Braylon Smith

Ch. 6 vocab

Population- all the inhabitants of a particular

town, area, or country.
Community- a group of people living in the
same place or having a particular
characteristic in common.
Population ecology- the dynamics of species
populations and how these populations
interact with the environment
Population size (N) - the number of individual
organisms in a population.
Population density- a measurement of
population per unit area or unit volume.
Population distribution- the pattern of where
people live.
Sex ratio- the ratio of males to females in a
population.
Age structure- a graphical illustration that
shows the distribution of various age groups
in a population.
Limiting resource- environmental conditions
that limit the growth, abundance, or
distribution of an organism or a population of
organisms in an ecosystem.
Density-dependent factor- factors where the
effects on the size or growth of a population
vary with the density of the population.
Carrying capacity (K)- the number of people,
other living organisms, or crops that a region
can support without environmental
degradation
Density-independent factor- factor limiting
the size of a population whose effect is not
dependent on the number of individuals in the
population.
Population growth model- the increase in the
number of individuals in a population.
Population growth rate- the rate at which the
number of individuals in a population
increases in a given time period as a fraction

Corridor- a link of wildlife habitat, generally

native vegetation, which joins two or more
larger areas of similar wildlife habitat.
Metapopulation- a group of populations that
are separated by space but consist of the same
species.
Inbreeding depression- the reduced biological
fitness in a given population as a result of
inbreeding, or breeding of related individuals.
Community ecology- the study of the
interactions between species in communities
on many spatial and temporal scales,
including the distribution, structure,
abundance, demography, and interactions
between coexisting populations.
Symbiotic relationship- a special type of
interaction between species. Sometimes
beneficial, sometimes harmful, these
relationships are essential to many organisms
and ecosystems, and they provide a balance
that can only be achieved by working
together.
Competition- an interaction between
organisms or species in which the fitness of
one is lowered by the presence of another.
Competitive exclusion principle- a
proposition that states that two species
competing for the same resource cannot
coexist at constant population values, if other
ecological factors remain constant.
Resource partitioning- when species divide a
niche to avoid competition for resources
Predation- the preying of one animal on
others.
Parasitoid- an insect whose larvae live as
parasites that eventually kill their hosts
(typically other insects).
Parasitism- a relationship between two things
in which one of them (the parasite) benefits

of the initial population.

Intrinsic growth rate (r)- rate at which a
population increases in size if there are no
density-dependent forces regulating the
population.
Exponential growth model- the growth rate of
the value of a mathematical function is
proportional to the function's current value.
J-shaped curve- Exponential Growth
Logistic growth model- growth rate of zero
means that the population is not growing,
which is what happens at carrying capacity
because the birth rate usually equals the death
rate.
S-shaped curve- the population density of an
organism increases slowly initially, in a
positive acceleration phase; then increases
rapidly, approaching an exponential growth
rate
Overshoot- occurs when a population exceeds
the long term carrying capacity of its
environment.
Die-off- Consequence of allowing overshoot.
K-selected species- occurring when a
population is at or near the carrying capacity
of the environment, which is usually stable:
tends to favor individuals that successfully
compete for resources and produce few,
slowly developing young, and results in a
stable population of long-lived individuals.
r-selected species- short gestation periods,
mature quickly
survivorship curve- a graph showing the
number or proportion of individuals surviving
to each age for a given species or group
Type I survivorship curve- shows individuals
that have a high probability of surviving
through early and middle life but have a rapid
decline in the number of individuals surviving
into late life
Type II survivorship curve- shows a roughly
constant mortality rate for the species through
its entire life. This means that the individual's

from or lives off of the other

Pathogen- a bacterium, virus, or other
microorganism that can cause disease
Herbivory- the eating of plants, especially
ones that are still living.
Mutualism- symbiosis that is beneficial to
both organisms involved.
Commensalism- an association between two
organisms in which one benefits and the other
derives neither benefit nor harm.
Keystone species- a species on which other
species in an ecosystem largely depend, such
that if it were removed the ecosystem would
change drastically.
Ecosystem engineer- an organism that
modifies, creates or destroys habitat and
directly or indirectly modulates the
availability of resources to other species,
causing physical state changes in biotic or
abiotic materials.
Ecological succession- the gradual process by
which ecosystems change and develop over
time. Nothing remains the same and habitats
are constantly changing.
Primary succession- occurring in an
environment in which new substrate devoid of
vegetation and other organisms usually
lacking soil.
Secondary succession- the series of
community changes which take place on a
previously colonized, but disturbed or
damaged habitat.
Pioneer species- first of a species to colonize
previously disrupted or damaged ecosystems,
beginning a chain of ecological succession
that ultimately leads to a more biodiverse
steady-state ecosystem.
Theory of island biogeography- a field within
biogeography that examines the factors that
affect the species richness of isolated natural
communities.

chance of dying is independent of their age.

Type III survivorship curve- depicts species
where few individuals will live to adulthood
and die as they get older because the greatest
mortality for these individuals is experienced
early in life.