L18 Community Ecology Flashcards
define community ecology
study of communities in relation to the environment
what is a community
assemblage of all the populations of various species that live and interact within a given area at a given time
define niche
a species special ecological role in its community, involving a habitat and allowing a species to practice its way of life with species interactions
what are intraspecific interactions and what kind of ecology does it fall under
occurs when 2 or more individuals from the same species (population) interact; population ecology
what are interspecific interactions and what kind of ecology does it fall under
occurs when 2 or more different species (populations) interact; community ecology
what are antagonistic interactions, and what are the types
focus on interactions in which at least one participant loses more than it gains; competition, predation, herbivory, parasitism
define competition
interaction where the use of a mutually needed resource by one species lowers the availability of the resource for another species
define the competitive exclusion principle
two species having exactly the same niche and competing directly for the same limiting resources in the same habitat cannot co-exist
what is resource partitioning
species divide and share resources in habitat while avoiding direct competition
define predation
interaction where one species hunts, kills, and consumes another species as a source of food
what is a herbivory interaction
herbivore animals feed on the tissues of plants
what is a parasitic interaction
one species exploits the other species, gaining benefits and doing harm
what is a mutualistic interaction
both participants gain more than they lose (mutual benefit)
define symbiosis
interaction between 2 different organisms living in close physical association
what are commensalism-based interactions
one species benefits, and other species remains unaffected
define facilitation, give an example
occurs when one species creates and environment that helps another (mutualism or commensalism); plants create shade and leaf litter allowing seedlings from other plants to grow
define keystone species
species that exerts strong control of a community despite not being the most abundant species in its community
define engineering species
species that can change an ecosystem through its activities
define succession
predictable series of changes in a community following a disturbance
what is primary succession
occurs after a disturbance that eliminates all vegetation and soil life (ex. glaciers, drying lakes, earthquakes, volcanos)
define pioneer species
first species to arrive in a primary succession area
define secondary succession
occurs after a disturbance (ex. fires, hurricanes, farming, logging, mining)
what is climax community
community resulting from successful succession to a mature community
primary succession favours __-selected species; secondary succession favours __-selected species
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