Interactions of Species

Interactions of Species If you want to survive, you have to compete! Organisms have developed ways to make sure that they live Sometimes at the expense of another species!

Species to Species Relationships Species can have many ways of getting along: Predator/prey Competitors Symbiosis

Predator/Prey One creature is the hunter, the other the hunted. Natural selection chooses the best prey and predator.

Predator/Prey Predation has to be balanced in an environment. Predators help the environment because they help control the population size. Predator is the hunter Prey is the hunted (gets eaten)

Competition When two organisms compete for the same resource in an environment Every environment has limits on food, shelter, and water (limiting Factors) Examples: Hyenas and Lions- Both eat the same food! Often fight over prey Wolf/Mountain Lion Buffalo/Cattle Native Fish/Non-native fish.

Symbiosis A close relationship between two organisms of different species that benefits at least one of the organisms. Three types of symbiosis: Mutualism Commensalism Parasitism

Mutualism A close relationship between organisms of two species in which both organisms benefit.  and  Example: Hummingbird and flower Clownfish/Sea anemone It catches most of its food by cooperating with its host anemone. The clownfish will leave the safety of the anemone's tentacles and swim out among the nearby reef. Its brilliant colors attract larger fish, who, lured by the thought of a meal, follow it back to the anemone and are stung by the anemone's tentacles. The anemone then consumes the fish, and the clownfish feeds on the remains. The clownfish also eats away debris and nibbles off the dead tentacles off its host anemone.

Commensalism A relationship between two species in which one species benefits and the other is neither helped or harmed.  and  Examples: Red-tailed hawks’/saguaro cactus. The hawks benefit by having a place to build their nest, while the cactus is not affected by the hawks. Commensalism is not very common in nature because two species are usually either helped or harmed a little by any interaction.

Parasitism A relationship in which one organism lives on or in a host and harms it.  and  Examples: Tick/Dogs Mistletoe/Trees The mistletoe is a plant parasite on many different types of trees. The leaves of the mistletoe do contain chlorophyll and the plant makes its own food by photosynthesis. The mistletoe develops high up on the branches of the host tree. It develops root-like structures from its stem which penetrate the tissues of the host and take water from the host's water-carrying vessels. A mistletoe plant can be easily identified in winter because it remains green when the leaves of its host have fallen to the ground. The mistletoe bush is usually between 0,6 and 0,9 meters in length. Its flowers develop into white berries which are poisonous to humans. The seeds are spread by seed-eating birds. The berry of the mistletoe has a sticky juice, very much like chewing gum. A bird which eats the mistletoe's berries wipes its beak on the branch of a tree and the seed is wiped off with the juice. If the seeds are stuck to a suitable branch they will germinate, sending root-like structures into the tissues of the host. The mistletoe does not kill its host but it can cause the host to grow abnormally and decrease the host's ability to reproduce.