IB Biology SL C4.1.14 Tests for Interspecific Competition Questions

Test interspecific competition using laboratory experiments, field observations and removal studies. Connell's barnacle study links removal results to fundamental and realized niches.

Exam points

Infer interspecific competition from experimental or field evidence, such as population patterns when species occur alone or together and changes in distribution where they coexist.
Interpret Connell's barnacle removal study by relating the observed distribution of barnacle species to fundamental and realized niches.

[Maximum number: 1]

Caenorhabditis elegans and Caenorhabditis briggsae are two species of nematode that co-exist in rotting plant material. A study was conducted in France to determine the relative population of each species in samples of apples.

Two stacked-bar charts show the proportions of sampled apples containing different population sizes of C. elegans and C. briggsae on dates from July 2009 to January 2011. Shading and patterns distinguish the nematode-population categories.

Suggest, with a reason, the type of interaction that may exist between the two nematodes.

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IB Biology SL C4.1.14 Tests for Interspecific Competition Questions question 1