Barnacles and mussels compete with each other for space on the rocky intertidal. What type of interaction exists between these two species? If you knew that mussels are capable of occupying all available space in the rocky intertidal then what would happen to the barnacles? What keeps mussels from crowding out barnacles throughout the entire intertidal zone?
What will be an ideal response?
Mussels and barnacles show interspecific competition for space in the rocky intertidal. If mussels were unhampered, they would eliminate the barnacles from the intertidal in what is called competitive exclusion. Mussels don't completely eliminate barnacles because predators keep mussel populations within narrow limits, and because mussels are relatively intolerant to exposure, so barnacles can occupy the upper reaches of the intertidal.
You might also like to view...
The cold adaptation of the octopus nervous system ____
a. is a feature of all octopus species b. is caused by Na+ ion flow out of the neurons c. relies on the temperature sensitivity of K+ channels in neurons d. is caused by K+ ion flow into the neurons e. relies on the temperature sensitivity of Na+ channels in neurons
Nonsense suppressors are usually mutations in genes coding for
A) proteins. B) enzymes. C) mRNA. D) tRNA. E) rRNA.
Which factor is ultimately responsible for the rapid population explosion of humans?
A. More prevalence of microorganisms to fight diseases naturally B. Increasing availability of natural resources C. Decreasing migration of human and animal populations D. Decline in death rates without an equivalent decline in birth rates E. Advances in reproductive technology
Eukaryotic flagella differ from prokaryotic flagella because only eukaryotic flagella
A. are long whip-like structures. B. facilitate phototaxis. C. facilitate chemotaxis. D. are used for cell motility. E. contain microtubules.