Intraspecific Competition

Intraspecific competition is a competition between individuals from the same species (cospecifics). The effect of competition
on each individual within the species depends on the type of competition that takes place. ‘Contest-competition’ may be
passive or active and may result in different outcomes. A species that competes for a limited resource where all individuals
consume equal amounts until the resource is depleted, may result in all individuals of that population dying of starvation. On
the other hand, and the more common outcome is, when one individual competes and wins over the resource, and by
exploiting that resource it continues to survive. Two basic types have been identified for intraspecific competition:

1. Interference (adapted) intraspecific competition. This occurs in species that establish hierarchies through aggressive
behavior where one or more individuals within the population hold a dominant status over the others. Through direct
interaction these individuals will limit or prevent access of more subordinate individuals to a resource. This type of competition
may also occur when individuals within a species establish territories and limit the access of others to a resource. In this type
of competition only those individuals who are dominant or hold territories will increase their reproduction success. It is
sometimes called ‘contest competition’ indicating displays and contents between individuals for access to a resource (usually
mates).

2. Exploitation (contest) intraspecific competition. This occurs between individuals of the same population exploiting the
same resources and reducing or depleting its availability to others. This competition is indirect interactions between
individuals such as deleting of a food source.

Intraspecific competition is affected not only by the type of competition but also by the type of resource. A territory, which is
not depletable, will affect the survivorship of future generations. Competition over consumables, such as food, may result in
decreased availability for future generations and such resources may need time to recover.

Intraspecific competition is density dependent and may cause density-dependent mortality. At low densities no intraspecific
competition exists and competition for resources does not play a role in survivorship. As densities increase, a threshold is
reached where density begins to influence mortality through resource availability. When plotted as a graph in terms of
population growth rate, the result is either a J-shaped growth or an S-shaped/sigmoidal curve, both referred to as logistic
growth.

Competition is most typically considered the interaction of individuals that vie for a common resource that is in limited
supply, but more generally can be defined as the direct or indirect interaction of organisms that leads to a change in fitness
when the organisms share the same resource. The outcome usually has negative effects on the weaker competitors. There
are three major forms of competition. Two of them, interference competition and exploitation competition, are
categorized as real competition. A third form, apparent competition, is not. Interference competition occurs directly between
individuals, while exploitation competition and apparent competition occur indirectly between individuals (Holomuzki et.
al 2010).

When an individual directly alters the resource-attaining behavior of other individuals, the interaction is
considered interference competition. For example, when a male gorilla prohibits other males from accessing a mate by
using physical aggression or displays of aggression, the dominant male is directly altering the mating behavior of other males.
This is also an example of an intra-specific interaction. Exploitation competition occurs when individuals interact indirectly
as they compete for common resources, like territory, prey or food. Simply put, the use of the resource by one individual will
decrease the amount available for other individuals. Whether by interference or exploitation, over time a superior competitor
can eliminate an inferior one from the area, resulting in  competitive exclusion (Hardin 1960).

Apparent competition occurs when two individuals that do not directly compete for resources affect each other indirectly by
being prey for the same predator (Hatcher  et al. 2006). Consider a hawk (predator, see below) that preys both on squirrels
and mice. In this relationship, if the squirrel population increases, then the mouse population may be positively affected since
more squirrels will be available as prey for the hawks. However, an increased squirrel population may eventually lead to a
higher population of hawks requiring more prey, thus, negatively affecting the mice through increased predation pressure as
the squirrel population declines. The opposite effect could also occur through a decrease in food resources for the predator. If
the squirrel population decreases, it can indirectly lead to a reduction in the mouse population since they will be the more
abundant food source for the hawks. Apparent competition can be difficult to identify in nature, often because of the
complexity of indirect interactions that involve multiple species and changing environmental conditions.

Individuals can compete for food, water, space, light, mates, or any other resource which is required for survival or
reproduction. The resource must be limited for competition to occur; if every member of the species can obtain a sufficient
amount of every resource then individuals do not compete and the population  grows exponentially. Prolonged exponential
growth is rare in nature because resources are finite and so not every individual in a population can survive, leading to
intraspecific competition for the scarce resources.
When resources are limited, an increase in population size reduces the quantity of resources available for each individual,
reducing the per capita fitness in the population. As a result, the growth rate of a population slows as intraspecific competition
becomes more intense, making it a negatively density dependent process. The falling population growth rate as population
increases can be modelled effectively with the  logistic growth model. The rate of change of population density eventually falls
to zero, the point ecologists have termed the  carrying capacity (K). However, a population can only grow to a very limited
number within an environment. The carrying capacity, defined by the variable k, of an environment is the maximum number of
individuals or species an environment can sustain and support over a longer period of time. The resources within an
environment are limited, and are not endless. An environment can only support a certain number of individuals before its
resources completely diminish. Numbers larger than this will suffer a negative population growth until eventually reaching the
carrying capacity, whereas populations smaller than the carrying capacity will grow until they reach it.