Chapter 8 Key Terms Flashcards
Population
all the inhabitants of a particular town, area, or country.
Density
The density, of a substance, is its mass per unit volume
Dispersion
the action or process of distributing things or people over a wide area
Growth Rate
the percentage change of a specific variable within a specific time period
Reproductive Potential
the relative capacity of a species to reproduce itself under optimum conditions
Exponential Growth
is a specific way that a quantity may increase over time. It occurs when the instantaneous rate of change of a quantity with respect to time is proportional to the quantity itself
carrying capacity
the maximum population size of a biological species that can be sustained in that specific environment, given the food, habitat, water, and other resources available.
Niche
a comfortable or suitable position in life or employment.
Competition
the activity or condition of competing.
Predation
a biological interaction where one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey
Parasitism
Parasitism is generally defined as a relationship between the two living species in which one organism is benefitted at the expense of the other
Mutualism
A mutualistic relationship is when two organisms of different species “work together,” each benefiting from the relationship. One example of a mutualistic relationship is that of the oxpecker (a kind of bird) and the rhinoceros or zebra. … Organisms in a mutualistic relationship evolved together.
Commensalism
Commensalism is a type of symbiotic relationship in which one species benefits, while the other species is neither harmed nor helped. The species that gains the benefit is called the commensal. … An example is a golden jackal (the commensal) following a tiger (the host) to feed on leftovers from its kills.
Symbiosis
the living together in more or less intimate association or close union of two dissimilar organisms (as in parasitism or commensalism) especially
