EXTENSION QUESTIONS

1. DESCRIBE the key points and requirements inherent in the development of forest complexity from the 'ancestral' plant. 
2. INTERPRET AND EXPLAIN how increased complexity of tropical forest inherent in the durian theory accounts for the speciation process in present tropical forests? 

3. INTERPRET and discuss the assumptions inherent in Fedorov's and Ashton's hypotheses to account for the high plant diversity in the tropics. 

4. EXPLAIN what evidence there is that allopatric speciation occurred in the tropics? 
5. EXPLAIN what is the evidence for a time hypothesis? 
6. INTERPRET the 'battle lines' which have been drawn - are speciation hypotheses easily categorised in a debate on evolutionary processes in tropical forests? 

7. DISCUSS, with relevant examples, which hypothesis is currently most acceptable? Ashton or Fedorov/Corner? 
8. DISCUSS the significance of seed predation in maintaining tropical forst diversity, using information from the Smithsonian Forest diversity site. 
9. APPLY current information on speciation for specific plant groups or individuals to discuss the implications for speciation in tropical forests. 
10. DEFINE AND DISCUSS the concepts of rarity - how is this defined and what are the implications? 
11. APPLY the current range of field data to provide answers to problems in tropical forest conservation? 
12. DISCUSS how you would answer the following questions, using the data set from the Barro Colorado Island 50ha. plot (Excel  5.0 file or text file)  censuses. 

• How would you determine the frequency of gap occurrence in the plot over the census period? 
• Is there a correlation between species abundance and certain families/growth form (use a taxonomic or architecture model approach). 
• Are there groups which would be considered for rarity or endangered status? 
• What further information from the plot data set would you request to answer the questions?