Question 1

How might the fact that a threatened prairie plant you are in charge of managing is an r-selected species influence the way you manage the population?

Accepted Answer

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Question 2

During a typical predator-prey population cycle, the increase in the predator population is normally seen _____________ an increase in the prey population.

Accepted Answer

The increase in the predator population is normally seen after an increase in the prey population because as the prey population grows, there is an increase in the predator's food source, allowing them to reproduce and thrive, which leads to an increase in the predator population.

Question 3

When a wolf population goes from high to low as a result of a decrease in moose population, both the moose and wolves experience _____________.

Accepted Answer

Boom-and-bust cycles refer to the rapid increase (boom) and subsequent decrease (bust) in population sizes, often seen in predator-prey relationships like wolves and moose.

Question 4

Habitat destruction, the number-one reason that species become endangered today, likely acts as which kind of regulator?

Accepted Answer

Habitat destruction affects the availability of resources and can decrease the population of species that rely on them, leading to bottom-up regulation. Global warming and keystone species pressure can also disrupt ecosystems, but they do not necessarily relate to the decline of species. Boom-and-bust regulation refers to population cycles and is not applicable in this scenario. Top-down regulation usually involves the impact of predators or diseases on prey populations, which is not relevant to habitat destruction.

Question 5

Fire can be an effective bottom-up regulator.

Accepted Answer

Fire can regulate ecosystems by removing excess biomass, increasing nutrient cycling, and creating patches of different vegetation types that are important for biodiversity. It can also help to promote the growth of fire-adapted species and maintain natural disturbance regimes. As such, fire can be an effective bottom-up regulator in many ecosystems.

Question 6

Why is it difficult to determine whether a population's size is more affected by top-down or bottom-up regulation?

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Question 7

Numerous towns and cities in the United States have a deer population problem due to the removal of predators. How would you explain that top-down regulation would help with the overpopulation problem? In addition, are there any bottom-up regulation strategies you would suggest to the townspeople?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Numerous towns and cities in the United...

Question 8

Availability of water, food, and sunlight are all _________ regulators.

Accepted Answer

Availability of water, food, and sunlight are all bottom-up regulators, meaning that they influence the abundance of organisms from the bottom of the food chain upward. This is in contrast to top-down regulation, where predators at the top of the food chain control the abundance of lower trophic levels. Biotic regulation refers to the influence of living organisms, and exponential and logarithmic regulation are mathematical concepts that do not apply in this context.

Question 9

How does maintaining the top-down regulation by wolves help in providing for diverse fish and amphibian communities in Yellowstone?

Accepted Answer

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Question 10

Fluctuations in populations that produce a very large population followed by a crash that lowers the population size drastically and is then repeated are called _____________.

Accepted Answer

Boom-and-bust cycles describe fluctuations in populations where there is a rapid increase in population size followed by a sharp decrease. This cycle is repeated over time, creating a pattern of booming growth and busting crashes. This pattern is often seen in populations that are subject to periodic environmental disturbances or resource scarcity.

Question 11

Which regulation is more likely to promote species diversity in the ecosystem?

Accepted Answer

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Question 12

With global warming having increasing effects on the environment, which type of species (r or K) would you think would be better suited to survive such a global disturbance, and why?

Accepted Answer

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Question 13

If a population size is determined by food availability and not predation pressures, it is likely under which regulation type?

Accepted Answer

Bottom-up regulation refers to the control of a population by the availability of resources, such as food, rather than by predation or other biotic factors. Therefore, if the population size is determined by food availability rather than predation pressures, it is likely under bottom-up regulation.

Question 14

What is an example of top-down regulation?

Accepted Answer

Top-down regulation is when a predator population controls a prey population. In this case, the predator is the top-level regulator and exercises control over the prey population.

Question 15

Draw a graph of population size over time for wolves and elk in Yellowstone National Park. (Hint: think about the predator-prey relationship between the two species.)

Accepted Answer

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Question 16

The current interglacial period (global warming) has allowed humanity to expand in large numbers due to the increased capacity to grow food. Which characteristics of K-selected species will work against humanity if we have a sudden onset of the next ice age?

Accepted Answer

K-selected species typically have adaptations that are suited for stable environments, such as slower growth rate, late maturity, and specialization to specific niches. These traits may work against humanity if there is a sudden onset of an ice age, which would result in a rapidly changing and unstable environment. Thus, all of the above characteristics would work against humanity if the next ice age occurs.

Quiz 9: Population Ecology- the Wolf Watchers: Endangered Gray Wolves Return to the American West