2.3 Island Biogeography Notes DB

Which island would support the most species?

• A large island far from the mainland.

• A large island close to the mainland.

• A small island close to the mainland.

• A small island far from the mainland.

Which island will have the higher ecosystem diversity?

• small island

• medium size island

• large island

Which island will have the highest genetic diversity?

• A

• B

• C

Why do larger islands have higher levels of biodiversity?

• They support larger populations which are more resistant to being wiped out by disease or disturbance

• They have a wider diversity of ecosystems which offers a wider variety of environmental conditions

• They are more likely to be discovered by different colonizing species

• All of these are reasons that larger islands have higher biodiversity

Why are specialist species more likely to evolve on islands?

• Islands have many different ecosystems which allows all the organisms to utilize different areas

• Islands have wide resource availability which leads to a high level of natural selection

• Islands have narrower resource availability which selects for very specific traits

• Evolution happens faster in smaller areas