ENV Science - Chapter 5 - Species Interactions, Ecological Succession, & Population Control

What are the 4 variables of population size?

births, deaths, immigration, & emigration

What is interspecific competition?

competition among diff species

What is intraspecific competition?

competition w/in a species

What are the effects from southern sea otter extinction?

destroy pacific coast kelp forests & rich biodiversity they support

What is age structure?

distributions of individuals among various age groups

What are the curve types?

early loss, continual loss, & late loss

What is parasitism?

one species feeds on another organism, usually by living on/inside host

What does the survivorship curve show?

percentages of members of a population surviving at diff ages

What is a limiting factor?

physical or chemical factor that determines number of organisms in population

What is the population size equation?

population change = (births + immigration) - (deaths + emigration)

What is a population crash?

population suffers sharp decline (dieback)

What are the major age groups?

pre-productive stage, reproductive stage, & post-productive stage

What is the range of tolerance?

range of variations in physical & chemical environment under which it can survive

What is a K-selected species?

reproduce later in life & have small number of offspring w/ fairly long life spans

What is secondary ecological succession?

series of communities or ecosystems w/ diff species develop in places containing soil or bottom sediment

What is resource partitioning?

species competing for similar scarce resources evolve specialized traits that allow them to share resources by using parts of them, using them at diff times, or using them in diff ways

Key Question 5.2: How do communities & ecosystems respond to changing environmental conditions?

species composition of a community or ecosystem can change in response to changing environmental conditions through process called "ecological succession"

What is a predator-prey relationship?

species interaction that has strong effect on population sizes & other factors in many ecosystems

What is a R-selected species?

species w/ capacity for high rate of population increase

What is environmental resistance?

sum of all limiting factors

What is mutualism?

2 species behave in ways that benefit both by providing each w/ food, shelter, etc

Key Question 5.1: How do species interact?

5 types of interactions among species - interspecific competition, predation, paratism, mutualism, & commensalism - affect resource use & population sizes of species

What is resilience?

ability of ecosystem to be restored through secondary ecological succession after more severe disturbance

What is interia (persistence)?

ability of ecosystem to survive moderate disturbance

What is the Law of Tolerance?

existence, abundance, & survival of species is determined by abiotic factors

What is primary ecological succession?

gradual establishment of communities of diff species in lifeless areas where there is no soil or bottom sediment

What is a population?

group of interbreeding individuals of same species

What is commonsalism?

interaction that benefits 1 species but has neutral effect on other

What is desertification?

land that used to be grassland or forest but has been permanently altered by humans

What is a carrying capacity?

max population of given species that particular habitat can sustain indefinitely

What is predation?

member of one species feeds directly on all or part of a living organism as part of food web

What is co-evolution?

natural selection process; populations of 2 diff species interact in certain way over long period of time, changes in gene pool of populations one species can lead to changes in gene pool of other

Key Question 5.3: What limits the growth of population?

no population can grow indefinitely b/c of limits on resources & b/c of competition among species for those resources

What is ecological succession?

normally gradual change in species composition in given area

What is population density?

number of individuals in population found w/in defined area or volume