| Fundamental Niche | Full range of environmental conditions that a species can occupy with no limiting factors to constrain their populations |
| Realised Niche | The actual range of environmental conditions occupied by the species |
| Competitive Exclusion | When 2 species occupy the same niche, 1species (A) will out-compete the other (B)→ forcing B to die out
[The complete removal of one species from its habitat] |
| Resource Partitioning | When 2 species occupy the same fundamental niche, they will have evolved to take advantage of different "slices" [Temporal, area or technique] of that niche [allows for co-existence] |
| Niche | The ecological role a species plays in a community |
| Keystone Species | A plant or animal which plays a unique and crucial role in the function of an ecosystem [a species that has a disproportionately large effect on its natural environment relative to its abundance]
[Southern Cassowary travels lengthy distances spreading seeds which form the rainforest. Beavers dam rivers to make pools and wetlands that become habitats for a wide diversity of species.] |
