Species and Populations Interactions Study Guide

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                            Environmental Science Study Guide
                                Interactions of Species and Populations

Vocabulary
Understand and be able to apply each of these terms.

   1. Levels of Ecosystem Organization

          a. Species –

          b. Population –

          c. Community –

          d. Ecosystem –

          e. Biosphere –

   2. Critical factor –

   3. Range of Tolerance –

          a. Zone of Intolerance –

          b. Zone of Physiologic Stress –

          c. Optimal Range –

   4. Natural Selection –

   5. Adaptation –

   6. Opportunistic Species –

   7. Pioneer Species –

   8. Keystone Species –

   9. Carrying Capacity –

   10. Environmental resistance –




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Be able to differentiate between each of these terms.

   11. Biotic and abiotic –

   12. Natural and artificial selection –

   13. Divergent, convergent, and co-evolution –

   14. Habitat and Niche –

   15. Density-dependent and density-independent factors –

   16. K-strategists and R-strategists –

Critical Thinking
Be able to read, analyze, and give complete answers to questions like these.

   1. What are the three primary causes of natural selection?




   2. Evolution is summarized in these three statements. Understand what each one means.
         a. Organisms produce more offspring than can survive.
         b. The environment is hostile and contains limited resources.
         c. Organisms differ in the traits they have.
         d. Some inherited traits provide organisms with an advantage.
         e. Each generation contains proportionately more organisms with advantageous traits.

   3. Describe the three types of evidence of evolution studied in living organisms.




   4. The scientific name for humans is Homo sapiens. Where does each of the words in the scientific name
      come from? What is the proper format for writing scientific names?




   5. What defines a species? How do scientists determine when two organisms are members of the same or
      different species?




   6. If given an example of a relationship between two organisms, be able to identify it as predator-prey,
      interspecific competition, intraspecific competition, mutualism, commensalism, or parasitism.
7. Explain how each of these methods helps in the avoidance of intraspecific competition:

       a. Dispersal –

       b. Territoriality –

       c. Resource partitioning –

8. Identify the type of growth on the graph below as logistic or exponential. Label the carrying capacity,
   overshoot, and dieback areas of the graph.




9. Give a few examples of characteristics that differ between k-strategists and r-strategists.




10. Draw an example showing regularly arranged, random, and clumped community structure.