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CSE511S - CONSERVATION ECOLOGY 1 - 2ND OPP- JULY 2022 |
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n Am I BI A u n IVE Rs ITY
OF SCIEnCE Ano TECHnOLOGY
FACULTYOF HEALTH,APPLIEDSCIENCESAND NATURAL RESOURCES
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTUREAND NATURAL RESOURCESCIENCES
QUALIFICATION: BACHELOR OF NATURAL RESOURCEMANAGEMENT
QUALIFICATION CODE: 07BNRS
LEVEL: 5
COURSECODE: CSE511S
COURSENAME: CONSERVATION ECOLOGY1
SESSION:JULY 2022
DURATION: 3 HOURS
PAPER:THEORY
MARKS: 150
SECONDOPPORTUNITY EXAMINATION QUESTION PAPER
EXAMINER(S) Prof. T.D. Wassenaar, Mr. J. Amutenya and Ms. C. Ntesa
MODERATOR:
Mr. H. Tjikurunda
INSTRUCTIONS
1.
Answer ALL ten (10) questions.
2.
Read all questions carefully before answering.
3.
Number your answers clearly.
4.
Make sure your student number appears on the answering script.
PERMISSIBLEMATERIALS
None
THIS QUESTION PAPERCONSISTSOF 4 PAGES(Excluding this front page)
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QUESTION 1
Write short notes to define or explain the following:
1.1. Biosphere
{1)
1.2. Flora
(1)
1.3. Homeostasis
(1)
1.4. Competition
(1)
1.5. Mutualism
(1)
1.6. Metapopulation
{1)
1.7. Nutrient cycling
{1)
1.8. Ecological community
(1)
1.9. Ecological disturbance
(1)
1.10. Corridors
(1)
[10]
QUESTION 2
Explain the difference between the following pairs of terms.
2.1. lnterspecific competition vs. lntraspecific competition.
(2)
2.2. Gross Primary Production {GPP)vs. Net Primary Production {NPP).
(2)
2.3. Autotrophs and Heterotrophs.
(2)
2.4. Detritivores vs. Decomposers.
(2)
2.5. Allogenic environmental engineers vs. Autogenic environmental engineers.
(2)
[10]
QUESTION 3
Match definitions or examples with correct words (just write the number and alphabet
e.g. le).
Definitions or examples
Words
1. The environmental factors that support (and
a) Life Histories
influence) the growth, survival and reproduction
b) Mortality curves
of a species.
c) Intermediate
2. Species that create, modify and maintain habitats,
Disturbance Hypothesis
by shaping the habitat to their own needs,
d) Ecosystem engineers
subsequently altering the availability of
e) Ecological succession
microhabitats, food, water, sunlight and shelter
f) Landscape connectivity
for other species, thus making other species'
g) Colonization
existence possible in a community.
h) Ecosystem engineers
3. A hypothesis that predicts that local species
i) Natural selection
diversity is maximized when an ecological
j) Ecological niche
disturbance is neither too rare nor too frequent.
k) Keystone species
4. The sequence of events related to survival and
I) Mortality curves
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reproduction that occur from birth through death.
5. A type of survivorship curve in which individuals
tend to live out their physiological life span,
produce few offspring but provide extensive
parental care.
6. A species whose geographic distribution is limited
to a specific area or spatial unit (such as a country
or a biome).
7. A process in which individual organisms or
phenotypes that possess favourable traits are
more likely to survive and reproduce.
8. The process of change in the species structure of
an ecological community over time.
9. The number of individuals per unit area.
10. The degree to which the landscape facilitates or
impedes the movement of organisms among
patches.
m) Endemic species
n) Dispersal
o) Population size
p) Ubiquitous species
q) Evolution
r) Type Ill
s) Population density
t) Type I
[10]
QUESTION 4
4.1. list the four spheres that make up the Earth System (do not include the (4)
Anthroposphere).
4.2. Which four biogeochemical cycles are important for ecology?
(4)
4.3. This is a map of the biomes of Namibia. Name them by matching with the
(5)
letters A, B, C and D that are indicated on the map.
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4.4. Define what a key concept "aquifer" means.
(1)
4.5. From an ecological perspective, we can divide groundwater/aquifers into two (3)
forms/types, namely the relatively shallow alluvial aquifers (usually in
ephemeral drainages and rivers, but also sandy substrates outside rivers), and
the deep aquifers in various fractured or porous rock types. Of these two types
of aquifers, which one is the most important for ecology and why?
4.6. What are the main factors that influence soil formation?
(4)
[21]
QUESTION 5
5.1. One of the possible outcomes of interspecific competition is resource
(6)
partitioning. Explain resource partitioning using relevant examples and
ecological terms.
5.2. Define the term mutualism and provide three examples of mutualist
(4)
relationships that exist in nature.
5.3. The term ecological niche has three distinct meanings among scientists, each (6)
with an associated conceptual basis. Name and explain these three distinct
meanings.
5.4. Distinguish between fundamental niche and realised niche.
(2)
[18]
QUESTION 6
6.1. Population dynamics of any species are concerned with the factors that
(8)
influence the expansion, decline, and maintenance of populations. Discuss
the four primary factors that drive population dynamics in nature.
6.2. Population growth is illustrated by the population growth curve that is used to (2)
describe growth patterns. These are namely, exponential growth patterns and
logistic growth patterns. Why is the logistic growth curve/model more
suitable/realistic to describe population growth than the exponential growth
curve/model?
6.3. What are survivorship curves and why are they important?
(5)
6.4. Discuss how plant populations are different from animal populations and what (5)
the implications are for the study of population structure and dynamics.
[20]
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QUESTION 7
7.1. You have been introduced to two indices that are used to measure species
(6)
diversity in a community, namely Simpson's Diversity (D) and Shannon-
Wiener Diversity (H). Briefly explain the differences between the two indices
using a table.
7.2. Distinguish between Top-down and Bottom-up population control and provide (4)
an example for each?
7.3. Name and explain five factors that affect community organisation.
(10)
[20]
QUESTION 8
8.1. List and explain three limiting factors for primary production in a terrestrial
(6)
ecosystem. Focus on bottom-up controls of primary production only.
8.2. Discuss the process of nutrient cycling within a terrestrial ecosystem. In your (9)
explanation, use the essential element nitrogen as an example.
[15]
QUESTION 9
9.1. Landscape ecology is the study of the reciprocal effects of patterns on the
(10)
process, how landscape patterns influence ecological processes, and how those
ecological processes, in turn, modify landscape patterns. Briefly expand on the
processes that shape landscape patterns.
9.2. Explain the three levels of dispersal among patches?
(6)
[16]
QUESTION 10
10.1. Describe how the theory of island biogeography may come in handy when
(3)
making decisions about a protected area or any similar landscape where the
protection of biodiversity is a key target.
10.2. Name seven recent trends in biodiversity.
(7)
[10]
TOTAL: 150 marks
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