What to study for Quiz #3, 16 October 2009

This quiz will cover lecture material from 2, 5, 7, 9, 12, and 14 October. The quiz will cover the Norman Myers presentation, the remainder of the discussion about predation, and population dynamics. Specifically with respect to the powerpoint material, it will be the last panel of the “Predation 1” presentation (mesopredator release), all of “Predation 2”, and “Population Dynamics (through ~slide 15). The readings will include (in the unlikely event that you missed class) Effect of predator control on ring-necked pheasant populations and Chapter 5, Population ecology.

· You should be familiar with the concept of mesopredator release and how that influences predator-prey and trophic level interactions.

· You should be familiar with the issue of predator control with respect to ring-necked pheasant populations. How was the experiment conducted, what were the results, and what were the conclusions, with respect to both biological and social carrying capacity?

· Population dynamics – You should be familiar with the following terms: BIDE parameters, exponential growth, continuous (or discrete) growth, lambda, r, sensitivity analysis, carrying capacity, population regulation, and population limitation.

· Know why you would use lambda versus r to calculate growth for a population and know how to calculate these parameters.

· Be able to explain the factors that lead to population change over time (resource availability, population regulation and density dependence, population limitation).

· You should know how your spreadsheet works.

Click here to see last year’s quiz