Community Ecology Overview and Invasive Species Effects

Vocabulary flashcards generated from lecture notes on Community Ecology and the effects of invasive species.

Community Ecology

A field of study examining the interactions between species within a community and their relationships with the environment.

Species Composition

The identity and number of species present in a community.

Richness

The total number of different species in a given area.

Evenness

The relative abundance of each species in a community.

Diversity

A measure that combines species richness and evenness to reflect the complexity of a community.

Intraspecific interactions

Interactions among individuals of the same species.

Interspecific interactions

Interactions between individuals of different species.

Mutualism

A type of interspecific interaction where both species benefit (+/+).

Commensalism

A type of interspecific interaction where one species benefits and the other is unaffected (+/0).

Parasitism

A type of interspecific interaction where one species benefits at the expense of another (-/+).

Predation

A type of interspecific interaction where one species preys on another (-/+).

Competition

A type of interspecific interaction where both species are harmed due to limited resources (-/-).

Facilitation

A type of interspecific interaction that can benefit one species without harming another (0/+ or +/+).

Exploitative competition

An indirect competition where species compete for limited resources without direct interaction.

Interference competition

A direct competition where species interact to inhibit each other's access to resources.

Iceplant

An invasive species from South Africa that reduces native plant species richness in California.

Cane toad

An invasive species introduced in Australia that impacts local ecosystems by predation and competition.

Zebra mussel

An invasive species that reduces the evenness of native species by outcompeting them.

Rhamnus cathartica (buckthorn)

An invasive species that reduces the fecundity of native birds by affecting nesting.

Africanized Honey Bee

An invasive bee species that competes for resources and potentially transmits diseases to native species.

European Green Crab

An invasive species that competes with native crabs and disrupts local ecological balance.