Adaptations, interdependence and competition

• An ecosystem is the interaction between a community of living organisms and their environment
• A community consists of all the organisms that live in a habitat (plants and animals)
• A population is all the members of a single species that live within a geographical area
• Levels of organisation within an ecosystem:

  • Producer: plants and algae that photosynthesize
  • Primary consumer: herbivores that eat producers
  • Secondary consumer: carnivores that eat primary consumers
  • Tertiary consumer: carnivores that eat secondary consumers
• Interdependence in an ecosystem means all organisms depend on each other for food, protection, shelter, etc., to survive
• Competition in an ecosystem:

  • Photosynthesizing plants and algae compete for light, space, water, and minerals
  • Animals compete for food, mates, and territory
  • Organisms with more resources tend to grow more healthily and have more offspring
• Competition can be interspecific (between different species) or intraspecific (within the same species)
• A stable community is one in which the size of populations of all species remain relatively constant over time