Module 9S2 Changes in Populations

Introduction

Module 9: Section 2 has four lessons dealing with population changes. You will learn to use formulas for population size, density, growth rate, and per capita growth rate. These can be used to help make informed decisions as wildlife managers, developers, politicians, academics, and concerned citizens. You will see how comparing collected data with the normal patterns of growth observed in different species assists in decision making.

You will learn that different species have evolved two distinct strategies of growth to maximize their reproductive potential and survivability (r and K selection). A given set of species characteristics indicates each strategy. You will learn that you can predict the course of a given population by matching it with those characteristics.

You will learn that there is debate and controversy about how human growth differs from the growth patterns of other species. You will consider how well human populations can be characterized by the same parameters as other species. You will also study how human populations tend to differ from others due to our tendency to change our own environments using technology.

In This Module

Section 2: Lesson 1—Factors Influencing Growth

This lesson will explore the factors that influence the growth of a population and determine whether or not the population size increases, decreases, or remains stable.

The focusing questions being addressed in this lesson are:

• What are the factors that influence populations?
• How do these factors influence population change?

Section 2: Lesson 2—Measuring Growth

In this lesson you will explore the type of data that can be collected about population sizes, how it can be interpreted and how the results of these studies can be applied.

The focusing questions being addressed in this lesson are:

• How can data be analyzed to study population dynamics?
• What terms describe these population changes?

Section 2: Lesson 3—Growth Patterns

There are many different growth patterns for natural populations. You will examine these, and compare them to the unique pattern of human population growth.

The focusing questions being addressed in this lesson are:

• What are the types of population growth patterns?
• How do growth patterns illustrate the types of changes over time?

Section 2: Lesson 4—r and K Selected Growth Patterns

In this lesson you will examine the characteristics and reproductive strategies of two categories of population types.

The focusing question being addressed in this lesson is:

• What are the characteristics and reproductive strategies of r and k selected organisms?