How Can Plant Growth Get Impacted By Intraspecific Competition?

The growth of plants is influenced by the spatial location of surrounding plants and competition for available resources. Plant competition can be divided into two modes: intraspecific and interspecific. An increase in seed density negatively impacts plant survival and flower production, while theory predicts intraspecific competition should be stronger than interspecific competition for coexisting species. Plants grown in the laboratory at densities of 1, 10, 25, 50, and 75 per 7 cm diameter pot showed a significant density-dependent effect on survival.

Competition can occur between individuals of the same or different species when required environmental resources or energy are insufficient or a particular trait is lacking. Intraspecific competition is lower for species that limit competition-induced increases in root allocation and have less variability in this trait overall. Interspecific competition is lower for species with fewer competition-induced increases in root allocation.

Intraspecific competition typically leads to decreased rates of resource intake per individual, which can lead to decreased rates of individual growth or development, decreased stored reserves, or increased risks of predation. Weeds suppress the growth of young crop plants by shading them and competing for nutrients from the soil and space to grow. Intraspecific competition can lead to “Alee effects”, where organisms self-limit their population growth to avoid crashing the entire population.

Plants increase specific root lengths as an efficient strategy to compete for resources. Intraspecific competition is limited to preventing unbounded population growth, while parasitoids increase the plant’s size. Results indicate that intraspecific competition could play a significant role in determining growth parameters, flower production, and survival.

What is an example of plant intraspecific competition?

Intraspecific competition refers to the phenomenon whereby two organisms of the same species engage in a competitive interaction for limited resources, such as sunlight and nutrients, or for access to mates. This can be observed in the case of oak trees growing in close proximity to one another, competing for sunlight and nutrients, or male deer competing for mates.

What happens when intraspecific competition is high in a population?

Intraspecific competition reduces population growth rates as population density increases. When resources are infinite, intraspecific competition does not occur, allowing populations to grow exponentially. Exponential population growth is rare but has been documented in humans since 1900. The logistic growth equation is an effective tool for modeling intraspecific competition, as it shows that at low population densities, the main determinant for population growth is the per capita growth rate. However, as N(t) approaches the carrying capacity, the second term in the logistic equation becomes smaller, reducing the rate of change of population density.

The logistic growth curve initially resembles the exponential growth curve, with individuals growing rapidly when population density is low. As the population reaches its maximum (carrying capacity), intraspecific competition becomes fiercer, and the per capita growth rate slows until the population reaches a stable size. At the carrying capacity, the rate of change of population density is zero, as the population is as large as possible based on available resources. Experiments on Daphnia growth rates showed adherence to the logistic growth curve, with the inflexion point occurring at half the carrying capacity.

What is interspecific competition in plants?

Interspecific competition is a type of competition where different species compete for resources in an ecosystem, such as food or living space. It differs from mutualism, a type of symbiosis. Intraspecific competition occurs between members of the same species. For example, a taller tree species in a dense forest absorbs more sunlight, but less is available for the shaded trees. This can lead to interspecific competition between leopards and lions, as both species feed on the same prey.

Competition is not always direct, and it can occur when two species share a limiting resource in the same area. If the resource cannot support both populations, lowered fecundity, growth, or survival may result in at least one species. Interspecific competition can alter populations, communities, and the evolution of interacting species, and can occur as interference or exploitative competition on an individual organism level.

What is intraspecific incompatibility in plants?

Pollen incompatibility refers to the failure of pollen from one species to germinate or grow on the stigma of another species. Intraspecific incompatibility occurs within a species, such as self-incompatibility between pollen and the stigmas of the same individual. This blocks fertilization between genetically similar gametes, increasing the probability of new gene combinations by promoting outcrossing. Groups of closely related plants can contain a mix of self-compatible and self-incompatible species.

Several different self-incompatibility systems have evolved, with recognition of self relying on the multiallelic self-incompatibility (S) locus. Gametophytic self-incompatibility occurs when the S allele of the pollen grain matches either of the S alleles of the stigma, causing the pollen tube to develop but stopping before reaching the micropyle. Sporophytic self-incompatibility occurs when one of the two S alleles of the pollen-producing sporophyte matches one of the S alleles of the stigma, likely due to sporophyte contributions to the exine.

What is intraspecific competition in botany?

Intraspecific competition is an interaction in population ecology where members of the same species compete for limited resources, leading to a reduction in fitness for both individuals. This results in a more fit individual surviving and reproducing. In contrast, interspecific competition occurs when members of different species compete for a shared resource. Intraspecific competition is generally stronger than interspecific competition, as it involves direct interactions between species and indirect interactions where an individual depletes a shared resource.

When resources are infinite, intraspecific competition does not occur, allowing populations to grow exponentially. Exponential population growth is rare, but has been documented in humans since 1900. Elephant populations in Kruger National Park in South Africa also grew exponentially in the mid-1900s after strict poaching controls were implemented.

In nature, prolonged exponential growth is rare due to finite resources, leading to intraspecific competition for scarce resources. Individuals can compete for food, water, space, light, mates, or other resources required for survival or reproduction. If every member of the species can obtain a sufficient amount of every resource, individuals do not compete, leading to exponential population growth.

What is an example of an intraspecific competition?

