2.5a - Parasitism Flashcards
An ecological niche is…
a multi-dimensional summary of tolerances and requirements of a species
A species has a fundamental niche that it occupies in…
the absence of any interspecific competition
A realised niche is occupied in response to…
interspecific competition
As a result of interspecific competition…
competitive exclusion can occur, where the niches of two species are so similar that one declines to local extinction
Where the realised niches are sufficiently different…
potential competitors can co-exist by resource partitioning
Parasitism is a…
symbiotic interaction between a parasite and its host (+/-)
Unlike a predator-prey relationship, the reproductive potential of the parasite is…
greater than that of its host
A parasite gains benefits in terms of…
nutrients at the expense of the host
Most parasites have a narrow (specialised) niches as…
they are very host-specific since the host provides so many of the parasite’s needs
Many parasites are degenerate, lacking…
structure and organs found in other organisms
An ectoparasite lives…
on the surface of its host
An endoparasite lives…
within the tissues of its host
