Interactions Between Populations (OCR A Level Biology)

Revision Note

Test yourself
Phil

Author

Phil

Last updated

Interactions Between Populations

  • Populations always tend towards a natural, stable size
  • The stable population size is limited by a number of factors
    • Interactions between one population and another (of the same species) will limit the size of those populations through intraspecific interactions
    • Interactions between one species and another can also limit the size of populations through interspecific interactions such as competition and predation

Intraspecific competition

  • Intraspecific competition occurs when individuals from the same species compete for the same resources ("intra" means within)

  • For example:
    • When resources are plentiful, the population of grey squirrels increases
    • As the population increases, however, there are more individuals competing for these resources (e.g. food and shelter)
    • At some point, the resources become limiting and the population can no longer grow in size - the carrying capacity has been reached

Intraspecific competition (grey squirrels), downloadable IGCSE & GCSE Biology revision notes

Intraspecific competition between two grey squirrels (same species) for a limited resource

Interspecific competition

  • Competition between different species for the same resource is described as interspecific competition ("inter" means between)
  • A well-known example of this occurs between the grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) and the red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris)
  • The introduction of the grey squirrel into the southern UK caused the native red squirrel to be outcompeted for food and shelter
  • The grey squirrel also carries a disease, parapoxvirus, that is harmless to itself but can be fatal to the red squirrel
  • Conservation efforts in northern England and Scotland have slowed the spread of the grey squirrel by
    • Protecting the red squirrels' habitats and food
    • Giving the red squirrel legal protection
    • Reintroducing the pine marten, a natural predator of the grey squirrel

Interspecific competition (grey and red squirrels), downloadable IGCSE & GCSE Biology revision notes

Interspecific competition between a grey squirrel and a red squirrel (different species) for a limited resource

The effects of competition

Competitive exclusion

  • If two organisms occupy very similar niches, then competition can exist between them for resources
  • One species may be slightly better adapted to compete than the other, so the other species could starve or not find a habitat
  • The second species would then move to find a different niche, and possibly evolve over generations to adapt to its new niche
  • This is called competitive exclusion

Resource partitioning
  • A particular resource eg. a fruit tree is divided up (partitioned) to satisfy the needs of different feeders
  • The fruit may be grazed by one species, the leaves by another
  • The two species are not competing directly for the fruit tree but coexisting on different parts of it

Character displacement
  • Closely related species that inhabit the same geographical region and occupy similar niches differentiate in order to minimise niche overlap and avoid competitive exclusion
  • An example is beak size and shape in Galapagos finches, as observed by Charles Darwin
  • Each species differs in beak dimensions
  • Food, in the form of seeds, comes in different shapes and sizes from a variety of sources
  • The finches with the stronger beaks eat large, tough seeds, while the finches with smaller beaks eat the smaller, softer seeds
  • Natural selection therefore favours those species that compete less with other species

Predation

  • Producers are eaten by primary consumers, which in turn may be eaten by secondary consumers who are themselves eaten by tertiary consumers
  • Consumers that kill and eat other animals are known as predators, and those eaten are known as prey
  • In a stable community, the numbers of predators and prey rise and fall in cycles, limiting the population sizes of both predators and prey
  • The graph below demonstrates some of the key patterns of predator-prey cycles:
    • Initially, the number of predators increases as there is more prey available
    • The number of prey then decreases as there are now more predators
    • Then the number of predators decreases as there is now less prey available
    • As a result, the number of prey increases as there are now fewer predators
    • The cycle now repeats

Carrying Capacity, downloadable AS & A Level Biology revision notes

An example of a graph used to model a predator-prey cycle between the Canadian lynx and the snowshoe hare

You've read 0 of your 10 free revision notes

Unlock more, it's free!

Join the 100,000+ Students that ❤️ Save My Exams

the (exam) results speak for themselves:

Did this page help you?

Phil

Author: Phil

Expertise: Biology

Phil has a BSc in Biochemistry from the University of Birmingham, followed by an MBA from Manchester Business School. He has 15 years of teaching and tutoring experience, teaching Biology in schools before becoming director of a growing tuition agency. He has also examined Biology for one of the leading UK exam boards. Phil has a particular passion for empowering students to overcome their fear of numbers in a scientific context.