Competition
Competition can regulate where and which
organisms live on a beach. For competition to exist there has to be a
resource that is insufficient and in demand. Larvae can, for example,
find it difficult to find a space to inhabit. At the same time they run
the risk of being consumed by filtering feeders. Even if they manage to
reach the bottom uninjured and find a free spot to habitat, they will
as they grow in size need more space. All creatures that manage to find
a free space on the bottom one year, will probably have problems later
when they became larger and are competing for space.
Experiments on the beach
Competition can result in that individuals
of different specie cannot cohabitat the same depth on sedimentary bottoms.
Field studies have shown that when one specie has been taken away, another
has taken over and increased it sphere of habitation. This indicates that
competition between the specie really has caused a segregation according
to depth.
Competition between the specie on soft bottoms is probably
less than on cliffs and rocks (hard bottoms) because of greater bredth,
width and depth and because bottom sediment gets mixed up sometimes. This
makes it difficult for one individual to "grow
over" another and cover
it, which can happen on hard bottoms.
Predation
Predation is when one animal eats another
and is regarded as the most important Biological factor that regulates
the size of populations and variety of specie on sand beaches.
|
|
Page 12
of 15
|
|
|
