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Ecol111 Final Exam Questions and Correct
Answers
Ecology Ans: the scientific study of the distribution and
abundance of organisms and of the interactions that determine
distribution and abundance
Intertidal Ans: occasionally under water
subtidal Ans: always under water
supratidal Ans: only under water during ectreme flood or spring
tide
fitness Ans: a quantitative representation of individual
reproductive success -- how good a particular geno/phenotype is
at leaving offspring
allee effect Ans: a correlation between population size or denstiy
and the mean individual fitness -- so all organisms have a
minimum population density required to breed
fecundity Ans: an individual's reproductive capacity
gradient Ans: a change in a parameter or a suite of parameters
through space or time (temp, irradiance, water depth)
torpor vs hibernation Ans: reduced metabolic activities daily or for
long periods
niche Ans: all parts of a variable's range where the organism's
performance is good enough that it survives
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estuary Ans: junction of a river with the ocean
hydroperiod Ans: number of days per year that an area of land is
wet or the length of time that there is standing water at a location
MAP Ans: Mean Annual Precipitation
biomes Ans: structurally and functionally similar vegetation
formations that are defined without reference to plant species
convergent evolution Ans: the process whereby organisms that are
not closely related evolve similar triats as a result of habing to
adapt to similar environments or ecological niches
apline zone Ans: the zone between the treeline and the permanent
snowline (0km at poles, 4km at equator)
endemic Ans: native and restricted to a certain place
open population Ans: immigration from unknown source,
population that is able to gain and lose outside members
differentiate populations over time, not geographically isolated
closed population Ans: no migratory flow in or out, so that
changes in the population occur through births and deaths only
migration movement (sources, sinks) Ans: source -- lots of
movement out of area
sink -- lots of movement to an area
dispersal among patches assures long term viability
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interspecific competition Ans: process by which individuals of one
species suffer reduction in fecundity, suvivorship, or growth as a
result of the presence or activities of a second species (due to
resources being finite)
2 types -- exploitation, interference
exploitation competition Ans: indirect competition through shared
resources
interference competition Ans: direct competition involving one
species actively preventing access to resources or inhibiting
growth or survival of another species
meta-population Ans: the overall popualtion divided into
subpopulations by the patchiness of the environment
ecolgical communities Ans: set of two or more populations of
different species occupying the same area (distribution,
patchiness, dispersal, and interactions affects the make-up of
communities comapred to other communities)
food web Ans: consists of all organisms within a community and
the feeding connections among them
keystone species Ans: highly connected species with effects on the
community that are disproportionately large relative to their
abundance
species diversity Ans: more species richness and more species
evenness
islands (ecology def) Ans: patches of suitable habitat in a 'sea' of
inhospitable conditions
© 2025 All rights reserved
Ecol111 Final Exam Questions and Correct
Answers
Ecology Ans: the scientific study of the distribution and
abundance of organisms and of the interactions that determine
distribution and abundance
Intertidal Ans: occasionally under water
subtidal Ans: always under water
supratidal Ans: only under water during ectreme flood or spring
tide
fitness Ans: a quantitative representation of individual
reproductive success -- how good a particular geno/phenotype is
at leaving offspring
allee effect Ans: a correlation between population size or denstiy
and the mean individual fitness -- so all organisms have a
minimum population density required to breed
fecundity Ans: an individual's reproductive capacity
gradient Ans: a change in a parameter or a suite of parameters
through space or time (temp, irradiance, water depth)
torpor vs hibernation Ans: reduced metabolic activities daily or for
long periods
niche Ans: all parts of a variable's range where the organism's
performance is good enough that it survives
© 2025 All rights reserved
, 2 | Page
estuary Ans: junction of a river with the ocean
hydroperiod Ans: number of days per year that an area of land is
wet or the length of time that there is standing water at a location
MAP Ans: Mean Annual Precipitation
biomes Ans: structurally and functionally similar vegetation
formations that are defined without reference to plant species
convergent evolution Ans: the process whereby organisms that are
not closely related evolve similar triats as a result of habing to
adapt to similar environments or ecological niches
apline zone Ans: the zone between the treeline and the permanent
snowline (0km at poles, 4km at equator)
endemic Ans: native and restricted to a certain place
open population Ans: immigration from unknown source,
population that is able to gain and lose outside members
differentiate populations over time, not geographically isolated
closed population Ans: no migratory flow in or out, so that
changes in the population occur through births and deaths only
migration movement (sources, sinks) Ans: source -- lots of
movement out of area
sink -- lots of movement to an area
dispersal among patches assures long term viability
© 2025 All rights reserved
, 3 | Page
interspecific competition Ans: process by which individuals of one
species suffer reduction in fecundity, suvivorship, or growth as a
result of the presence or activities of a second species (due to
resources being finite)
2 types -- exploitation, interference
exploitation competition Ans: indirect competition through shared
resources
interference competition Ans: direct competition involving one
species actively preventing access to resources or inhibiting
growth or survival of another species
meta-population Ans: the overall popualtion divided into
subpopulations by the patchiness of the environment
ecolgical communities Ans: set of two or more populations of
different species occupying the same area (distribution,
patchiness, dispersal, and interactions affects the make-up of
communities comapred to other communities)
food web Ans: consists of all organisms within a community and
the feeding connections among them
keystone species Ans: highly connected species with effects on the
community that are disproportionately large relative to their
abundance
species diversity Ans: more species richness and more species
evenness
islands (ecology def) Ans: patches of suitable habitat in a 'sea' of
inhospitable conditions
© 2025 All rights reserved
