Chapter 51
Chapter 51
3) Random spacing patterns in plants such as the creosote bush are most often associated with
________.
A) chance
B) patterns of high humidity
C) the random distribution of seeds
D) competitive interaction between individuals of the same population
E) the concentration of nutrients within the population's range
Answer: A
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: MS
LO: 51.1
Section: 51.1
1
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4) Which of the following groups would be most likely to exhibit uniform dispersion?
A) red squirrels, which actively defend territories
B) cattails, which grow primarily at edges of lakes and streams
C) dwarf mistletoes, which parasitize particular species of forest tree
D) moths, in a city at night
E) lake trout, which seek out cold, deep water high in dissolved oxygen
Answer: A
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: MS
LO: 51.1
Section: 51.1
5) Which of the following examples would most accurately measure the density of the
population being studied?
A) counting the number of prairie dog burrows per hectare
B) counting the number of times a 1-kilometer transect is intersected by tracks of red squirrels
after a snowfall
C) counting the number of coyote droppings per hectare
D) counting the number of moss plants in 1-square-meter quadrants
E) counting the number of zebras from airplane census observations.
Answer: D
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: MS
LO: 51.1
Section: 51.1
6) Which of the following scenarios would provide the most relevant data on population density?
A) Count the number of nests of a particular species of songbird and multiply this by a factor that
extrapolates these data to actual animals.
B) Count the number of pine trees in several randomly selected 10-meter-square plots and
extrapolate this number to the fraction of the study area these plots represent.
C) Use the mark-recapture method to estimate the size of the population.
D) Calculate the difference between all of the immigrants and emigrants to see if the population
is growing or shrinking.
E) Add the number of births and subtract the individuals that die to see if the population's density
is increasing or decreasing.
Answer: B
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: PS
LO: 51.1
Section: 51.1
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7) Which of the following choices would most likely promote random distribution?
A) territorial species
B) species that secrete chemicals to attract or inhibit other individuals
C) flocking and schooling behaviors
D) spacing during the breeding season
E) homogeneous chemical and physical factors in the environment
Answer: E
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: PS
LO: 51.1
Section: 51.1
8) Suppose researchers marked 800 turtles and later were able to trap a total of 300 individuals in
that population, of which 150 were marked. What is the estimate for total population size?
A) 200
B) 1050
C) 1600
D) 2100
Answer: C
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.1
Section: 51.1
9) Which of the following is the most important assumption for the mark-recapture method to
estimate the size of wildlife populations?
A) All females in the population have the same litter size.
B) More individuals emigrate from, as opposed to immigrate into, a population.
C) Over 50% of the marked individuals need to be trapped during the recapture phase.
D) There is a 50:50 ratio of males to females in the population before and after trapping and
recapture.
E) Marked individuals have the same probability of being recaptured as unmarked individuals
during the recapture phase.
Answer: E
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.1
Section: 51.1
3
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10) To measure the population of lake trout in a 250-hectare lake, 400 individual trout were
netted and marked with a fin clip, then returned to the lake. The next week, the lake was netted
again, and out of the 200 lake trout that were caught, 50 had fin clips. Using the mark-recapture
estimate, the lake trout population size could be closest to which of the following?
A) 160
B) 200
C) 400
D) 1600
E) 80,000
Answer: D
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.1
Section: 51.1
11) In the accompanying figure, which of the following survivorship curves implies that an
animal may lay many eggs with the same probability of dying each year of life?
A) curve A
B) curve B
C) curve C
Answer: B
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.2
Section: 51.2
4
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12) In the figure, which of the following survivorship curves most applies to humans living in
developed countries?
A) curve A
B) curve B
C) curve C
D) curve A or curve B
Answer: A
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.2
Section: 51.2
13)
Looking at the data in the accompanying figure, what can be said about survival and 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 larger clutch sizes.
D) Probability of survivorship does not correlate with clutch size.
Answer: B
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.2
Section: 51.2
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14) What is the primary limiting factor that determines why no female animal can produce a very
large number of very large eggs?
A) Time is limited.
B) There are energy constraints.
C) Temperature constraints will prevent females from carrying too many eggs.
D) Male availability is limited.
