Ecosystem Interactions

1
Ecosystem Interactions
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Types of Interactions

• Predation one organism consumes another for food
• Competition when more than one organism uses a
  resource at the same time
• Symbiosis a close relationship between two or
  more species that aids in their survival.
• Mutualism
• Commensalism
• Parasitism

3
Predation

• Predation is a relationship that closely links
  the predator and the prey to each other.
• As the population of prey increases the
  population of the predator will also increase and
  if it goes down the lack of food will reduce the
  predator population. This trend will be looked at
  more closely when we study population dynamics

4
Competition

• Resources for life are limited in an ecosystem so
  species must compete
• Those more successful at obtaining resources are
  healthier and more likely to reproduce. This is
  critical to survival and will be discussed again
  as Natural Selection.
• The availability of resources limits the number
  of organisms in an ecosystem. This will effect
  the size of a population, or its Carrying
  Capacity.

5
Symbiosis

• Mutualism the relationship between two or more
  organisms that live closely together and benefit
  from each other.
• Commensalism relationship between two or more
  organisms in which one benefits and the other is
  neither harmed not helped.
• Parasitism relationship between organisms in
  which one benefits and the host is weakened.

6
Which relationship is pictured?