All flashcards
Flashcard 1: What is the term for a trait that helps an organism avoid predators and survive?
Answer: Adaptation. Inherited traits that increase survival chances in specific environments.
Flashcard 2: Identify the interaction: barnacles live on a whale; the whale is not helped or harmed.
Answer: Commensalism. Barnacles gain a mobile surface to live on without affecting the whale.
Flashcard 3: What is the term for an interaction where both organisms benefit and survival increases?
Answer: Mutualism. Both species gain benefits, improving their chances to survive and reproduce.
Flashcard 4: What is the term for an interaction where one organism benefits and the other is harmed?
Answer: Parasitism. The parasite gains nutrients while weakening or damaging its host organism.
Flashcard 5: What is the term for an interaction where one organism benefits and the other is unaffected?
Answer: Commensalism. One species gains a benefit while the other experiences no harm or help.
Flashcard 6: What is the term for an interaction where one organism kills and eats another organism?
Answer: Predation. The predator gains food by hunting and consuming prey organisms.
Flashcard 7: What is the term for organisms needing the same limited resource, reducing fitness?
Answer: Competition. Organisms struggle for scarce resources, reducing survival and reproduction.
Flashcard 8: What is a limiting resource that can cause competition and reduce reproduction rates?
Answer: Food, water, space, shelter, or mates. When scarce, these resources trigger competition between organisms.
Flashcard 9: Which interaction is density-dependent: predation, drought, or earthquake?
Answer: Predation. More prey in an area attracts more predators, making it density-dependent.
Flashcard 10: Which interaction is density-independent: competition, parasitism, or wildfire?
Answer: Wildfire. Wildfires affect all organisms equally regardless of population density.
Flashcard 11: What is the best evidence that competition has increased in a population over time?
Answer: Lower growth or fewer offspring as density rises. Competition intensifies with crowding, reducing reproductive success.
Flashcard 12: Identify the interaction: ticks feed on a deer, weakening the deer but not killing it.
Answer: Parasitism. Ticks benefit by feeding on blood while harming but not killing the host.
Flashcard 13: Identify the interaction: a hawk catches and eats a mouse, decreasing mouse survival.
Answer: Predation. The hawk kills the mouse for food, reducing mouse population survival.
Flashcard 14: Identify the interaction: clownfish gain shelter in anemones; anemones gain protection.
Answer: Mutualism. Both species benefit: shelter for clownfish, defense for anemones.
Flashcard 15: What is the most direct survival advantage of living in a group when predators are present?
Answer: Reduced chance of being captured by predators. Groups provide safety through dilution effect and increased vigilance.
Flashcard 16: Which evidence best supports that camouflage increases survival in a prey species?
Answer: Camouflaged individuals are eaten less often. Lower predation rates directly show improved survival from camouflage.
Flashcard 17: Which evidence best supports that a parasite lowers host reproductive success?
Answer: Infected hosts produce fewer viable offspring. Reduced offspring production directly shows reproductive harm from parasites.
Flashcard 18: What is the term for two species using different resources or times to reduce competition?
Answer: Resource partitioning. Species divide resources by space, time, or type to avoid competition.
Flashcard 19: Which outcome best indicates resource partitioning between two bird species in one habitat?
Answer: Each species feeds in different areas or on different foods. Using different resources shows they've partitioned to reduce competition.
Flashcard 20: Identify the interaction: a tick feeds on a dog and harms it.
Answer: Parasitism. Tick gains blood meal while dog loses nutrients and health.
Flashcard 21: Identify the interaction: barnacles live on a whale; whale is unaffected.
Answer: Commensalism. Barnacles gain transport; whale experiences no harm or benefit.
Flashcard 22: What is mutualism in ecology?
Answer: An interaction where both species benefit. Both organisms gain resources or protection from the relationship.
Flashcard 23: What is commensalism in ecology?
Answer: One species benefits and the other is unaffected. The unaffected species neither gains nor loses from the interaction.
Flashcard 24: What is parasitism in ecology?
Answer: One species benefits while the host is harmed. Parasites extract nutrients or resources, weakening the host.
Flashcard 25: What is predation in ecology?
Answer: One organism kills and eats another organism. Predators consume prey for energy and nutrients.
Flashcard 26: What is competition in ecology?
Answer: Organisms vie for the same limited resource. Limited resources force species to compete for survival.
Flashcard 27: What is a limiting resource?
Answer: A resource in short supply that restricts population growth. Populations cannot grow beyond what limiting resources support.
Flashcard 28: What is a niche?
Answer: A species’ role and resource use in its ecosystem. Includes habitat, food sources, and behaviors unique to that species.
Flashcard 29: What is the main outcome of intense competition between two species with the same niche?
Answer: Competitive exclusion: one outcompetes the other. Two species cannot coexist if they occupy identical niches.
Flashcard 30: What is an adaptation (in the context of survival and reproduction)?
Answer: An inherited trait that increases fitness. Fitness measures reproductive success, not just survival.