A. The basic needs for survival do not vary from animal to animal.

B. All organisms must breathe, have clean water to drink, food to eat, and shelter for protect from the elements. C. Individuals do not depend on reproduction to survive, but if we expect species to continue some members of each species must reproduce.

D. Let review: What is a species? 1. A group of organisms that can mate and

produce a viable offspring capable of producing their own offspring

2. The final step in taxonomy; part of the scientific name.

E. Population- a group of individuals of the same species living in the same place at the same time.

1. Dogs, cats, humming birds, etc.2. All students of AHS is a population defined by the school property.

F. Community –different populations of organisms living together in a particular area. 1. Think for a moment of a local pond or creek

near your neighborhood. What three aquatic organisms living in or near the pond can you

think of? ___________, ____________,_______ 2. Celebration Station Park comes to mind for me. The animals making up that pond community include ducks, fish, algae and us feeding them to name a few.

A. Habitat 1. Definition-the physical

environment a species needs to survive. 2. Provides: a. A shelter to escape from predators and

the elements.

b. The space needed for reproducing c. A place for containing all individuals in

a population d. Includes the food a for hunting,

gathering or producing e. Contains all the things needed and

preferred

f. Sustains everything a species needs to survive over time.

1. Appropriate temperature2. Adequate dissolved oxygen3. Cover or particular bottom substrates.

g. Changes in habitat results in 1. Adaptations to the changes (or die)2. Movement to another suitable habitat3. Examples: fire, flood or earthquakes

3. Specialists verses Generalists a. Specialists greatly affected by change , may

not survive over time; rare or endangered species b. Generalists survive a wide range of habitat

conditions

A. Definition -the function, position or role of a species within an environmentB. It defines how a species fits into its environment based on its way of getting food, the habitat it needs and the role it performs in the community.C.Let’s look at two different species and see how they can live together in a Texas reservoir in their own niche and survive. The Gizzard Shad and the Largemouth Bass

A. In a perfect world there would always be enough food to go around and our basic needs for survival would be provided in abundance. But what is perfect one minute can be gone the next. The shortage of a resource in a community starts competition among species.B. Competition 1. Definition-the act of actively seeking after and using an environmental resource (such as food) in limited supply by two or more plants or animals or kinds of plants or animals.

2. The impact of competitions may adversely affect one or many individuals of a species. 3. When prey in a body of water such as a pond, is

pursued by two different species, their niches overlap creating situations if food becomes

scarce.C. Carrying capacity 1. Definition- an ecosystem’s resource limit; the maximum number of individuals in a population that the ecosystem can support. 2. Resources impacting a carrying capacity are biotic and abiotic factors.

3. When resources are plentiful ( more than the population can use), they are considered to be

“below the carrying capacity”.a. Individuals grow and reproduceb. Death occurs for normal reasons

4. If the population grows too rapidly and the resources can not support the population, this is referred to as “above the carrying capacity.” a. Individuals may experience starvation, disease, parasites, accidents, increased fishing or predators. b. Over time, numbers drop and the carrying

capacity returns to normal

5. Example:

PERCH

Perch Numbers Are Below The Carrying Capacity

Perch Numbers Over The Carrying Capacity