest pop. growth rate and explain your answer

Country Y because it has almost the same amount of people in every age group.

What is Total Fertility Rate (TFR)?

Average number of children a woman will bear throughout her lifetime.

What is Replacement Level Fertility?

The TFR required to offset deaths in a population and keep population size stable (about 2.1 in developed countries).

What is Infant Mortality Rate (IMR)?

Number of deaths of children under 1 year per 1000 people in a population.

What is the relationship between Global TFR vs. Infant Mortality

Global TFR vs.
Infant Mortality What do you notice: Higher infant mortality has higher TFR

Identify and discuss TWO of the causes for the trend in worldwide TFR.

Access to education and more access to contraceptives and family planning.

What is Malthusian theory

Earth has a human carrying capacity, probably based on food production Growth Rate (r) and Human population growth is happening faster than growth of food production

Technological Advancement/ Describe Technological Advancement

Humans can alter earth’s carrying capacity with tech innovation ex: synthetic fixation of Nitrogen in 1918 leads to synthetic fertilizer, dramatically increasing supply

What is Growth Rate (r)?

Growth Rate (r) = % increase in a population Ex: a growth rate of 5% for a population of 100 means they grow to 105

What are Crude Birth Rate (CBR) & Crude Death Rate (CDR)?

Births & deaths per 1000 people in a pop. Ex: Global CBR = 20 & CDR = 8

What is Doubling Time (Rule of 70)?

The time it takes (in years) for a population to double is equal to 70 divided by the growth rate Ex: Global growth rate = 1.2%

What is one environmental problem associated with a rapidly growing human population?

Describe one environmental problem associated with a rapidly growing human population and propose a solution a government could take to slow population growth.

What is one Governmental Solution associated with a rapidly growing human population?

With a rapidly growing population we may reach a carrying capacity. To help this the government could have a one kid rule or limit the amount of food.

Describe Industrialization

Industrialization: the process of economic and social transition from an agrarian (farming) economy to an industrial one (manufacturing based)

Pre-industrialized/Less developed What is Pre-industrialized/Less developed GDP/TFR description?

A country that has not yet made the agrarian to industrial transition Typically very poor (low GDP)

Industrializing/developing is?

What is Industrializing/developing GDP/TFR description? part way through this transition Decreasing death rate & IMR Rising GDP

Industrialized/developed the DR/GDP/TFR

Very low DR and IMR Very high GDP Low TFR

Modernizations bring access to clean water, healthcare, stable food supply IMR and CDR decline

High IMR & high death rate due to lack of access to clean water,stable food supply, and healthcare High TFR due to lack of access to

3rd description of Developed/Industrialized per capita per capita gdp life indicator

Slowing growth rate as CBR drops closer to CDR CBR drops lower than CDR & growth becomes negative(pop. decline) High tfr Low literacy rate and school life expectancy for girls

State 4 Description of Post-Industrialized/Highly Developed What are the description for career, GDP,life expectantcy?

Modernized society and society increase family income, so TFR declines significantly due to More ed opportunities for women

Identify the stage of this graph in which population grows the fastest and explain why this is the case. Describe one economic

Education or societal indicator of a country in this phase. Stage 2 is when it grows the fastest because of the high birth rate. One indicator is modernizations in quality of life.