chapter 46 Flashcards
Ecology
the study of how organisms interact with one another and with their physical environment in nature
Population
all the individuals of a given species that live and reproduce in a particular place
Population size
the number of individuals of all ages alive at a particular time in a particular place
Population density
the size of a population divided by its range
Geographic range
limit is the geographic boundary beyond which a species does not occur, the limit or limits of the range of a species
Population distribution
the pattern of where people live
Exponential growth
the pattern of population increase that results when r (the per capita growth rate) is constant through time
Intrinsic growth rate
the per capita growth; the maximum rate of growth when no environment factors limit population increase
Intraspecific competition
competition within species
Interspecific competition
competition between individuals of different species
Carrying capacity
the maximum number of individuals a habitat can support
Logistic growth
the pattern of population growth that results as growth potential slows down as the population size approaches K
Density-dependent factors
describes processes affecting populations that are influenced by the number of individual organisms, such as the use of resources or susceptibility to predation or parasitism
Density-independent factors
describes factors such as severe drought that influence population size without regard for the density of the population
Age structure
the number of individuals within each group of a population
