Examination on BCB705 Biodiversity Chapters 1, 3 & 4
Answer any TWO questions. Full marks = 80. Duration 1.5 hours.
Use the number of marks as a guide to how much time to spend on a question.
Label your answers clearly.
Question 1
Answer (a) or (b).
(a) Give a detailed definition of biodiversity and its most commonly recognised levels. (40)
OR
(b) Discuss how and why the direct use of biodiversity relies on ecosystem services.
(40)
Question 2
Answer any two of the following.
(a) Discuss some of the problems with valuing biodiversity. (20)
(b) Discuss the measurement of biodiversity. (20)
(c) Why can we not give the exact number of species described by a specific date?
(20)
Question 3
Answer any four of the following.
(a) How do speciation and extinction affect biodiversity? (10)
(b) Explain what alpha diversity, beta diversity and gamma diversity measure. (10)
(c) Discuss the biases in our knowledge of species diversity and why they occur. (10)
(d) Discuss how industry (medical and otherwise) relies on ecosystem services. (10)
(e) What value of biodiversity do you regard as most important and why? (10)
What effects are not reflected in extinction rates and how do these factors have an influence on future biodiversity? (10)
What characteristics are likely to make species vulnerable to extinction and why do these characteristics make species vulnerable? (20)
Discuss some problems with assigning monetary value to biodiversity? (20)
How do you use biodiversity every day? (10)
How is genetic diversity obtained? (10)
Discuss the issues associated with biodiversity in the social/political context? (10)
Explain the problems of using a single sample to estimate global biodiversity (10)
Give a brief definition of biodiversity. (10)