Bergmann’s Rule

Homeotherms, warm blooded animals, that live in colder climates are bigger than those that live in warmer climates because of ratio of surface area to air ratio.

Gloger’s Rule

Allen’s Rule

Law of the Minimum

Competitive Exclusion Principle

demonstrates how population growth is affected by population density.

As a population nears its

carrying capacity

bobolinks

hummingbirds

swans

photoperiod, or the length of the day.

daytime migrators use sun, nighttime use stars. Also use magnetic field with gravity to navigate.

example whooping crane.

limited populations that all go the same route and to the same place every year are more prone to catastrophic things.

General postures and movements (particularly locomotion)

Resting behavior

Comfort behavior (cleaning and grooming)

Feeding and drinking behavior

Urination and defecation

Marking behavior (particularly gland marking)

Behavior of building

)

Orientation and migration

Intraspecific aggression

Sexual behavior

Parent-offspring relationships

Social groupings and organization

Territorial and home range behavior

Play behavior

Interspecific interactions (including domestication)

relationships

Communications and expressive behavior

Vocalizations

The first indications of

Chromosome

Gene

allele

study of how genetic principles apply to entire populations.

must take into account such ecological and

evolutionary factors as population size, how individuals select mates, how individuals

are distributed across the geographic range of the population, patterns of migration,

and natural selection.

Changes in allele frequencies within a population that occur

at random and not as a result of mutation, selection, or the migration of individuals.

The total genetic information present in all members of a population or

a species.

The exchange of genetic information (i.e., genes or alleles) among

populations as a result of migration of individuals. Gene flow often helps to

maintain similar levels of genetic variance among populations of a species.

Sexual reproduction between individuals who are more closely

related than would be expected given the effective population size, which would

determine an average probability of selecting two individuals at random. This

process can lead to a decrease in heterozygosity in a population and thus a decrease

in the genetic variance.

Variance in allele frequency among samples taken from a

population or among subpopulations.

a measure of the average probability that an

individual will have two different alleles for any gene, or the average probability of

heterozygous alleles for any gene, per individual, within a population

whta is population bottleneck?

A severe reduction in the size of, or number of individuals

in, a population. Such reductions often are temporary, with numbers of individuals

in a population subsequently increasing

When a new population is founded by a few individuals who

possess only part of the full genetic variation of that species. The new population

often has a much more limited amount of genetic variation than other populations

of the species and the new population may have much different allele frequencies.

Sometimes considered an extreme form of genetic drift.

Essentially, the number of individuals in a population

with the possibility of contributing genes to the next generation. In more generalized

terms, it can be thought of as the number of mature, reproducing individuals in a

population

Food plots are plantings meant to supplement an animal’s natural food sources or
attract animals for viewing. not a very valid management technique. have to cover 10% of wooded lands to make a difference which is very expensive. no substitute for native vegitation. used for recriational hunting also.

not legal to hunt in food plots

concept used when negative impacts to the environment caused by
development in a sensitive area cannot be avoided or minimized.

Mitigation strives to
offset the destructive nature of development on wildlife habitats by improving a
degraded habitat or creating a new one to replace the habitat destroyed

Common areas
that require mitigation from impacts are wetlands or habitat supporting listed species

Landscaping with native plant species around buildings and other developed sites may
create habitat islands that would facilitate the movement of individuals of some species
between undeveloped areas.

carefully plan and evaluate building of stuff for environmental reasons

capture and marking

sampling methods

pop. sampling

vegetative sampling

Ethological studies

look at the charts about all that stuff

Tracks

Scat (poop   ((dung piles or latrines)) )

Owls make pellets

Burrows

Nests

Feeding (snipped twigs, rooting, peeled pine cones, holes in trees, and stripped plants)

not much change from crestaceous era

broad, rounded snout

dark brown and black coloration

up to 10 feet female, 12 to 16 feet adult male

young gators striped yellow and white bands between the brown.

occupy freshwater wetlands

males vocalize to mark territory and call females

females deeper voiced than males

courtship begins mid march

20-50 eggs laid

alligators make holes that lead to big underground dens

Juvenile alligators eat
insects, mollusks, and crustaceans while older animals consume fish, turtles, snakes,
birds, mammals, and crustaceans.

Move vegetation with snout, tail.

subspecies of american black bear

Habitat loss is the major reason for the species decline

aka everglades bear

males - 250 to 450 pounds

females - 125 to 250 pounds

females have a blonde V on their chest.

The bears in north Florida prefer hardwood swamps year-round,
periodically utilizing surrounding flatwoods.

80% of their diet consists of plant material.

