Term
| interspecific competition |
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Definition
| occurs when members of two or more species interact to gain access to the same limited resources such as food, light, or space |
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Definition
| occurs when a member of one species feeds directly on all or part of a member of another species |
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| occurs when one organism feeds on the body of, or the energy used by, another organism, usually by living on or in the host |
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Definition
| an interaction that benefits both species by providing each with food, shelter, or some other resourcea |
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Definition
| an interaction that benefits one species but has little, if any, effect on the other |
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Term
| predator-prey relationship |
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Definition
| relationships between a predator and its prey |
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Definition
| evolution in which two or more species interact and exert selective pressures on each other that can lead each species to undergo adaptations |
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Definition
| occurs when species competing for similar scarce resources evolve specialized traits that allow them to reduce niche overlap |
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| a study of how the distribution, numbers, age structure, and density of populations change in response to changes in environmental conditions |
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| the proportions of individuals at various ages |
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Definition
| capacity for population growth under ideal conditions |
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Term
| intrinsic rate of increase (r) |
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Definition
| the rate at which the population of a species would grow if it had unlimited resources |
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Term
| intrinsic rate of increase (r) |
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Definition
| the rate at which the population of a species would grow if it had unlimited resources |
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Term
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Definition
| the maximum population of a given species that a particular habitat can sustain indefinitely without being degraded |
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Definition
| involves rapid exponential population growth followed by a steady decrease in population growth until the population size levels off (S-shaped curve) |
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Definition
| species that have many, usually small, offspring and give them little or no parental care or protection |
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Term
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Definition
| tend to reproduce later in life and have a small number of offspring with fairly long life spans. They also tend to mother and protect their young |
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Definition
| the number of individuals in a population found in a particular area or volume |
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| during which, some species colonize an area and their populations become more numerous, while populations of other species decline and may even disappear |
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| involves the gradual establishment of biotic communities in lifeless areas where there is no soil in a terrestrial ecosystem, or no bottom sediment in an aquatic ecosystem |
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Definition
| in which a series of communities or ecosystems with different species develop in places containing soil or bottom sediment |
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Definition
| where any additional stress can cause an ecosystem to change in an abrupt and usually irreversible way that often involves collapse |
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