Population Ecology

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What is population ecology?

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Population ecology is the branch of ecology that studies the dynamics of populations of organisms, particularly the interactions between populations and their environment.

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What is population density?

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Population density is the average number of individuals of the same species per unit of surface area at a given time.

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What is the difference between density-dependent and density-independent factors?

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Density-dependent factors are those that have an increasing impact as the population size increases (e.g., competition, predation), while density-independent factors affect populations regardless of their size (e.g., natural disasters).

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What is carrying capacity?

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Carrying capacity is the maximum number of individuals of a particular species that an environment can sustainably support.

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What is uniform dispersion?

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Uniform dispersion is a pattern of spacing in which individuals are evenly distributed in an area, often due to territorial behavior.

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What is clumped dispersion?

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Clumped dispersion is a pattern where individuals are grouped together in patches, often due to resource availability.

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What is random dispersion?

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Random dispersion is a pattern where individuals are spread out irregularly, with no predictable pattern.

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What are limiting factors in population growth?

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Limiting factors are environmental conditions that restrict the growth, abundance, or distribution of a population.

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What is exponential growth?

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Exponential growth occurs when a population increases by a constant proportion over time, resulting in a rapid increase.

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What is logistic growth?

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Logistic growth is a model of population growth that starts with rapid growth and then slows as the population approaches carrying capacity.