predation Flashcards
what is a predator
an organism that feeds on another organism their prey
what has happened as predators have evolved
They have become better at capturing their prey, camouflage, faster, silent , concealment
what has also happened to prey
they have adapted to avoiding predators by developing protective features such as spines concealment behaviour
what would’ve happened if only one had adapted
they would’ve become extinct
what is predation
when one organism is consumed by another organism
why is predation in a lab different to predation in the wild
in the lab the prey would probably be exterminated by the predator this doesn’t happen in the wild as there is a larger area , more diverse and more refuge points so prey can escape predation
what does this mean for prey if they are hard tpo catch
they reach low levels but are never reaching extinction
why is it difficult to obtain reliable data in natural population
because it isn’t possible to count every organism in a population therefore must be treated with caution
what is the relationship between predator and prey size
predators eat their prey reducing the population of the prey
fewer prey available for the predators so they are in greater competition
their number start to decrease as there is not enough food
there is less predation so the prey numbers increase and survive and likely to reproduce
with more prey available as food the predator population then increase
what other reasosn are there for the cyclic fluctuation of popyuklation
also due to disease and climatic factors
