Biotic Factor

Organisms live together and interact either

intraspecifically or interspecifically
Interactions are of 2 types
1.Positive Interactions (Symbiosis)
Those interactions which are mutually beneficial, either one or
more of the species are benefitted and neither is harmed
2. Negative interactions (Antagonism)
Those interactions where at least one of the organisms is harmed.
 Positive Interactions
 Neutralism

Mutualism

Commensalism

Proto cooperation
 Negative Interactions

Competition

Predation

Parasitism
 Antibiosis
1. Neutralism (00)
In neutralism, two populations interact,
but neither would have any effect on the
evolutionary fitness of the other.
2. Mutualism (++)
is an inter specific interaction between two
species, that benefits both members.
Populations of each species grow, survive
and/or reproduce at a higher rate in the
presence of the other species.
Eg: 1. Pollination by animals
Bees, moths, butterflies etc derive food from the
nectar or other plant product
and in turn bring about
pollination
Eg 2. Dispersal of fruits and seeds:
The fruits are eaten by birds, mammals etc
and the seeds contained in them are dropped
in the excrements at various places
 Eg 3. Lichens:
These are examples of mutualism where contact is close and
permanent and also obligatory. The body is made up of a
matrix formed by fungus, within the cells of which an alga
is embedded. The fungus makes minerals as well as
moisture available whereas the alga manufacture food.
Neither of the two can grow independently in nature.
 Eg 4. Symbiotic nitrogen fixers
The bacterium Rhizobium forms nodules in the roots
of leguminous plants and live symbiotically with
the host. The bacteria obtain food from the higher
plant and in turn fix gaseous nitrogen and makes it
available to the plant.
  Eg 5. Mycorrhizae:
It is an association between the roots of higher plants and
fungus wherein both the fungus and the plant benefit
from the association. The mycorrhizae assist the plant by
improving water and mineral nutrient uptake. Tiny
fungal strands called mycelia can grow through soil
much faster and more easily than plant roots and can
therefore utilize a much larger
soil volume in search of these
resources. In return, the plant
Provides Carbohydrates (sugars)
to the mycorrhizal fungus
 Eg 6. Zoochlorellae and Zooxanthellae:
The term Zoochlorellae is used to refer to any
green algae that lives symbiotically within
the body of a freshwater or
marine invertebrate or protozoan
3. Commensalism (+0): inter specific
association w/o any physiological
exchange in which one organism is
benefited and the other is unharmed
 Eg 1. Lianas
These are large woody climbing vascular plants
rooted on the ground and maintain erectness of
their stem by making use of other objects for
support. They maintain no direct nutritional
relationship with the trees upon which they grow.
 Eg 2. Epiphytes and epizoans:
These are plants and animals growing perched
on other plants depending only for support
and not for food or water supply
 4. Proto co-operation (++)
Type of association in which both the organisms are
benefitted, but although beneficial it is not
obligatory. Eg: sea anemone and hermit crab
The sea anemone is carried to fresh sites by the
hermit crab and the crab in turn is said to be
protected from its enemies by the sea anemone.
1. Parasitism (+-)
Represents a negative interaction which has great
ramifications. In this interaction it is case of the
weak attacking the stronger. One species of
microorganisms benefits to the detriment of the
other species. The beneficiary group of
microorganisms is known as Parasites and the one
that is affected is known as host.
Eg: Cuscuta:
total stem parasite.
Grow on other plants on
which the depend for
support as well as
nourishment
  Parasitism
This is a close relationship between two organisms
where one benefits while the other is harmed. 
A tomato hornworm is covered with cocoons of pupating
braconid wasps.

 Tapeworm, a parasite, lives inside its host, the human species.

Tapeworms gets all the nourishment while depriving the
human body of the same.
Parasitism:
The parasitic bird cuckoo never builds
nest of its own and the females lay eggs
in nest build by other birds such as crow, robin etc.
 Predation
Predators are consumers that capture and eat other
consumers. The prey is the organism that is captured by the
predator. This relationship is referred to as Predation.
 Competition is an interaction among individuals utilizing a
limited resource. It can be either inter specific or intra
specific.
 Intra specific Competition: the competition for resources with
members of the same species. Example, two deer competing
for resources.
Inter specific Competition: the competition for resources with
members of two different species or at least more than one.
Example, a lion and hyenas are competing for resources.
 Antibiosis
It refers to the complete or partial inhibition or death of one
organism by another through the production of some
substance or environmental conditions as a result of
metabolic pathways. These substances and/or conditions
are harmful or antagonistic to the other organism.
Eg: 1. Pond blooms of blue-green algae Microcystis are
known to produce toxins such as hydroxylamines which
causes death of fish and cattle.
2. Production of substances
which are antagonistic to microbes
- antibiotics.
 Allelopathy, in which some plants produce
chemical compounds that inhibit the growth of
nearby would-be competitors, is one type of
amensalistic interaction. For example, the Black
Walnut Tree (Juglans nigra) produces compounds
in its roots that inhibit the growth of other trees
and shrubs