You Are Studying an Area of Tropical Forest Containing a High

question 153

Multiple Choice

You are studying an area of tropical forest containing a high density of rare tree species and a low density of common species. You find that wild pigs capable of eating all plant seeds indiscriminately have recently greatly increased in number and that these pigs are now the most important agents of seed mortality in this forest. How would you expect the diversity of tree species in the forest to respond in the future?

• A)The populations of all tree species will be affected equally, so the overall diversity among trees species will remain unchanged.
• B)Common species, due to their higher densities, will be more affected by wild pig seed predation, favoring an increase in rare species and higher diversity.
• C)An increase in seed predation by generalists would reduce the survival advantage of being a rare species, and so tree diversity would be expected to decline over time.
• D)The seeds of rare trees would be "hidden" from the pigs among all the other trees, conferring a survival advantage that would maintain the high diversity of the forest over time.