Saint Joseph Convent School - English Programme

Basic Biology

Name: Rada Prapaikornkiet

_______ ________ G.11/2 12
Class: _____ #:

Community Interactions
1. What is meant by the term ‘niche’ in ecosystems?
Niche means the sum of all the requirements of the
organism in the habitat. E.g. Food, water, space
2. Explain the difference between interspecific and intraspecific competition.
Interspecific = competition occurs between different species.
Intraspecific = members of the same species compete for resources.
3. Explain the meanings of the terms mutualism and commensalism and describe how they
differ in their effects on the interacting populations of two species.

Mutualism is an interspecific interaction that benefits both species.

Commensalism is an interspecific interaction that benefits one of the species but is neutral to the other.
4. Monarch butterflies are protected from birds and other predators because of chemicals
they incorporate into their tissues from eating milkweed when they were in their
caterpillar stage. The wings of a different species of butterfly (the Viceroy) look nearly
identical to the Monarch, and are also unpalatable, so predators have learned avoid
Viceroys as well. This example best describes:
A) aposmatic colouration.
B) cryptic colouration.
C) Batesian mimicry.
C)
D) Müllerian mimicry.
D
E) mutualism. Answer: __

5. Which of the following is an example of aposematic colouration?

O
A) stripes of a poisonous coral snake
B) eye colour in humans
C) green colour of a plant
D) colours of an insect-pollinated flower
E) an insect whose wings look like a dead leaf A
Answer: __

6. Which statement best describes the evolutionary significance of mutualism?

A) Mutualism offers more biodiversity to a community.
B) Individuals partaking in a mutualistic relationship are more resistant to parasites.
O
C) Interaction increases the survival and reproductive rates of mutualistic species.
D) Mutualistic interaction lessens competition in communities where it is present.
E) Mutualistic relationships allow organisms to synthesize and use energy more
efficiently.
Answer: __c
7. As you study two closely related predatory insect species, the two-spot and the three-spot
avenger beetles, you notice that each species looks for prey in the morning in areas
without the other species. However, where they live in the same habitat, the two-spot
avenger beetle searches for prey at night and the three-spot looks in the morning. When
you bring them into the laboratory and isolate the two different species, you discover
that the offspring of both species are found to favour searching for food at night. You
have discovered an example of
A) mutualism.
B) Müllerian mimicry.
C) Batesian mimicry.
D) commensalism.
C)E) resource partitioning. Eh
Answer: __

8. Why do you think that most parasites don t kill their host?

Because they need an alive host to live in.

9. Generally, how are endoparasites and ectoparasites different?

Endoparasites live within the body of their host.

Ectoparasites feed on the external surface of a host.

10. According to the principle of competitive exclusion, what outcome is expected when
two species with identical niches compete for a resource? Why?

One of the species will be eliminated from the habitat

because they lose to another specie.