The world of wildlife is amazingly diverse. The same can be said of the relationships between all species that inhabit the planet. Like humans, animals can exploit, interfere in each other’s affairs or not interact at all. Examples of competition in nature are a fairly common and natural occurrence. Which of them are the most striking and interesting?
Examples of competition in nature
Interspecific competition has always been difficult to demonstrate in the field, and therefore not many concrete examples can be observed. If two species use the same resource, this does not mean that they are competing. Animals simply do not need to enter the struggle where everything that is necessary for survival is available in unlimited quantities. Similar examples can be found in natural systems.
To say that species are competing, they must occupy the same ecosystem and use a common resource, and as a result, this should lead to a decrease in the number of one of the populations or even to its complete destruction or expulsion. As a rule, it is much easier to demonstrate interference competition. This is when one species directly impedes the access of another species to a limited resource, and this leads to reduced survival.
One example of the competition of organisms in nature is the Argentinean ant. Its homeland is South America, and it is one of the worst invasive ants in the world. When a colony finds a food resource, they physically and chemically protect it, preventing indigenous ants from gaining access to the food resource. They often attack and drive out other fellow colonies in the area. This leads to a decrease in the number of ant populations. Since they physically interact with other ant colonies, this is a classic example of interspecific competition in nature.
Invisible competition
It is much more difficult to find examples of competition in nature in animals that do not directly interact with each other. Turtles eat only shrubs to which they can reach, craning their necks. Goats also eat bushes, but they have a wider choice than turtles. As a result, the second gets less vegetation, which is needed for survival and prosperity. This example of interspecific competition in nature is proved by the fact that some animals can reduce the number of others even without direct physical interaction.
Operation and Intervention (interference)
Interspecific competition occurs when different types of species in an ecosystem compete for the same resources: food, shelter, light, water and other important needs. Such a struggle can reduce the size of a particular species, moreover, an increase in the population of competitors also tends to limit the growth of a particular species. Thus, competition can be carried out in two ways at the level of individual organisms, namely: operational competition and interference competition.
Examples of competition in nature of the first type include the often invisible struggle for limited resources. As a result of using them in a certain way, they become insufficient for others. Intervention or interference means direct interaction to obtain resources.
Examples of intraspecific competition in nature, as well as interspecific competition, may include the struggle between predators for prey. So, a fierce confrontation may arise within a species (between two tigers), and between several species (between a lion and a hyena).
Possible effects
- As a result of this, there may be limitations in the size of the population, as well as changes in communities and the evolution of species.
- According to the principle of competitive exclusion, none of the two species that use the same limited resources in the same way and in the same space can exist together.
- Although local extinction is rare compared to competitive exclusion and differentiation of niches, this also occurs.
Competitive Examples
In a dense forest, interspecific competition may occur between tree plants. This is due to the fact that when there are mixed types of trees, access to resources for some of them may be easier than for others. For example, taller trees are able to absorb more sunlight, which makes it less accessible to lower tree species.
Wild animals such as lions and tigers are also prime examples of competition in nature. They hunt for the same prey, which may cause less availability of food resources for one of them. In addition, spotted hyenas compete with the African lion for food. The same thing happens with brown bears and tigers. Zebras and gazelles are fighting for grass.
Competitive relationships can be observed in the oceans, for example, it can be sponges and corals competing for space. In desert areas, a coyote and a rattlesnake fiercely fight for food and water. Interspecific competition is also observed in small animals, such as squirrels and chipmunks, which tend to compete for nuts and other foods.
Where both organisms live in the same niche and are in competition for resources or space, there will inevitably be a negative result for each organism, since the available resource for both sides will decrease.
Intraspecific struggle for existence
This competition is the most fierce and especially stubborn. This confrontation involves oppression and forced exclusion, expulsion or annihilation of less adapted individuals. Nature does not like the weak in the struggle for resources and living space. Fights for a female in the mating season are considered one of the most bloody.
Examples of competition in nature can be very different, including competition in choosing a sexual partner for procreation (deer), the struggle for living space and food (a stronger crow will peck a weak one) and so on.
Interspecific struggle for existence
If individuals of various species fight directly or indirectly for something, then we are talking about interspecific competition. A particularly stubborn confrontation is observed between closely related creatures, for example:
- A gray rat displaces black from its living space.
- The blackbird thrush becomes the cause of the decrease in the population of the songbird.
- The cockroach Prusak successfully surpasses and infringes on the black relative.
Competition and the struggle for existence are important drivers of evolution. An important role is played by natural selection and hereditary variability. It is hard to imagine how varied and complex are the relationships between living beings that inhabit our planet. Intraspecific and interspecific competition are of great, if not crucial, importance in the formation of biological diversity and the regulation of the numerical composition of populations.