10 Questions
What is a niche in an ecosystem?
The role or part of an ecosystem that a species occupies.
According to the competitive exclusion principle, why can't two species coexist in the same place indefinitely?
Because they are competing for the same resources.
What is the fundamental niche of an organism?
The ideal niche that the organism could occupy if there were no competitors, predators, or parasites.
How does the realized niche differ from the fundamental niche?
The realized niche is limited by factors like competition, predation, and parasites, which restrict what the organism can actually do.
What is resource partitioning in ecology?
Resource partitioning is when multiple organisms relying on similar resources find ways to coexist.
What are some examples of density-independent factors that can limit population growth?
Natural disasters, floods, droughts, fires, pollution, construction
Explain how predation can be a density-dependent factor.
Predator-prey relationships lead to changes in both predator and prey populations as population abundance changes.
Describe how competition affects population growth.
Competition, both interspecific and intraspecific, can limit population growth by leading to resource scarcity.
How does parasitism and infectious disease spread more rapidly in denser populations?
Pathogens and parasites spread faster in denser populations due to closer contact among potential hosts.
What is the significance of carrying capacity in population dynamics?
Carrying capacity is the maximum population size that an environment can sustain, balancing birth/immigration with death/emigration.
Test your understanding of ecological niches, which refer to the specific role of a species within an ecosystem based on its interactions and needs. Explore the competitive exclusion principle, which states that two species cannot coexist in the same place indefinitely if they compete for the same resources.
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