The
animal component is largely insects, with a few armadillos and wild hogs thrown in.

food preferences- favorite fruit blueberry, blackberry, and gallberry.

they dont hibernate but they do slow dow during winter, walking hibernation or denning

Pregnant females enter into a hibernation state in mid-December to early
January and don’t awaken until late April or early May.

lose up to 25% of their body weight while hibernating.

young are born in January or February,

seven- to eight-month gestation
period

2 or 3 cubs

weigh about 12 ounces at birth

remain with the female until they are about 1.5 years old

5 toes front paw, back paw resembles human print

sings of bears-rolled rocks and logs, tracks, poop, clawing trees, scent marker, day beds

between two and three feet
and weighing 5–10 pounds

looks rather like an eel with long fins and has undulating swimming patterns

prehistoric fish

live in warm stagant waters

prefer clear water with lots of vegitation

tolerant of mud, silt, and high water temperatures

rise to the water surface and
gulp air to augment the oxygen intake from the gills

aka dog fish

predator

classified as sport fish

hard-hitting, excellent fighter

The male bowfin roots a shallow nest in weedy swamp or slough bottom in late spring.
The female then deposits the eggs. The male fertilizes them and guards the nest and fry
(the recently hatched fish) until the fingerlings can fend for themselves.

Pelican have whitish yellow head as adult, brown as child.

coastal birds, nest in colonies near ground or low trees, nest made of branches, twigs, steal materials from neighbors.

2-3 eggs, hatch in 4 weeks or so.

birth - in two weeks begin getting pin feathers. stay in nest until fledging.

pelicans have fish diet: parents puke for young, until they can catch their own.

Their skulls
have reinforced sutures, and they have air sacs in their breasts. - helps with diving.  The birds dive from 10 to 50 feet above
the water when prey is sighted. The impact of the bird hitting the water actually stuns
the fish, allowing the pelican to scoop it up

fly together in line a few in. above water

many still endangered.

Birds
eating pesticide-laden fish were affected by the thinning of their eggshells and could not
effectively incubate their eggs. As a result, species numbers plummeted.

After federal laws banned DDT in 1972, pelicans began to make a slow comeback

boats and fishing line disturb this creature

One of most abundant mammals in Florida

Key Largo has rare cotton mouse species

Good swimmers and climbers.

prefer small grains and seeds to green food.

Cotton mice have a long breeding season, from late August until early May. Litter sizes
average three to four young, and a female may raise four or more litters a year. The
young are naked and blind at birth. Their ears open in five or six days at the same time
as their teeth are beginning to erupt. Their eyes open in about 13 days, and shortly after
that they begin to eat solid foods. They are weaned by 20–25 days

It has six tubercles on
each rear foot which helps to distinguish it from the Florida mouse, which only has five
tubercles.

medium-sized, dog-like carnivore

humans made coyotes relocate past the mississippi river

as well as the extermination of wolves

they howl most frequent at dusk or
dawn and are often answered by another coyote miles away.

typically hunt alone - will have howling parties occasionally. after they kill prey, they disband.

will eat anything.

Mate in spring,sometimes mate for life.

5 or 6 young after 2 months gestation, baby eyes open at 9 days. both parents feed babies their tasty puke at 2 weeks.

Wolves were coyotes’ only natural predators. Their extermination leaves the coyotes
with no natural predators except man.

Diamond Pattern with yellow borders

It has an arrow-shaped head which is much larger than its neck,
and a set of rattles at the end of its tail

largest and most dangerous snake in north america.

about 6 to 8 feet long, 4 to 5 pounds

live in hollow logs under palmetto root.

good swimmers
eat warm-blooded animals, mainly rabbits, squirrels, rats, mice, and birds

ambush predator, will wait motionless for a week to strike.

needlelike fangs and poison sacs

The venom is a complex of proteins — some neurotoxins and
some hemotoxins.

The rattle is a series of interlocking segments that knock
against each other when the tail is vibrated. The rattle increases by one each time the
skin is shed. Rattle breaks over time, so cannot be used to age the snake

birth to 9–15 live young between July and October. August
is the most common month for diamondbacks to have young in Florida.

live to age 20

large homeranges

numbers decrease because of habitat loss, habitat fragmentation, and both
indiscriminate and discriminate killings. Some snakes are taken for their skin and/or
meat. Others are taken because of the perceived threat to the public. The real threat to
public safety is low.

restricted to Oak dominated habitats in FL associated with old coastal dunes or paleodunes.

population is rapidly declining in the past 100 years, nearing extirpation.

same size as blue jay

most important food: acorn

others include insects, arthropods, small vertebrates (tree frogs, lizards, and small
snakes), berries, and seeds.

Birds forage independently in close proximity to each other.
One bird often serves as a sentinel and warns feeding birds of approaching predators.

Live in happy family

nest from march to june

Nests are constructed of twigs in
dense, low to mid-height shrubs. The usual clutch size is three or four eggs.

Three is the average number of young fledged;
however, mortality of newly fledged birds is high — 65%.

population loss is due to typical problems - habitat loss, degradation etc boring.

