Scenario: You and a small team travel to a rainforest region and conduct a biodiversity survey. The region is a large roadless area with vast swaths of continuous rainforest and is one of the most isolated places on earth. Several indigenous tribes call the region home, and the national government has only limited reach there. Among the research team's many scientific discoveries, you describe a new species of burrowing tortoise. It has a very small body size, with adults weighing only 230 grams (approximately equivalent to 0.5 pounds). It is endemic to a cool rainforest on the top of small mountain and is found nowhere else. The species appears to suffer frequent mortality (at all ages) from owls and a large predatory cat Your team is given the task of writing the profile of this new species for the IUCN Red List, an internationally-recognized list that tracks the conservation status of species worldwide. In PARAGRAPH form, write about the newly-discovered species by addressing the prompts below. Be sure to use specific and appropriate terminology 1. Based on what you know about life history strategies of different types of organisms and the information we already know about this burrowing tortoise, explain what kind of life history strategy this species is most likely to have. IDENTIFY the life history strategy and DESCRIBE at least THREE other characteristics this species is likely to have. For example, describe its likely reproductive rate, life-span, etc... 2. Based on the information above and what you know about the population biology of different types of organisms, IDENTIFY and DESCRIBE the type of survivorship curve this species is likely to have. Explain your answer. 3. Suppose a government program to develop the rainforest interior and increase farmable land leads to logging companies exploring the area and submitting plans to start building roads in order to provide access to the remote mountain-top forest for logging. IDENTIFY and DESCRIBE at least one GENETIC challenge that the burrowing tortoise will likely face as it struggles to avoid extinction over the next 30 years. Make sure to specify why this societal development is a challenge for the species.



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