ESA Wildlife Ecology & Management

Question 1

Which population estimation method involves capturing, marking, releasing, and then recapturing individuals to estimate total population size?

Accepted Answer

Mark-recapture (Lincoln-Petersen)

Answer

Distance sampling

Answer

Transect counting

Answer

Quadrat sampling

Question 2

The concept of 'carrying capacity' (K) in wildlife ecology refers to:

Accepted Answer

The maximum sustainable population size an environment can support

Answer

The maximum rate of population increase under ideal conditions

Answer

The minimum viable population size needed to avoid extinction

Answer

The number of animals harvested annually without population decline

Question 3

Which type of wildlife corridor is designed to connect large, isolated habitat patches to reduce the effects of habitat fragmentation?

Accepted Answer

Landscape linkage

Answer

Riparian buffer

Answer

Edge habitat

Answer

Ecotone

Question 4

Home range analysis in wildlife ecology is BEST described as:

Accepted Answer

The area within which an animal carries out its normal activities

Answer

The total area an animal defends against conspecifics

Answer

The minimum area required for a species to complete its life cycle

Answer

The geographic range across which a species is distributed

Question 5

In the context of wildlife management, 'maximum sustained yield' (MSY) is the harvest level that:

Accepted Answer

Produces the greatest harvest while keeping the population stable

Answer

Maximizes annual economic profit from a wildlife population

Answer

Maintains a population at its carrying capacity

Answer

Removes the lowest-fitness individuals from a population

Question 6

Radio telemetry studies in wildlife ecology primarily provide data on:

Accepted Answer

Individual movement patterns, home range, and habitat use

Answer

Population density and species richness at a site

Answer

Genetic diversity and inbreeding coefficients

Answer

Age structure and reproductive rates of a population

Question 7

The 'source-sink' model of wildlife population dynamics describes a situation where:

Accepted Answer

High-quality habitats export surplus individuals to low-quality habitats that cannot sustain themselves

Answer

A population grows exponentially in the source habitat and crashes in the sink

Answer

Immigration and emigration rates are equal across all habitat patches

Answer

Predator populations regulate prey populations in source habitats only