Components of an Ecosystem-

Biotic Factor Interactions

 Identify different relationships between
organisms
 Evaluate the differences between these
relationships
 Create your own examples of different
relationships between organisms in nature
 Symbiosis- the close association between
two organisms of different species

 Symbiotic relationships take on three forms:

– Parasitism
– Mutualism
– Commensalism
 Parasitism: One organism benefits and the other is
hurt (+/- )
 ex: tics or fleas on a dog or a tapeworm in human
intestines
 Mutualism- both organisms benefit (+/+)
 Ex/ hummingbird and flower or bees and
flowers
 Commensalism: One organism benefits and the
other is not affected at all. (+/0)
 EX/ clown fish lives among the tentacles of a sea
anemone.
 Predation-a "+/-" interaction, includes
predator-prey, herbivore-plant, and parasite-
host interactions.
 Predation is an important factor in the
ecology of populations, determining mortality
of prey and birth of new predators.
 The predator is the organism that hunts
 The prey is the organism that is being hunted
 Predator-prey cycle: predators increase when prey
are abundant, prey are driven to low numbers by
predation, the predators decline, and the prey
recover