In this blog you will find the correct answer of the Coursera quiz Ecology: Ecosystem Dynamics and Conservation Coursera Week 2 mixsaver always try to bring the best blogs and best coupon codes
 

Week- 2

Module Two: What have you learned?

 

1. What are the five basic components that underlie population dynamics?

 

  • births, deaths, sexual dimorphism, age structure, and dispersal
  • births, deaths, sex ratio, age structure, and habitat location
  • births, deaths, sex ratio, age structure, and dispersal
  • none of the above

2. Survivorship is defined as:

 

  • the fraction of individuals that lives up to a certain age
  • the fraction of individuals that die per unit of time
  • the fraction of individuals that live through a particular time period
  • the number of young born or hatched per unit of time

3. Large mammals such as whales, bears, and elephants have a survivorship curve similar to:

 

  • Type 1
  • Type 2
  • Type 3
  • None of these; whales, bears, and elephants each have different types of survivorship curves.

4. Mathematical models help ecologists to:

 

  • summarize and interpret information collected from the field
  • generate testable predictions
  • identify patterns in their data and the mechanisms responsible for those patterns
  • all of the above

5. The threshold or maximum number of individuals that an area can support is known as its:

 

  • community shift
  • logistic growth
  • carrying capacity
  • maximum sustained yield

6. If a population exceeds its carrying capacity (K), then…

 

  • Its growth rate is less than zero, and the population increases toward K.
  • Its growth rate is greater than zero, and the population increases toward K.
  • Its growth rate is less than zero, and the population declines toward K.
  • None of the above.

7. The waterbuck population in Gorongosa National Park experienced a period of exponential population growth because:

 

  • Being an invasive species, it found no competition in the park.
  • The civil war resulted in the loss of many of its large herbivore competitors.
  • In the wake of a severe drought, the few surviving individuals faced fewer barriers to reproduction for a period of time.
  • None of the above.

8. In her lecture, Dr. Tarnita asks, “Why are waterbuck recovering so fast and why is their population larger than what it was before the war?” Through the lecture she demonstrates that:

 

  • The population growth has been highly altered by predation from carnivores.
  • The skewed sex ratios of the initial population has led to the rapid increase in population size.
  • The small numbers of waterbuck after the war led to random/by chance events determining current population sizes.
  • The waterbuck’s population growth pattern is predictable and matches a logistic growth model.

9. Based on Dr. Tartina’s lecture and your interpretation of this conceptual model, juvenile waterbucks are lost from a population through:

Credit: Corina Tarnita, HHMI 2015 HL

 

  • the maturation of juveniles and the death of juveniles
  • the death of adults
  • the birth of new juveniles
  • the death of juveniles

10. Below, the first figure shows the population sizes over time of different herbivores in Gorongosa National Park. The second figure only highlights elephants and zebras. While zebra population numbers have not drastically increased from 1994, elephant numbers have started to rebound–but not to the same extent as waterbuck (as seen in the first figure). Based on your understanding of the lecture and population dynamics, which of the following statements is correct:

Credit: Peter Stahlmans and Corina Tarnita unpublished data, 2015 HHMI HL

 

  • The elephant population may be experiencing logistic growth, but it’ll take longer to see the full growth curve (recovery) because elephants mature later and live longer than waterbuck.
  • The elephant population is experiencing exponential growth and therefore it will not increase more.
  • Because zebra numbers have stabilized, they must have hit carrying capacity.
  • None of the above

 

 

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