The following questions will
help you to review the material from the lectures as well as the text.
Make sure to take a look at the links to the images and the web sites
at
the end of the page.
Briefly describe how our
species
started to appreciate the biodiversity of the planet (in a geographical
and historical context)?
Early naturalists tended
to gather
biodiversity information in a slightly different manner compared to
modern
biologists. explain.
Compare and contrast the
difference
between taking digital photographs of an organism versus
drawing/sketching
one in the field.
Explain the concept of
binomial
nomenclature.
What is a species?
Define the
biological species concept.
What kind of
contribution did
Carl von Linne bring to the field of biology?
What are the different
taxonomic
levels (in order from the largest to the smallest taxon)?
What is the purpose of
taxonomy?
How is it used in biology? [see Taxonomy]
How many species have
been described
(i.e. the total number of species named and categorized)? [Study the images
below]
The phylum Arthropoda
[meaning
"joint-footed"] is the largest described taxon on the planet in terms
of
species diversity. The phylum includes all types of insects,
crustaceans,
spiders, millipedes and centipedes. What is percentage of the
phylum
Arthropoda of all known animal species?
Study the
diagram of all known organisms below. What percentage is made up of
animal species? What percentage is made up of insect species?
Terry Erwin changed our
concept
of the number of species that inhabit the planet. Briefly describe his
experiment and how he estimated the number of insect species in the
tropics.
How many insect species
exist
in the tropical rain forests according to Terry Erwins data?
Briefly explain how we
have explored
the realm of the oceans over the last century. What kind of devices are
now used to explore the depths?
Why is it so difficult
to explore
this real of our world? How is the physical world of the deep sea
different
for tne one at the surface?
What role did William
Beebe play
in the process of exploring deep sea life?
How do marine life forms
from
the deep seas differ from the "typical" life forms found at the
surface?
Describe unique adaptations and/or morphological characteristics of
deep
sea fish species.
Most biologists now
agree that
there are far more species on the planet than the number which has been
described. What is the current estimate of species living on
our
planet?
How does that number
compare to
the number of described species? Any impact on the field of biology?
