Exam Prep Guide for Ichthyology                                                                         Spring 2006

WHAT DO I STUDY?   Remember, we test on your understanding of major concepts.  Make sure when you review your lecture notes, chapter outlines and end of the chapter questions that you are focusing on the major concepts, especially for the big essay questions.

 

New material:  50 points

Questions on the lectures since the last exam

10 – 15 fill in the blank

4-6 short answer essays (2-3 sentences max, bulleted statements etc.)

 

 

Review Material: 100 points.  The conceptual stuff

These are the questions that will be asked on the final.  We will randomly select 5 of these questions on exam day for you to answer on the exam.  Because you know the questions ahead of time, each question will be worth 20 points.  Answers should be 1 page or so and in sentence/paragraph format.

 

1.  What is the evolutionary significance of the origin of jaws?  What is important about jaw suspension and attachment to the cranium?  What advantages does a moveable jaw confer to a teleost over the system seen in agnathans?

 

2.  What is the evolutionary significance of paired fins?  What are the advantages of paired structures?  How do they function in locomotion?  What are the basic types of locomotion we discussed in class?  Some teleosts have highly modified fins for specific purposes.  Why?  Give some examples of highly modified teleost fins and their uses. 

 

3.  Describe the cardiopulmonary system of the typical teleost fish.  Explain the flow of blood through the heart (chambers), body, and gills in the correct sequence.  How is oxygen exchanged for CO2 in the tissues?  How are CO2 and O2 exchanged across the gills? 

 

4.  Compare the osmoregulatory system of a typical teleost and a typical shark.  What organs/structures are involved?  If specific cells/glands are involved, where are they and what do they do?  Why are teleosts more likely to be found in estuarine conditions than big pelagic sharks?  What changes would a shark have to undergo to travel up a freshwater river like the Mississippi River?

 

5.  What is the difference between a lateral line cell and an ampulla of Lorenzini?  What type of fish uses each?  What kind of receptor cell is used in each system, and how does each type of cell function?  Where are they found on each fish’s body?

 

6.  How did the Pleistocene glaciation affect the fishes of North America?  How have anthropogenic stresses confounded the issue of zoogeography?  Give some examples of species of teleost fishes to support the sometimes erratic distribution of North American fishes?  What is the significance of the Teays River in the eastern US distribution of fishes?

 

7.  What is the difference between a physostomous and a physoclistous teleost?  How does a fish regulate its position in the water column with each system?  Name the structures and adaptations of the gas bladder (for each) that make this possible.  Which is the more advanced character?  What is the evolutionary significance of each?

 

8.  In the southeastern US there are a lot of naturally acidic blackwater streams.  How do fish cope with acidic conditions?  What mechanisms do fish use to regulate the pH of their blood?  What affect does a low pH have on blood chemistry?  How would stress from fishing or habitat damage influence the way fish handle low pH?

 

9.  More and more studies on fish in freshwater systems have shown the negative effects of synthetic hormones like estrogen on the sex ratio of fishes (see p. 153).  This is often referred to as ‘intersex’ .What behavioral adaptations have fish evolved to ensure reproductive success?  How would these synthetic hormones affect development of reproductive structures and reproductive success?  Would the synthetic hormones influence the development of larvae?

 

10.  When ecologists describe the “filters” that species experience, what do they mean?  What is the significance of fundamental and realized niche?  How do these factors structure fish communities?  What is the difference between interspecific and intraspecific competition, and how does filtering relate to resource partitioning?