REVIEW FOR FINAL EXAM FOR BIOLOGY 357 FALL 2010

Examination 1: (Lectures 1-7)

NO questions from Lecture 1 (Introduction to Ecology) or Lecture 3 (Climate).

Lecture 2 Energy Flow (3-4 questions) Focus mainly on secondary production and
terms from the lecture. No energy budgets
o assimilation
o production efficiency
o Net Primary Production
o Productivity
o Standing Crop Biomass
o Gross Primary Production
Lectures 4 and 5 Nutrient Cycling (3-4 questions). I would carefully study nitrogen,
phosphorus, and carbon cycles.
Lecture 7 Ecosystems I (3-4 questions). Understand the concepts of overturn, how lotic
systems stratify, the River Continuum Concept, and oligotrophic, eutrophic, mesotrophic.

Examination 2: (Lectures 8-14)

Lecture 8 Aquatic Ecosystems II (2-3 questions). Broad concepts of energy flow,

nutrient cycling.
Lectures 9 and 10 Terrestrial Ecosystems (3-4 questions). Know characteristics of the
major ecosystems we discussed in class.
Lecture 11 Plant Adaptations (2-3 questions). Understand homeostasis, negative
feedback, and a few examples of how plants adapt to their environment. Probably a
question or two about photosynthetic pathways.
Lecture 12 Plant Adaptations (3-4 questions). Advantages/disadvantages of
homeotherms and polkiotherms, and how these animals adapt to their environments
within their constraints.
Lectures 13 and 14 Life History Patterns (1 or 2 questions).

Examination 3: (Lectures 15-22)

Lectures 15, 15, 17 (4-5 questions) you will see many of the same type of questions that
test your understanding of models of predation, competition, and niche.
Lecture 18 Parasitism/Mutualism (2-3 questions). Questions that mainly cover
different types of life cycles (direct vs. indirect), hosts (definitive, intermediate), and a
question or two on types of symbiosis.
Lectures 19-21 Populations. Understand concepts of carrying capacity, how populations
react to stress, what drives populations to increase, decrease, and what are some ways
you can measure a population. Expect to see a life table have have to answer questions
concerning the data.

Lecture 22 (4-5 questions): Understand different ways how to quantitatively measure a

community and compare to other communities. Will be graphs comparing communities that you
will have to answer questions. What is a keystone species

Lecture 23 (10 questions): Understand how populations change over time from bare ground to
mature forests/communities. Gleason vs Clemements views of the environment. Know
succession and how it relates to changes in diversity, how it is affected by disturbance, and the
models proposed to explain how communities change. Know the differences between autogenic
and allogenic.
Lecture 24 (4-5 questions): Why is it important to preserve biodiversity, how is it being lost, and
what are some of the philosophical ideas behind preserving biodiversity.