E) There will be an increase in predation pressure if the females carry too many large eggs.
Answer: B
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: PS
LO: 51.2
Section: 51.2
15) Why can't a female lizard have both high fecundity and high survival?
A) In only rare cases, do lizards have both high fecundity and high survival.
B) Female lizards are able to produce only one set of offspring.
C) Competition for resources prevents this.
D) The more energy the female devotes to offspring, the less that can be devoted to her survival.
E) The female is already maximizing the number of eggs she lays, and if she attempts to nest
later in the season, there will not be enough food for her young.
Answer: D
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: PS
LO: 51.2
Section: 51.2
16) You observe two female fish of the same species breeding. One female lays 100 eggs and the
other female lays 1000 eggs. Which one of the following is LEAST likely given the limits of
fitness trade-offs?
A) The female laying 100 eggs breeds more often than the female laying 1000 eggs.
B) The female laying 100 eggs lives longer than the female laying 1000 eggs.
C) The eggs from the female laying 1000 eggs have larger yolks than the yolks of the eggs from
the female laying 100 eggs.
D) The female laying 1000 eggs is larger than the female laying 100 eggs.
Answer: C
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.2
Section: 51.2
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17) Using the accompanying life table, calculate the net reproductive rate (R0) for this
population.
A) 2.00
B) 3.26
C) 1.30
D) 2.31
Answer: B
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.2
Section: 51.2
18) Using the life table, how would you describe the population dynamics of L. vivipara?
A) The population is increasing.
B) The population is decreasing.
C) The population is stable.
D) The figure does not provide this information.
Answer: A
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.2
Section: 51.2
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19) Using the life table, determine which age class year would hurt the population growth most if
it were wiped out by disease.
A) age class year 1
B) age class year 2
C) age class year 3
D) age class year 4
E) age class year 5
Answer: A
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.2
Section: 51.2
20) Use the survivorship curves in the accompanying figure to answer the following questions.
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21) Natural selection involves energetic trade-offs between ________.
A) choosing how many offspring to produce over the course of a lifetime and how long to live
B) producing large numbers of gametes when employing internal fertilization versus fewer
numbers of gametes when employing external fertilization
C) the emigration of individuals when they are no longer reproductively capable or committing
suicide
D) increasing the number of individuals produced during each reproductive episode and a
corresponding decrease in parental care
E) high survival rates of offspring and the cost of parental care
Answer: E
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: PS
LO: 51.2
Section: 51.2
22) The study of factors that determine the size and structure of populations through time is
called ________.
A) community ecology
B) immigration biology
C) demography
D) logistic growth
Answer: C
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: PS
LO: 51.2, 51.5
Section: 51.2
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24) Which of the following terms defines how the individual organism allocates resources to
growth, reproduction, and activities or structures related to survival?
A) survivorship
B) life history
C) energy budget
D) demography
Answer: B
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: PS
LO: 51.2
Section: 51.2
10
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26) In the accompanying figure, which of the lines represents the highest per capita rate increase
(r)?
A) line A
B) line B
C) line C
D) line D
Answer: A
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
27) In the accompanying figure, which of the lines represents exponential growth?
A) line A
B) line B
C) line C
D) line D
E) All of the lines represent exponential growth.
Answer: E
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
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28) Assuming that these populations are density dependent, what would be the likely outcome if
the system depicted in the previous figure were allowed to continue?
A) Population growth would continue to be discontinuous.
B) Individual growth would continue to be indeterminate.
C) Population growth would likely decrease.
D) Populations would go extinct.
Answer: C
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
29) In the accompanying figure, which of the arrows represents the carrying capacity?
A) arrow A
B) arrow B
C) arrow C
D) Carrying capacity cannot be found in the figure because species under density-dependent
control never reach carrying capacity.
Answer: C
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
12
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30) In the accompanying figure, which of the arrows represents the most rapid population
growth?
A) arrow A
B) arrow B
C) arrow C
Answer: B
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
32) 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. Calculate an estimate of the total number of individuals added to (or
lost from) a population of 1000 individuals in one year.
A) 120 individuals added
B) 40 individuals added
C) 20 individuals added
D) 400 individuals added
E) 20 individuals lost
Answer: B
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
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33) Exponential growth of a population is represented by ΔN/ Δt = ________.