1 of 4 tortoises in north america

only species east
of the Mississippi

restricted to
areas of sandy soil with a herbaceous understory and open canopy.

medium size. broad head, short tail

not have webbed feet and its shell is not hinged

stiff, flattened
forelimbs used during burrow excavation

Adults are usually 9–11 inches long and
weigh 8–10 pounds.

domed shell range from light tan to gray

Hatchlings are yellow-orange, less than two inches long, and soft-shelled for several
days

not reach sexual maturity until they are 10–15 years old.

known to live 40–60 years and may live up to
150 years

estimated that only 1–3% of the young which hatch live beyond two
years of age.

herbivores- eat Broad-leafed plants
and grasses are their primary food sources, but they also consume fruits and berries and
small amounts of organic debris, insects, and carrion

make burrows to regulate body temperature

burrows also humid which prevents desiccation

other animals also use the burrows and they are known as commensals

have a defined social structure with dominant males.

They have
courtship displays (head bobbing and positioning) and actively defend their territories

breeding from February and lasting
into September; the peak period is May to June

lay eggs in sunny happy sandy place

average clutch size is six and ranges from 3 to
11. Incubation periods are between 80 and 110 days.

breed every other year
Gopher tortoises from central and north Florida will hibernate for varying periods of
time. At the southern end of their hibernation range, they may come out to forage when
daytime temperatures exceed 70 degrees.

do nice things for community: seed dispersal of herbaceous plants, nutrient recycling in the soil,
and creation of underground habitats for many species

most effective conservation effort mitigation banking which charges developers a fee for destroying
gopher tortoises. These moneys are combined to purchase large land holdings managed
for gopher tortoises.tortoise relocations have also been used as a conservation measure

Several specific diseases can be spread between different
populations, potentially causing a die-off in both populations

tall, long-beaked shorebird 13–15 inches long.gray with brown streaks, and it has long yellow legs which trail behind when it flies

aka tattlers or telltales due to their talkative habits and
vigilance to warn of approaching danger

feed on mudflats, in
grassy ponds, or in shallow water

can feed in deeper waters than other birds because of long sexy legs

diet: fond of minnows, but also eat insects and other small invertebrate animals.fond of minnows, but also eat insects and other small invertebrate animals.

Their nests are no more than depressions in
the moss, with no other nesting materials added.

The male stays close to the nest while
the female incubates. He will distract and fend off intruders, making it extremely difficult to find the female or the nest.

Four buff colored eggs with brown blotches is the
usual clutch size. Nesting usually occurs in late May

not found in large concentrations

subspecies of the Atlantic sturgeon

found in Florida waters

primitive
fish with naked skin embedded with bony scutes

used to be common in gulf coast estuaries however over fishing + damming off rivers has caused severe population shortage.

can grow to 300 centimeters in length
and weigh hundreds of pounds. They can live in excess of 60 years

have barbels which assist in them in feeding on
small, bottom-dwelling invertebrates.

are andromous (a saltwater species requiring freshwater for breeding

Peak migration usually occurs in May, with a secondary peak
in October. triggered by water temperature and when people pee in the river

spawn in shallow waters with a bottom substrate of mixed
sands and gravel.

spawing sites endagered by nitrates which cause increased algal growth, which
can lower the dissolved oxygen levels in spawning grounds, reducing the viability of
the site.

excellent keystone species to monitor the health
of an entire river system because they stay in a localized estuary area and do not intermix with breeding
populations from other drainages

hosts include raccoons, gray foxes, and coyotes. Skunks, red foxes, bears,
and otters are also known to be susceptible.

caused by a virus

virus attacks epithelial cells primarily in the
respiratory and digestive tracts, and eyes. Common symptoms include coughing,
sneezing, watery eyes (with or without discharge), and diarrhea. The nervous system
may also be damaged, causing the animals to loose the fear of humans and to have
intermittent convulsions, tremors, or chewing fits

after a while can cause  pneumonia, suffer from eye and nasal
discharges, become emaciated, develop cut or bleeding feet, and develop
gastroenteritis. The disease can be fatal.

transmitted by contact with infected animals or their excretions.

named for the town of Old Lyme, Connecticut

bacteria-caused infection

Humans and a few other mammals can
contract the disease, usually from ticks. Other blood-feeding arthropods may also be
able to transmit the disease.

the deer tick, is associated with lyme disease,

variety of
hosts including reptiles, birds, and small mammals.

Symptoms from lyme disease are varied; however, the typical bite will have a skin rash
develop around it. The individual may also have flu-like symptoms. Arthritic
symptoms can occur after the bite appears to be healed. The disease is treatable with
antibiotics;

foxes, skunks, raccoons,
and bats are considered the main reservoirs.

Some species, like rodents, opossums, and birds, seem to have a natural
resistance to rabies.

caused by a virus that attacks the nervous system. It has an incubation period
(species-specific) when symptoms are masked; however, once the virus invades the
brain, clinical symptoms are exhibited. When the virus reaches the brain, it also invades
the salivary glands, making the victim contagious. Rabies is transmitted through saliva, generally in association with bites

There are two forms of rabies — dumb and furious. Dumb rabies is characterized by
lethargy, aimless wandering, weakness of the legs, and lack of awareness. Furious
rabies is characterized by violent attacks on moving objects and self mutilation.