2.2.4 - Interdependence

Interdependence

The reliance between different species and their ecosystems for survival.

Ecosystem

A community of interacting organisms and the physical factors that surround them.

Keystone Species

A species that has a large effect on its environment and the ecosystem, affecting the whole food web.

Symbiosis

A close physical and long-term relationship between two organisms of different species.

Mutualism

A relationship between two organisms where both benefit.

Commensalism

A relationship in which one organism benefits and the other is unaffected.

Parasitism

A relationship in which one organism benefits by living in or on the body of another, which is affected.

Intraspecific Competition

Organisms of the same species competing for resources.

Interspecific Competition

Organisms from different species competing for resources.

Population Size

The number of individual organisms of the same species living in the same area at the same time.

Population Density

A measure of the average number of individual organisms living in a population in a given area.

Population Distribution

The way in which members of a population are dispersed in a specific area.

Carrying Capacity

The total population that can be supported in an environment.

Food Web

A diagram showing the flow of energy between organisms in an ecosystem.

Niche

All of the environmental factors and interspecies relationships that influence a species.

Competition

A relationship in which members of one or different species rival one another for overlapping or limited resources.