CORE Wildlife Conservation 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the significance of the Federal Duck Stamp program for wildlife conservation?
- It funds law enforcement to prosecute waterfowl poachers
- It generates revenue used to purchase and protect wetland habitat for migratory birds (Correct answer)
- It sets annual bag limits for waterfowl hunters across all states
- It certifies decoy carvers and waterfowl artists
Correct answer: It generates revenue used to purchase and protect wetland habitat for migratory birds
Proceeds from Federal Duck Stamp sales are used almost entirely to purchase or lease wetland habitat that protects millions of acres for migratory waterfowl and other wildlife.
Question 2: Which of the following best describes 'adaptive management' in wildlife conservation?
- Adjusting hunting seasons based only on public demand
- A cyclical process of setting goals, implementing actions, monitoring results, and revising strategies based on outcomes (Correct answer)
- Protecting all species regardless of population status
- Allowing wildlife populations to regulate themselves without human intervention
Correct answer: A cyclical process of setting goals, implementing actions, monitoring results, and revising strategies based on outcomes
Adaptive management treats conservation actions as experiments, using monitoring data to evaluate outcomes and continuously improve management strategies over time.
Question 3: What role do apex predators play in maintaining ecosystem health?
- They reduce plant diversity by consuming seed-dispersing animals
- They regulate prey populations and indirectly influence vegetation and lower trophic levels (Correct answer)
- They compete with humans for game species, reducing hunting opportunities
- They have minimal impact because they exist in low numbers
Correct answer: They regulate prey populations and indirectly influence vegetation and lower trophic levels
Apex predators control herbivore populations, preventing overgrazing, and their influence cascades through the entire food web to support overall ecosystem health and diversity.
Question 4: A wildlife biologist finds that a songbird population is declining despite abundant food and no hunting pressure. The most likely cause is:
- Overpopulation of the species
- Nest parasitism by brown-headed cowbirds in fragmented habitat (Correct answer)
- Excess rainfall reducing insect availability
- Competition from other songbird species for territory
Correct answer: Nest parasitism by brown-headed cowbirds in fragmented habitat
Brown-headed cowbirds are nest parasites that lay eggs in other birds' nests, and their impact intensifies in fragmented habitats where forest-interior songbirds are exposed to more cowbird pressure.
Question 5: What does 'wildlife carrying capacity' depend on primarily?
- The size of the hunting season and bag limits
- Availability of food, water, shelter, and space within a given habitat (Correct answer)
- The number of predators in the surrounding area
- Annual rainfall totals in the region
Correct answer: Availability of food, water, shelter, and space within a given habitat
Carrying capacity is determined by the availability of the four basic habitat components — food, water, shelter, and space — which together set the maximum sustainable wildlife population.
Question 6: Which statement about the relationship between hunters and wildlife conservation in the U.S. is most accurate?
- Hunting has historically harmed wildlife populations more than it has helped them
- License fees and excise taxes on sporting equipment fund the majority of state wildlife conservation programs (Correct answer)
- Wildlife management agencies receive most of their funding from general tax revenues
- Hunting has no meaningful impact on wildlife population management
Correct answer: License fees and excise taxes on sporting equipment fund the majority of state wildlife conservation programs
Through the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (Pittman-Robertson), excise taxes on firearms and ammunition — along with hunting license sales — provide the primary funding for state wildlife agencies.
Question 7: What is the primary threat to amphibian populations globally, including in the United States?
- Overharvesting for the pet trade
- Habitat loss combined with chytrid fungus disease (Correct answer)
- Predation by introduced fish species only
- Competition from invasive amphibian species
Correct answer: Habitat loss combined with chytrid fungus disease
Amphibians face a combination of threats, but habitat destruction paired with the deadly chytrid fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis) has caused the most widespread population declines and extinctions.
CORE Wildlife Conservation 5
What is the significance of the Federal Duck Stamp program for wildlife conservation?