variation in population size Flashcards
(19 cards)
What does the size of a population depend on?
Abiotic factors, interactions between organisms, competition, predation, mutualism
What are the important abiotic factors affecting a population size?
Light, pH and temperature
How does light affect population size?
Light affects photosynthesis and affects the number and diversity of plant species and then the number of consumers
How does pH affect population size?
Affects activity of enzymes (mainly soil)
How does temperature affect population size?
Affects plants and animals as shown by the limited variation of diverse species in very hot or cold temperatures
What is a mutualistic relationship?
Where both organisms benefit from an association
What do most interactions involve?
Feeding relationships
What happens when species diversity is low in a food web?
The ecosystem is not stable - food web is limited
What are the types of competition?
Interspecific, intraspecific
What is interspecific competition?
Competition between different species
What is intraspecific competition?
Competition between the same species
Which is more intense?
Intraspecific competition
Is predation interspecific or intraspecific?
An interspecific interaction
Why are they important?
They control population size
What does an increase in prey cause?
An increase in predator population
What happens as a result of this?
Prey population falls
What happens as a result of this?
Predator population falls
What is the graph like?
Constantly oscillating
What does the removal of a particular prey cause?
A disruption in feeding because the predator will feed on another prey species
