9-3-11

9-3-11
My Plot--Pond View

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Plot Community: Interactions that Occur Among Species

COMPETITION
1. Different species of trees compete for sunlight and water with their branches and leaves and roots.
2. Squirrels compete for nuts/food and locations in which to store them.
PREDATION
1. Some birds are predators of insects.
2. Frogs predate on flies.
SYMBIOSIS: Mutualism
1. Pollination benefits both the pollinator (bees, butterflies) and the pollinated (flowers, flowering weeds). It's a necessary process that allows the plant to cross-pollinate, strengthening its species' reproductive power, while the pollinator receives pleasant nectars or other satisfying nutrients in return. (Pollination)
2. When birds eat seeds of plants, they have a meal but also are able to spread the seeds of the plant when they unload their excrement, thus aiding the plant.
SYMBIOSIS: Commensalism
1. A mosquito draws blood from a deer, rabbit, or other creature; it has a meal while the animal barely notices (aside from possible itching symptoms).
2. Deer feces become a source of nutrients for flies and other insects, while the deer remains unaffected.
SYMBIOSIS: Parasitism
1. Ticks lodge themselves into the bodies of mammals.
2. Raccoon roundworm may affect raccoons, birds, squirrels, and rabbits by progressing through their life cycle within a host animal's small intenstine and other body parts. (Raccoon Roundworm)
3. Fungus attaches to and lives off of trees, dead or alive.

1. Raccoon Roundworm (Baylisascaris). DNR, n.d. Web. 1 Oct. 2011. <http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10370_12150_12220-27261--,00.html>.
2. Pollination. Missouri Botanical Garden, 2009. Web. 1 Oct. 2011. <http://www.mbgnet.net/bioplants/pollination.html>.

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