Intraspecific competition refers to the phenomenon whereby two organisms of the same species engage in a competitive interaction for limited resources, such as sunlight and nutrients, or for access to mates. This can be observed in the case of oak trees growing in close proximity to one another, competing for sunlight and nutrients, or male deer competing for mates.

What does intraspecific competition lead to?

Intraspecific competition is an interaction in population ecology where members of the same species compete for limited resources, leading to a reduction in fitness for both individuals. This results in a more fit individual surviving and reproducing. In contrast, interspecific competition occurs when members of different species compete for a shared resource. Intraspecific competition is generally stronger than interspecific competition, as it involves direct interactions between species and indirect interactions where an individual depletes a shared resource.

When resources are infinite, intraspecific competition does not occur, allowing populations to grow exponentially. Exponential population growth is rare, but has been documented in humans since 1900. Elephant populations in Kruger National Park in South Africa also grew exponentially in the mid-1900s after strict poaching controls were implemented.

In nature, prolonged exponential growth is rare due to finite resources, leading to intraspecific competition for scarce resources. Individuals can compete for food, water, space, light, mates, or other resources required for survival or reproduction. If every member of the species can obtain a sufficient amount of every resource, individuals do not compete, leading to exponential population growth.

What are the effects of intraspecific competition in plants?

Intraspecific competition between plants of the same variety can result in various effects, such as competition-density effect, size-hierarchy development, and self-thinning. As plant density increases, it decreases plant performance, resulting in reduced size and weight. Competition can also affect the relative growth rate of neighboring plants, affecting biomass accumulation. The number of plants and time of emergence can determine a plant’s position in the emerging size hierarchy, which can be commercially important for vegetables meeting pre-market size criteria. Self-thinning is unusual in agriculture, as agricultural practices rarely result in densities high enough to lead to mortality, more common in natural plant communities.

How does intraspecific competition affect individual growth rate?

Intraspecific competition has been observed to result in a reduction in the growth rates of tadpoles, particularly when they reach high densities in their breeding ponds. In experiments wherein disparate total numbers of tadpoles are placed in identical rearing tanks of comparable size, a reduction in growth is observed with increasing densities. This phenomenon can be attributed to the fact that varying total numbers of tadpoles can attain densities that are exceedingly high in breeding ponds.

How does competition affect plant growth?

Competition is a term that refers to the negative effects on plant growth or fitness caused by the presence of neighbors, usually by reducing the availability of resources. It can be an important factor controlling plant communities, along with resources, disturbance, herbivory, and mutualisms. The resource involved is generally light, water, nitrogen, or phosphorus, depending upon the species and the location.

Competition is widespread and easily observed in mixtures of crops and managed forests, which is why weeding and thinning are practiced. Competition is also widespread in native habitats, from deserts to wetlands, and has important effects upon recruitment, growth, and reproduction.

Darwin’s On the Origin of Species contains a good deal about competition, usually competition between species operating as the force of natural selection. He was greatly influenced by the English economist Thomas Malthus, who wrote about resources and population growth, including the famous Essay on the Principle of Population. Weaver and Clements 1938, a volume with a wealth of competition experiments, is considered the first major work of the 20th century in this area.

Competition was also included within even the most basic models of ecology, such as the logistic equation, which led to the Lotka-Volterra models for competition, well described in MacArthur 1972. MacArthur’s book also explores how species might escape competition by using different resources (“resource partitioning”), although disagreement remains about its application to plants, which share a common set of resources. Harper 1977 can be considered very influential for refocusing attention upon plant populations and plant life cycles.

In the 1970s, Grime introduced the CSR model, which relates plant strategies (competitor, stress-tolerator, ruderal) to two basic gradients: stress and disturbance. The first edition of this book in 1979 was a landmark work, shifting attention away from populations and back to plant traits and environmental gradients. Tilman 1982 explored the role of aboveground and belowground resources, suggesting that many plants may coexist by exploiting different ratios of above to below ground resources, particularly light and nitrogen. This resource ratio model may be more useful than the Lotka-Volterra model for plants.

By 1990, more thought had been given about how to best explore competition among plants, with some challenges illustrated by the array of views, ideas, and data sets in Grace and Tilman 1990. Some of the challenges are illustrated by the array of views, ideas, and data sets in Grace and Tilman 1990.

Keddy 2001 emphasizes that some of the confusion was the result of there being many different components of competition—intraspecific/interspecific, symmetrical/asymmetrical, diffuse/monopolistic, to name just three. Competition is only one of many factors that affect plant communities, and Keddy 2017 provides a shorter introduction to plant competition nested among the other causal factors controlling composition in plant communities.

What is intraspecific relationship in plants?

Ecological interactions can be classified as intra-specific or inter-specific, with intra-specific interactions occurring between individuals of the same species and inter-specific interactions occurring between two or more species. These interactions can be influenced by other species and their interactions, making them part of a larger network of interactions that make up complex relationships in nature.

Competition, predation, herbivory, and symbiosis are the most studied types of species interactions, all part of a larger network of interactions that make up the complex relationships occurring in nature.

Competition is typically the interaction of individuals competing for a common resource, leading to a change in fitness when organisms share the same resource. There are three major forms of competition: interference competition, exploitation competition, and apparent competition. Interference competition occurs directly between individuals, while exploitation competition and apparent competition occur indirectly between individuals.