BIO 321 LECTURE FINAL EXAM
QUESTIONS WITH CORRECT ANSWERS
According to current analyses, what are the relative proportions
of humans, livestock, and wild mammals as % of total
mammalian biomass? - correct answer- Livestock --> 60%
Humans --> 36%
Wild mammals --> 4%
Humans and their livestock account for 95% of worldwide
mammal biomass
Be able to compare and contrast the placentas of metatherians
and eutherians, especially the structures that vastly increase the
surface area for mother:embryo contact in eutherians. - correct
answer- Eutherians have a "chorioallantoic" placenta with
thousands of chorionic villi that facilitate diffusion
Metatherians have a much simpler "choriovitelline" ("yolk sac")
placenta. This is why they develop offspring in a marsupium
Be sure that you have read the "Pleistocene Megafauna Decline"
required readings (posted to Canvas). In particular, be sure you
,know how researchers quantified the changing biomass of
megafauna, and the sequence of changes observed (as shown in
Fig 2). It's probably best to read the Perspective first, followed
by the actual paper. - correct answer- Using the dung
fungus Sporormiella and other paleoecological proxies from
Appleman Lake, Indiana, and several New York sites, we
established that the megafaunal decline closely preceded
enhanced fire regimes and the development of plant
communities that have no modern analogs. The loss of keystone
mega herbivores may thus have altered ecosystem structure and
function by the release of palatable hardwoods from herbivory
pressure and by fuel accumulation.
Megafaunal populations collapsed from 14,800 to 13,700 years
ago, well before the final extinctions and during the Bølling-
Allerød warm period. Human impacts remain plausible, but the
decline predates Younger Dryas cooling and the extraterrestrial
impact event proposed to have occurred 12,900 years ago.
Sporormiella is a fungus that produces spores in the dung of
large herbivorous vertebrates. The spores accumulate in
sediments along with pollen and charcoal, allowing changes in
biomass of large herbivores to be matched exactly to sediment
records of vegetation and fire, which can in turn be dated and
aligned with other archaeological and environmental records.
, How does California compare to other states (and to national
totals) in terms of terrestrial mammal species richness and
endemism? - correct answer- 171 species (half of mammal
species in US are found in CA).
About 17 endemic species to CA (#1 in the US).
CA is #1 in both total and endemic species
How does species richness vary with land area. Know the actual
equation for the "species area relationship" (you will NOT be
asked to do math with this equation), and the general pattern or
rule of thumb (much simpler; you may be asked to do math with
this). - correct answer- Species richness increases with area.
All else being equal, larger areas have more species than smaller
areas.
Actual equation --> Species = c(Area)^z
General pattern --> A 10x increase in area causes a 2x increase in
# of species
QUESTIONS WITH CORRECT ANSWERS
According to current analyses, what are the relative proportions
of humans, livestock, and wild mammals as % of total
mammalian biomass? - correct answer- Livestock --> 60%
Humans --> 36%
Wild mammals --> 4%
Humans and their livestock account for 95% of worldwide
mammal biomass
Be able to compare and contrast the placentas of metatherians
and eutherians, especially the structures that vastly increase the
surface area for mother:embryo contact in eutherians. - correct
answer- Eutherians have a "chorioallantoic" placenta with
thousands of chorionic villi that facilitate diffusion
Metatherians have a much simpler "choriovitelline" ("yolk sac")
placenta. This is why they develop offspring in a marsupium
Be sure that you have read the "Pleistocene Megafauna Decline"
required readings (posted to Canvas). In particular, be sure you
,know how researchers quantified the changing biomass of
megafauna, and the sequence of changes observed (as shown in
Fig 2). It's probably best to read the Perspective first, followed
by the actual paper. - correct answer- Using the dung
fungus Sporormiella and other paleoecological proxies from
Appleman Lake, Indiana, and several New York sites, we
established that the megafaunal decline closely preceded
enhanced fire regimes and the development of plant
communities that have no modern analogs. The loss of keystone
mega herbivores may thus have altered ecosystem structure and
function by the release of palatable hardwoods from herbivory
pressure and by fuel accumulation.
Megafaunal populations collapsed from 14,800 to 13,700 years
ago, well before the final extinctions and during the Bølling-
Allerød warm period. Human impacts remain plausible, but the
decline predates Younger Dryas cooling and the extraterrestrial
impact event proposed to have occurred 12,900 years ago.
Sporormiella is a fungus that produces spores in the dung of
large herbivorous vertebrates. The spores accumulate in
sediments along with pollen and charcoal, allowing changes in
biomass of large herbivores to be matched exactly to sediment
records of vegetation and fire, which can in turn be dated and
aligned with other archaeological and environmental records.
, How does California compare to other states (and to national
totals) in terms of terrestrial mammal species richness and
endemism? - correct answer- 171 species (half of mammal
species in US are found in CA).
About 17 endemic species to CA (#1 in the US).
CA is #1 in both total and endemic species
How does species richness vary with land area. Know the actual
equation for the "species area relationship" (you will NOT be
asked to do math with this equation), and the general pattern or
rule of thumb (much simpler; you may be asked to do math with
this). - correct answer- Species richness increases with area.
All else being equal, larger areas have more species than smaller
areas.
Actual equation --> Species = c(Area)^z
General pattern --> A 10x increase in area causes a 2x increase in
# of species
