Question 3
[20]
Think of a dam on a river in any part of Namibia. What effects would the removal of this dam
have on the: (1) local economy; (2) flow regime of the river; and (3) movement of fish and other
aquatic organisms? Considering these factors, would it be a good idea to remove this dam?
[20]
Question 4
[40]
Diversity indices provide important information about the rarity and commonness of species in a
community. The ability to quantify diversity in this way is an important tool for biologists trying to
understand community structure. Using the data below sampled from the Namib karoo biome;
Species
Site A
Zophosis orbicu!aris
3
Cheroides spp.
2
Gonocephalum spp.
0
Branchinotog/uma sandersi
0
Himatismus spp.
0
Lepidonotopodium piscesae
0
Stips stali
3
Para/vine/la pandorae
1
Physadesmia g/obosa
1
Amphisamytha ga/apagensis
0
Gonocephalum spp.
0
Depressigyra globulus
0
Onymacris /aeviceps
0
Physadesmia spp.
0
Note: All answers should be to 3 decimal places.
Site B
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
3
a. Calculate species richness for the five sites/habitats.
Site C
16
1
77
0
6
0
13
2
11
0
15
9
22
3
Site D
6
1
39
4
0
2
34
4
0
14
2
0
9
21
Site E
0
16
0
1
0
3
0
0
7
0
5
0
0
45
[5]
b. Calculate species diversity using Simpson's diversity index for the 5 habitats. Show all your
working and interpret your findings giving one possible ecological reason for the
differences in diversity.
[35]
THE END
Total Marks: 100
3