Maryland State Envirothon Wildlife Study Guide

Wildlife Study Guide

• Population dynamics refers to the factors that regulate population levels, including natality, productivity, and mortality.
• Primary consumers are organisms that feed on plants and/or other producers.
• Rabies is a viral disease that affects the central nervous system of warm-blooded animals.
• Ranavirus is a DNA-based virus that impacts cold-blooded animals.
• Recruitment refers to the addition of young to an adult population of breeders.
• Riparian areas are the areas of influence between upland habitats and aquatic habitats.
• SAV (submerged aquatic vegetation) refers to vascular plants that live and grow completely underwater.
• Scat refers to the excrement droppings of an animal.
• Secondary consumers are organisms that eat primary consumers.
• Small game refers to a management classification that includes eastern cottontail rabbits, squirrels, quail, ruffed grouse, pheasant, and crow.
• Species refers to populations of animals that possess common characteristics and can freely interbreed in nature to produce fertile offspring.
• Species diversity refers to the combination of species richness and species abundance in a given area.
• Species richness refers to the number of wildlife species found in a given area.
• Strata refer to groupings of vegetation based on height of plants.
• Sustained yield refers to the continuing yield of a biological resource, such as timber, by controlled periodic harvesting.
• Taxonomy is the science of the classification of animals or plants.
• Tertiary consumer refers to an animal that eats secondary consumers.
• Threatened refers to any species that are vulnerable to endangerment in the near future.
• Torpor refers to a state of decreased physiological activity in an animal, usually characterized by a reduced body temperature and rate of metabolism.
• Trophic level refers to a feeding level in the food chain of an ecosystem characterized by organisms that occupy a similar functional position.
• Vector refers to an organism that transmits a pathogen from a reservoir to a host.
• Ventral refers to the lower surface of an organism.
• Vernal pool refers to a seasonal or temporary wetland.
• Waterfowl refers to water birds, usually referring to ducks, geese, and swans.
• Wildlife refers to all non-domesticated plants, animals, and other organisms.
• Wildlife population dynamics refers to the study of factors and their interactions that control or influence the growth, stability, and decline of wildlife.
• White-nose Syndrome is a fungal disease that causes bats to rouse too frequently from torpor and starve to death through excessive activity.
• Zoonotic refers to an infectious disease that is transmitted between species (sometimes by a vector) from animals to humans or from humans to other animals.

Wildlife Identification

• Identifying wildlife and wildlife signs using keys and/or field guides is essential for studying wildlife.
• Wildlife encompasses any free-ranging, non-domestic animal, including invertebrates and fish.
• Bird identification involves paying attention to size and shape, color pattern, behavior, and habitat.
• The Maryland Envirothon uses the Peterson Field Guide to Eastern Birds (6th edition) for bird identification.
• Field guides are grouped by plates that correspond to species groupings, such as geese, swans, and ducks.

Wildlife Ecology

• Wildlife ecology is a branch of science dealing with the interrelationships of wildlife with their own species, with other species, and with their nonliving environment.
• Habitat refers to the natural environment in which an organism lives.
• Plant succession and its effect on wildlife refer to the changes in vegetation over time and their impact on wildlife.
• Edges and contrast refer to the boundaries between different habitats and the resulting changes in wildlife communities.
• Food chains and food webs refer to the feeding relationships between organisms in an ecosystem.
• Communities and ecosystems refer to the interacting populations of organisms and their environments.
• Species richness and diversity refer to the number of species and their relative abundance in a given area.
• Natural selection and adaptations refer to the process of evolution and the resulting traits that enable organisms to survive and reproduce.
• Biodiversity refers to the variety of ecosystems, species, and genes within an area.

Conservation and Management of Wildlife

• Habitat management involves altering the environment to maximize the amount of wildlife using an area or to increase focal species.
• Habitat loss, fragmentation, and degradation refer to the destruction, breaking up, or degradation of habitats, leading to population decline and extinction.
• Carrying capacity refers to the maximum number of organisms that an ecosystem can support.
• Wildlife population management and strategies involve controlling population sizes to maintain ecological balance.
• Federal and state roles for managing wildlife involve enacting laws, protecting endangered species, managing migratory birds, and distributing funds to state agencies for management.

Wildlife and Society

• Exotic and invasive species refer to non-native species that can pose biological, economic, or human-health related harm.
• Rare, threatened, and endangered species refer to species that are at risk of extinction due to habitat loss, hunting, and other human activities.
• Wildlife diseases refer to illnesses that affect wildlife populations, such as rabies and ranavirus.
• Wildlife legislation refers to laws and regulations that govern human-wildlife interactions, such as hunting and conservation.

Glossary

• Ecosystem biodiversity refers to the variety of habitats, biological communities, and ecological processes within an ecosystem.