A)
B) rmax N
C) rN (K + N)
D) rN
E) rNrN
Answer: B
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
B) rmax N
C) rN (K + N)
D) rN
E) rNrN
Answer: D
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
35) As N approaches K for a certain population, which of the following is predicted by the
logistic equation?
A) The growth rate will not change.
B) The growth rate will approach zero.
C) The population will show an Allee effect.
D) The population will increase exponentially.
E) The carrying capacity of the environment will increase.
Answer: B
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
14
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36) In models of logistic population growth, ________.
A) the population growth rate slows dramatically as N approaches K
B) new individuals are added to the population most rapidly at the beginning of the population's
growth
C) new individuals are added to the population as N approaches K
D) only density-dependent factors affect the rate of population growth
E) carrying capacity is never reached
Answer: A
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
38) Why do populations grow more slowly as they approach their carrying capacity?
A) Density-dependent factors lead to fewer births and increased mortality.
B) Density-independent factors lead to fewer births and increased mortality.
C) Hormonal changes promote higher death rates in crowded populations.
D) Individuals voluntarily stop mating so that overcrowding does not occur.
E) The incoming energy decreases in populations experiencing a high rate of increase.
Answer: A
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
15
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39) A population's carrying capacity ________.
A) may change as environmental conditions change
B) can be accurately calculated using the logistic growth model
C) generally remains constant over time
D) increases as the per capita growth rate (r) decreases
E) can never be exceeded
Answer: A
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
A) the number of individuals added per unit time is greatest when N is close to zero.
B) the per capita growth rate (r) increases as N approaches K.
C) population growth is zero when N equals K.
D) the population grows exponentially when K is small.
E) the birth rate (b) approaches zero as N approaches K.
Answer: C
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
16
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42) If 60 snow geese were alive in 1926 and 856 existed in 2001, what is r?
A) 0.070
B) 0.035
C) 0.094
Answer: B
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
43) Conservationists will take snow geese off the endangered species list when the population
hits 10,000. If populations are sustaining growth at r = 0.088 and the population in 2001 is 3000
individuals, in what year will snow geese be taken off the endangered species list?
A) between 2106 and 2109
B) between 2009 and 2012
C) between 2012 and 2015
D) between 2015 and 2018
Answer: C
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
17
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44)
Based on the accompanying figure, which of the following statements correctly interprets the
data?
A) As female density increases, clutch size increases.
B) As female density increases, survivorship decreases.
C) Clutch size decreases as female density increases.
Answer: C
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
45) It is estimated that a flock of wood buffalo crane should be able to sustain an r of 0.085 for
the foreseeable future. If the flock currently contains 350 individuals, how long will it take for
that population to double?
A) between 7.0 and 9.0 years
B) between 9.0 and 11.0 years
C) between 11.0 and 13.0 years
D) less than 7 years
E) more than 13 years
Answer: A
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.4, 51.5
Section: 51.3
18
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46) Often the growth cycle of one population has an effect on the cycle of another. As moose
populations increase, for example, wolf populations also increase. Thus, if we are considering
the logistic equation for the wolf population, ΔN/Δt = rN , which of the factors accounts
47) Which of the following could be a density-independent factor limiting human population
growth?
A) Ebola infections
B) earthquakes
C) epidemic of measles
D) famines
Answer: B
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.5
Section: 51.3
48) Imagine that you are managing a large game ranch. You know from historical accounts that a
species of deer used to live there, but they have been extirpated. After doing some research to
determine what might be an appropriately sized founding population, you reintroduce them. You
then watch the population increase for several generations, and graph the number of individuals
(vertical axis) against the number of generations (horizontal axis). With no natural predators
impacting the population, the graph will likely appear as ________.
A) a diagonal line, getting higher with each generation
B) an "S" that ends with a vertical line
C) an upside-down "U"
D) a "J," increasing with each generation
Answer: D
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.5, 51.7
Section: 51.4
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49) The regular fluctuations in size of animal populations are termed ________.
