BIO 110, Life Science

Summer 2012

Density and distribution

• Individuals per unit area• Regular, random, or clumped• How are the data gathered?

Age structure

Survivorship curves

Life history traits

Examples

Exponential growth

• No limiting factors• Growth rate

increases withtime

• Invasion of openhabitat can startout this way

Logistic growth

• Carrying capacity• Relationship to

equilibrial lifehistory strategy

Regulation of growth

• Density-dependent factors– Food– Nesting sites

• Density-independent factors– Weather– Fire

Population cycles

• Periodic changes in abundance– What they eat– What eats

them• Cycling of

predators and prey independentof resources

Using population ecology

• Endangered species– Eschscholzia rhombipetala

• Sustainable resource management– Slimehead

• Invasive species– Giant reed

• Biological control of pests

Human population growth

• Rate vs. size