EVPP 108 Lecture Notes - Lecture 32: Striking Distance, Hoverfly, Aposematism

• School: George Mason University
• Department: Environmental Science and Public Policy
• Course: EVPP 108
• Professor: Kim Largen

Document Summary

Communities: principles of communities, species interactions, competition cont. Intraspecific competition is usually intense since individuals of the same species have virtually identical niches. If resources are limited, this is a major factor controlling population size. Predators kill and eat other organisms: broadly defined, predators include herbivorous as well as carnivorous organisms, including cows, pika, and bats hunting moths, predators tend to be larger and more numerous than their prey. Predators have evolved characteristics that increase their chances of catching prey: examples: tearing claws of mountain lions and keen eyesight of hawks. Prey have evolved characteristics that decrease the chances of being eaten: examples: dappling spots and motionless behavior of deer fawns. This example will go over more in lab section. Examples: the cheetah blending with tall grass and the frogfish resembling a rock. Example: harmless hoverfly resembles bee, harmless mountain king snake resembles the venomous coral snake mullerian mimicry two unplatable species mimic each other, both species are harmful.