Lesson 3.1 Flashcards
What is community ecology?
The study of interactions among populations in an environment.
What are interspecific interactions?
Interactions that occur BETWEEN two or more species
What is involved in niche?
- The biotic and abiotic resources a species uses.
- what, when, where, and how used
What are the two types of niches?
Fundemental and Realized
Explain fundemental niche.
The potential use of resources. What would a species use if it could?
Explain realized niche.
The actual resources that a species uses.
What is niche partitioning?
Occurs when niche overlap becomes costly so species separate and shift to minimize competition
What is Guases’s Competitive Exclusion Principle?
No two similar species can occupy the same niche at the same time.
What is likely to happen if the niches of two species overlap a little?
They will compete for shared resources and one species will have a decrease in population size and retreat.
What is likely to happen if the niches of two species overlap a lot?
There will be intense competition and one species will likely go extinct due to the dominancesd5rdttn ,ki of the other.
How can niche partitioning increase the biodiversity of a community?
It reduces competition which allows for coexistence and increases biodiversity. This will enable a wide variety of species to thrive.
What are some ways that species can partition their niches?
- Occupying different habitats
- Having different activity and feeding times
- Utilizing other food resources available
What are the types of interactions?
Competition (-/-) - both species have a negative impact on each other -
Mutualism ( +/+) - both species benefit
Commensalism (+/0) - one species benefits while the other doesn’t get affected
Predation (-/+) - one species eats all or part of other species
Herbivory (-/+) - the prey species is a plant
Parasitism (-/+) - long-term association where one species benefits while the other is harmed
What are the three items on the interaction spectrum?
Endosymbiosis - one or more species lives inside another
Symbiosis - 2 or more species share a close physical interaction
Non-symbiosis - interactions between organisms that live apart form each other
What are facultative and obligatory symbiosis?
Facultative - receives benefits from a species but can live without the benefits
Obligatory - is completely dependent on benefits and can’t live without
