Chapter 8 Flashcards
population
is defined as a group of individuals of the same species living and interbreeding within a given area.
Density
is the average number of individuals per unit of area or volume.
Dispersion
patterns show the spatial relationship between members of a population within a habitat.
Growth Rate
of a population is sometimes measured as the increase in numbers of individuals or biomass per unit time and sometimes as a percentage increase in numbers or biomass per unit time.
Reproductive
the action or process of making a copy of something.
Potential
generally refers to a currently unrealized ability.
Exponential Growth
growth whose rate becomes ever more rapid in proportion to the growing total number or size.
Carrying Capacity
a population’s per capita (per individual) growth rate stays the same regardless of population size, making the population grow faster and faster as it gets larger.
Niche
a comfortable or suitable position in life or employment.
Competition
is an interaction between organisms or species in which both the organisms or species are harmed.
Predation
provides energy to prolong the life and promote the reproduction of the organism that does the killing, the predator, to the detriment of the organism being consumed, the prey.
Parasitism
relationship between two species of plants or animals in which one benefits at the expense of the other, sometimes without killing the host organism.
Mutualism
is defined as an interaction between individuals of different species that results in positive (beneficial) effects on per capita reproduction and/or survival of the interacting populations.
Commensalism
in biology, a relationship between individuals of two species in which one species obtains food or other benefits from the other without either harming or benefiting the latter.
Symbiosis
interaction between two different organisms living in close physical association, typically to the advantage of both.
