What's the difference between interspecific and intraspecific competition?
Intraspecific competition is within the same species while interspecific competition is between different species.
What makes water and space resources for plants and animals but not temperature, pH and salinity?
Water and space can be used or consumed but not temperature, pH or salinity.
Explain the competitive exclusion principle.
In a situation where two species are limited by the same resource one species will always end up dominating while the other dies out.
Why did Darwin think closely-related species would
compete more
intensely than distantly-related species?
"...because, he reasoned, they possess similar traits, probably consume similar resources,..."
What do the a and β variables in competition equations represent? What do they allow you to do?
They represent the number of individuals of a species. They allow you to convert between the number of individuals of two species (like mole ratios in stoichiometry).
List three reasons why the simple 2-species competition model has limited use for predicting outcomes of competition in nature.
- Species compete for multiple resources simultaneously
- Abiotic conditions also affect species survival
- Disturbances affect what species can dominate a landscape
- Interactions (predator-prey) with other species affect the abundance of dominant species
Give an example of a trade-off between competitive
ability and predation
The most competitive animals are the most likely to get noticed by predators because of their generally higher activity levels.
What is exploitative competition?
When individuals consume and drive down the abundance of a resource to a point that other individuals cannot persist.
What is interference competition?
When competitors do not immediately consume resources but defend them from others.
What is apparent competition?
When two species have a negative effect on each other through an enemy—including a predator, parasite, or herbivore.
If two competing species can both be infected by the same parasite what might we see in a case of apparent competition?
In places where both species are present a difference in parasite resistance/tolerance may cause one species to suffer while the other flourishes.