community Flashcards
what is community
group of species living in a given area in competiton mutualism or predation
attributes of a community
species number
relative abundance
physical structure
interactions among species
relative abundance
p(i) = n(i)/N
p(i): proportion of individuals of species i
n(i): # of individuals of species i
N: total #of all species
how to examine relative abundance
rank aboundance diagram (rank abundance vs relative abundance)
the longer(more richness) and straighter (greater evenness) the better: more diverse
info on:
species richness (S): number of species
species evenness (E): how equally they are distributed
diversity in a community (not richness) 1 formula
simpsons diversity index (D)
D = sum(p(i)^2)
value between 0 and 1
-> 1 - D : reciprocal
the higher the better
diversity in a community 2 formula
shannon index H
H = -sum(p(i)*ln(p(i))
minimum value : 0 (one species present)
max : ln(S) total # of species present
E = H/Hmax for measure of evenness
dominant species normal?
yes!!
what is important in a forest?
biomass and abundance!
few trees on the ground make not much
many big trees are important
species that has disproportionate impact on community compared to abundance
keystone species
modifies or creates habitats (coral)
elephant destroys trees -> more space for grass -> more food for small herbivores and habitats
removal can have leathal impact for community
flow of food
food chain:
grass to preditor
describes flow of energy from bottom to top
grass -> grasshopper -> sparrow -> hawk
these chains get very complicated very quickly
-> simplification needed
feeding group in food chain
FACHBEGRIFF
trophic levels
lvl1: primary producers 1000pds (phytoplankton)
lvl2: 1st order consumer 100pds (zooplankton)
lvl3: intermediate predators 10pds (grouper)
lvl4: top predator 1pds (shark)
new form of classification
functional types (rather function than taxonomic group) based on: THE ROLE IN THE COMMUNITY response to environment life history charcteristics role within the community
example plants:
shade tolerant and intolerant
physical structure of community
reflect abiotic (light, wind, ect.) and biotic (size, density,…) properties
physical structure of healthy forest?
multiple layers of vegetation
in mediterranian for example no ground layer -> water lack
layers in aquatic communities
FACHBEGRIFF
photic layer
aphotic layer
benthic layer (bottom) can be photic and aphotic
consumer placement in community
they are not restricted to one level.
can move vertically through forest or water (zooplankton)
what is good for community diversity?
environmental heterogeneity
more layers -> more living spaces and food -> more diversity
change in physical and biological structures across landscape
(FACHBEGRIFF)
example
zonation
tree community changes greatly while moving up the mountain
bottom: 17 species top: 3 species
defining communities?
is difficult… mostly a continous drift
vary with objective of study ect…
but dominant species are a good measure
condition for species to survive
there is a min and an optimum
defined by the niche
realized and fundamental niche
bigger or smaller
realized niche can be bigger (mutualism) or smaller (competition)
differences in species tolerance lead to?
FACHBEGRIFF
zonation
shifts in relative abundance
competitive vs. toleration
competitive species:
higher growth rate however not so tolerant
tolerant species moves away from competitive species