I. population cycles
II. population dynamics
III. growth factors
A) only I
B) only II
C) only III
D) only II and III
E) I, II, and III
Answer: A
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: PS
LO: 51.5
Section: 51.4
20
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50)
Graph (b) in the accompanying figure shows the normal fluctuations of a population of grouse.
Assuming graph (a) in the figure is the result of some experimental treatment in the grouse
population, what can be concluded?
A) The experimental treatment exacerbated the population cycling.
B) The experimental treatment did not affect population cycling in this species.
C) The experimental treatment has most likely identified the cause of population cycling.
D) None of the other responses is true.
Answer: C
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.5
Section: 51.4
21
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51)
22
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52)
Looking at the data in the accompanying figure from the hare/lynx experiment, what conclusion
can you draw?
I. Food is a factor in controlling hare population size.
II. Excluding lynx is a factor in controlling hare population size.
III. The effect of excluding predators and adding food in the same experiment is greater than the
sum of excluding lynx alone plus adding food alone.
A) only I
B) only II
C) only III
D) only II and III
E) I, II, and III
Answer: E
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.5
Section: 51.4
23
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53)
24
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54) What cannot be determined from examining age pyramids of human populations?
A) the future population size
B) the age structure of the population
C) the success of future generations
D) the fecundity of a future population
Answer: C
Bloom's Taxonomy: Remembering/Understanding
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: PS
LO: 51.6
Section: 51.5
25
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55)
Based on the diagrams in the figure shown and on the large population of baby boomers in the
United States, which graph best reflects U.S. population in 20 years?
A) A
B) B
C) C
D) D
Answer: B
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.6
Section: 51.5
26
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56) When the birth rate is equal to each woman producing exactly enough offspring to replace
herself and her offspring's father, and the birth rate is sustained for a generation, then ________.
A) r = 0 and there is zero population growth
B) 0 < r < 1
C) r = 1
D) r > 1
E) population size is at carrying capacity
Answer: A
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.6
Section: 51.5
57) Which of the following statements regarding the future of populations in developing
countries are correct?
I. The fecundity is predicted to increase.
II. Survivorship will increase.
III. Overall population size will increase dramatically.
IV. The number of offspring each year is predicted to remain high.
A) only I and III
B) only II and IV
C) only I, II, and IV
D) only II, III, and IV
E) only I, II, and III
Answer: D
Bloom's Taxonomy: Applying/Analyzing
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: QR
LO: 51.6
Section: 51.5
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59) Use the following abstract from Theoretical Population Biology to answer the question.
Abstract:
We derive measures for assessing the value of an individual habitat fragment for the dynamics
and persistence of a metapopulation living in a network of many fragments. We demonstrate that
the most appropriate measure of fragment value depends on the question asked. Specifically, we
analyze four alternative measures: the contribution of a fragment to the metapopulation capacity
of the network, to the equilibrium metapopulation size, to the expected time to metapopulation
extinction and the long-term contribution of a fragment to colonization events in the network.
The latter measure is comparable to density-dependent measures in general matrix population
theory, though some differences are introduced by the fact that "density dependence" is spatially
localized in the metapopulation context. We show that the value of a fragment depends not only
on the properties of the landscape but also on the properties of the species. Most importantly,
variation in fragment values between the habitat fragments is greatest in the case of rare species
that occur close to the extinction threshold, as these species are likely to be restricted to the most
favorable parts of the landscape. We expect that the measures of habitat fragment described and
analyzed here have applications in landscape ecology and in conservation biology.
Copyright © 2003 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. (Otso Ovaskainen and Ilkka Hanski. 2003.
How much does an individual habitat fragment contribute to metapopulation dynamics and
persistence? Theoretical Population Biology 64:481—95.)
One measure for the value of the patch was given by the long-term contribution of a fragment to
colonization events in the network. How do the properties of a landscape and the properties of a
species affect the value of a patch? The value of the fragment depends ________.
A) on the properties of the landscape and the properties of the species
B) only on the properties of the landscape and not on the properties of the species
C) not on the properties of the landscape but only on the properties of the species
D) on neither the properties of the landscape nor on the properties of the species
Answer: A
Bloom's Taxonomy: Evaluating/Creating
V&C Core Concept: E
V&C Core Comp: PS
LO: 51.7
Section: 51.6
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