Describe the factors that might produce the following three types of dispersion patterns in populations.

What are some factors that might have a density-dependent limiting effect on population growth?

Make a rough sketch of the age distribution in a developing versus a developed country, and explain why the shapes of the diagrams are different. How is AIDS, which is a sexually transmitted disease, likely affecting the age distribution in countries hard hit by the epidemic?

What is survivorship? What does a survivorship curve show? Explain what the three survivorship curves tell us about humans, squirrels, and clams.

Burmese pythons (Python molurus bivittatus) are constricting snakes that can reach enormous sizes (up to 7 meters in length). They are native to Southeast Asia but were released into southern Florida from the pet trade. Many other snakes occur naturally in this area. Are the introduced pythons a problem?Burmese pythons were first found in the wetlands of Everglades National Park in the 1980s, but only rarely. The accompanying graph shows what happened next. Most of the data are derived from chance encounters of pythons on roads (pythons are notoriously difficult to find). How would you describe the type ofpopulation growth in pythons from 2000 to 2008? a. logisticb. exponentialc. lineard. logarithmic

Burmese pythons (Python molurus bivittatus) are constricting snakes that can reach enormous sizes (up to 7 meters in length). They are native to Southeast Asia but were released into southern Florida from the pet trade. Many other snakes occur naturally in this area. Are the introduced pythons a problem?Researchers hypothesize that the severe winter of 2010 caused the decline in the number of pythons encountered that year. Is cold weather typically a density-dependent factor or a density-independent factor? Explain the difference.

The mountain gorilla, spotted owl, giant panda, snow leopard, and grizzly bear are all endangered by human encroachment on their environments. Another thing these animals have in common is their K-selected life history traits. Why might they be more easily endangered than animals with r-selected life history traits? What general type of survivorship curve would you expect these species to exhibit? Explain your answer.

Burmese pythons (Python molurus bivittatus) are constricting snakes that can reach enormous sizes (up to 7 meters in length). They are native to Southeast Asia but were released into southern Florida from the pet trade. Many other snakes occur naturally in this area. Are the introduced pythons a problem?The data in the graph show the number of pythons that were encountered, not the total number of pythons in the population. Design a mark–recapture experiment to estimate the total population size of pythons, and list at least twoassumptions you would be making in your experiment.

SCIENTIFIC THINKING Another hypothesis for snowshoe hare population cycles proposes that they are caused by sunspot activity. According to this hypothesis, sunspot activity affects the chemicals present in the plants eaten by hares, which in turn affects the quality of the food. What testable predictions are generated by this hypothesis?