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Conservation Ecology Ch 4-6
Conservation Biology Primer 5th Edition Ch.4-6
51
Environmental Studies
Undergraduate 1
03/28/2013

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Cards

Term
Greenhouse gases
Definition
- carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor, and other trace gases in the atmosphere that are transparent to sunshine, allowing light energy to pass through the atmosphere and warm the surface of the Earth.
Term
Greenhouse effect-
Definition
the warming of the Earth by its atmospheric gases.
Global Climate Change- refers to the complete set of climate characteristics that are changing now and will continue to change in the future.
Term
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change-
Definition
a study group of leading scientists organized by the United Nations
Term
Assisted Colonization-
Definition
transplanting isolated populations of rare and endangered species to new localities at higher elevations and closer to the poles, where they can survive and thrive.
Term
Bushmeat Crisis-
Definition
the decline in animal populations caused by the intensive hunting of animals.
Term
Maximum Sustainable Yield-
Definition
the greatest amount of a resource that can be harvested each year and replaced through population growth without detriment to the population.
Term
Exotic Species-
Definition
species that occur outside their natural ranges because of human activity.
Term
Genetic Swamping-
Definition
when invasive species hybridize with native species and varieties
Term
Genetically Modified Organisms-
Definition
organisms in which scientists add genes from a different species into the organism’s genetic code
Term
Extinct-
Definition
when no member of the species remains alive anywhere in the world
Term
Extinct in the wild-
Definition
when the only living members of a species are in captivity
Globally Extinct- a species that no longer lives anywhere in the world
Term
Locally Extinct/ Extirpated-
Definition
When a species is no longer found in an area it once inhabited
Term
Ecologically Extinct-
Definition
when a species persists at such reduced numbers that its effect on other species within its ecological community is negligible.
Term
Extinction Debt-
Definition
the presumed eventual loss of a species following habitat destruction and fragmentation
Term
Island biogeography model-
Definition
the synthesis of the relationship between the area of an island and the number of species it contains
Term
Allee Effect-
Definition
when population size or density falls below a certain number, many species of social animals are unable to forage, mate, or defend themselves, and their populations cannot persist
Term
Minimum Viable Population (MVP)-
Definition
minimum # of individuals needed to survive
Term
Minimum Dynamic Area (MDA)-
Definition
the min amount of habitat needed
Term
Inbreeding-
Definition
mating among close relatives
Term
Outbreeding-
Definition
opposite of inbreeding
Term
Outbreeding depression-
Definition
a condition that results in weakness, sterility, or lack of adaptability
Term
Population Bottleneck-
Definition
occurs when a population is greatly reduced in size and loses rare alleles if no individuals possessing those alleles survive and reproduce
Term
Founder effect-
Definition
occurs when a few individuals leave one population and establish another new population
Term
Stochasticity-
Definition
random variation
Term
Environmental stochasticity-
Definition
variation in the physical environment
Term
Demographic stochasticity-
Definition
variation in birth and death rates
Term
Extinction Vortex-
Definition
the term used to describe the process that declining populations undergo when”a mutual reinforcement occurs among biotic and abiotic processes that drives population size downward to extinction”
Term
Natural history-
Definition
distinct characteristics of a species
Term
Population Biology-
Definition
the dynamic processes that affect population size and distribution
Term
Census-
Definition
a count of the number of individuals present in a population
Term
Survey-
Definition
using repeatable sampling to estimate the number of individuals or the density of a species in an ecosystem
Term
Demographic Studies-
Definition
follow known individuals of different ages and sizes in a population to determine their rates of growth, reproduction, and survival.
Term
Population Viability Analysis (PVA)-
Definition
an extension of demographic studies PVA can be thought of as risk assessment
Term
Source Populations-
Definition
core populations with fairly stable numbers
Term
Sink Populations-
Definition
satellite populations that fluctuate with arrivals of immigrants
Term
International Union for Conservation of Nature (ICUN)
Red List Criteria-
Definition
quantitative measures of threat based on the probability of extinction
Term
Endangered Species Act (ESA)-
Definition
to “provide a means whereby the ecosystems upon which endangered and threatened species depend may be conserved”
Term
Habitat Conservation Plans-
Definition
regional plans that allow development in designated areas but also protect remnants of ecosystems that contain groups of actual or potentially endangered species.
Term
Restocking program-
Definition
involves releasing individuals into an existing population to increase its size and gene pool. These released individuals may have been raised in captivity or may be wild individuals collected elsewhere
Term
Reintroduction program-
Definition
involves releasing individuals into an ecologically suitable site within their historical range where the species no longer occurs
Term
Introduction program-
Definition
involves moving individuals to areas outside their historical range but suitable for the species
Term
Soft Release-
Definition
species that receive special care and assistance upon release
Term
Hard release-
Definition
species abruptly released with no outside help
Term
Mitigation-
Definition
when developers propose creating new habitat or new populations to compensate for what has occurred or is about to occur
Term
in situ-
Definition
preservation of existing species and ecosystems in the wild
Term
ex situ-
Definition
preservation of species in artificial environments under human supervision
Term
artificial incubation-
Definition
keeping eggs in ideal hatching conditions
Term
artificial insemination-
Definition
like animal IVF
Term
embryo transfer-
Definition
involves implanting fertilized eggs of a rare species into surrogate mothers of common species
Term
genome resource bank (GRB)-
Definition
involves freezing purified DNA, sperm, eggs, embryos, and other tissue of species so they can be used to contribute to breeding programs
Term
arboretum-
Definition
a specialized botanical garden focusing on trees and other woody plants
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