Ecology Part 2

1
Ecology Part 2

• How species interact with each other

2
Interactions

• 5 types of species interactions
• Predation
• Competition
• Parasitism
• Mutualism
• commensalism

3
Predation

• One organism kills and eats the other organism
• The organism that is eaten is called the prey

4
Predator- the one that does the eating
5
Familiar examples

• Lions feeding on zebras
• Cougars eating deer
• Snakes eating mice
• Blue whale the largest animal on earth- feeds
  on small krill ( shrimplike marine animals)

6
Blue Whale

• Also a predator because it feeds on krill-tiny
  shrimplike marine animals

7
Krill
8
Predators

• Tend to feed on young and weak
• As populations of prey decline, the predators
  either switch to other prey or begin to die off
  themselves

9
Competitions

• When 2 or more organisms of the same or different
  species attempt to use the same LIMITED resource

10
Competition

• Can also be between plants
• Competing for limited sunlight in the forest

11
Competition Examples

• Imported kudzu vines cover native plants and
  trees (NC)
• Imported fire ants compete with native ants for
  territory

• Panda bears compete with humans for bamboo

12
Species can compete even if they do not come

• Into contact with each other
• An insect species feeds on a flower during the
  day

• And another species feeds on the same flower at
  night

13
Parasitism

• What do ticks, fleas, viruses, tapeworms, leeches
  ( other than fishing) and mistletoe all have in
  common?
• Parasites- organisms that live on or in another
  organism
• They feed on it without IMMEDIATELY killing it

14
Plants and animals are weakened by parasites

• Making them more vulnerable to predators
• Host- the organism the parasite takes its
  nourishment from
• Fee

15
Mutualism

• A cooperative partnership between two species in
  which both benefit

16
How is bacteria useful?

• Billions of bacteria live in our intestines
  (yuck)
• Howeverwithout them we could not break down
  certain foods
• it would just be hanging out in our intestines
  forever

17
Bacteria also

• Produce necessary substances your body cannot
  make
• Vitamin k which is essential for proper blood
  clotting

18
(No Transcript)
19
Acacia Trees and Ants

• These trees provide food nectar and nesting
  places in the thorns for the ants
• Ants defend the tree from grasshoppers/ beetles
  (herbivores)

20
commensalism

• One species benefits and the other is not harmed
  nor helped
• Remora fish attaches to a shark
• They feed on the sharks leftovers

21
(No Transcript)