24.3 Predator-prey Relationships

Question 1

What is predation?

Answer 1

When an organism (predator) kills and eats another organism (prey)

Question 2

What does ‘the population size of predators and prey are interlinked’ mean?

Answer 2

As the population size of one organism changes, it causes a change in the size of the other population

Question 3

How do predator and prey populations affect each other?

Answer 3

• increase in the prey population = increase in predator population because prey provides more food for predators
• increased predator population eats more prey organisms, prey population declines. Death rate of prey>birth rate of prey
• reduced prey population can no longer support the large predator population. Intraspecific competition for food increases, resulting in a decrease in predator population
• reduced predator population results in less of the prey population being killed. More prey organisms survive and reproduce, increasing the prey population

Cycle repeats