Does the r referring to growth rate only include animals that have many offspring over a short lifespan? Such as that duck species mentioned in the lecture?
Would contagious diseases be considered a density-dependent since they can spread quickly, or is it density-independent since it can affect those more at risk?
R and K selected do not refer to exponential or logistic growth. Both R and K selected species could have either exponential growth or logistic growth. Those terms refer more to whether they have a fast (reproduce a lot and die young) or slow (reproduce slowly and live a long time) life history.
That would cause the population to grow. Eventually the population would be expected to reach its carrying capacity and then population growth would stop.
Yes the population would reach the carrying capacity and then stop growing. That population can cause damage on the habitat though. I watched a National Geographic Documentary about Yellowstone National Park, and an episode explained that the Elk population grew so much that they were eating all the trees and destroying the park. This was because they decided to remove all the wolves, which were the Elks natural predator. Once they re-introduced the wolves everything went back to normal as the population was regulated again.
Does the r referring to growth rate only include animals that have many offspring over a short lifespan? Such as that duck species mentioned in the lecture?
No, all organisms have an intrinsic growth rate, or r. Organisms that are "r-selected" just have a larger r than organisms that are "k-selected"
Does Natural Selection always favor short-term survival than long-term health?
Yes, If you are dead, then it doesn't matter whether you would have been healthy or not later on.
What happens when multiple new species get introduced into a new environment? Would it still be logistic or exponential growth?
Usually when a new species is introduced to an environment it initially has exponential growth.
Would contagious diseases be considered a density-dependent since they can spread quickly, or is it density-independent since it can affect those more at risk?
Diseases are generally considered density dependent because diseases spread more easily in larger populations.
Would emigration count when birds travel "south for the winter?"
No, that would be migration. The whole population moves together.
Are R selected and K selected just other names for exponential and logistic graphs or are they just factors that lead to those graphs?
R and K selected do not refer to exponential or logistic growth. Both R and K selected species could have either exponential growth or logistic growth. Those terms refer more to whether they have a fast (reproduce a lot and die young) or slow (reproduce slowly and live a long time) life history.
Could there be any serious consequences if a population started gaining way more Individuals than it was losing?
That would cause the population to grow. Eventually the population would be expected to reach its carrying capacity and then population growth would stop.
Yes the population would reach the carrying capacity and then stop growing. That population can cause damage on the habitat though. I watched a National Geographic Documentary about Yellowstone National Park, and an episode explained that the Elk population grew so much that they were eating all the trees and destroying the park. This was because they decided to remove all the wolves, which were the Elks natural predator. Once they re-introduced the wolves everything went back to normal as the population was regulated again.