Carrying Capacity:
Sustainable population
size in an environment
http://www.sustainabilitylabs.org/files/images/Sust.%20Diagram%202.preview.jpg
Carrying Capacity:
• Maximum population of a given species
that can survive indefinitely in a given
environment
Depends on:
• Conditions &
resources available
in habitat
• Resource
consumption by
species
Resources & Conditions Present:
http://images2.layoutsparks.com/1/175362/sunlight-trees-woods.jpg
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http://s3.amazonaws.com/rapgenius/filepicker%2FsFCTedRrS6eErJ7b0cwY_hot_desert.jpg
Sunlight
Rainfall/Moisture
Climate
Soil type
Space
Landscape/Terrain
Food sources
Predator levels
http://danieldamianiphoto.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/img_5429.jpg
Carrying Capacity is not constant:
• Changing conditions (resource availability)
and/or
• Changing resource use by species
http://www.activistangler.com/storage/drought.jpg?__SQUARESPACE_CACHEVERSION=1362064244633
http://labsaints.com/wp-content/uploads/water-pollution.jpg
Limiting Factors:
• Anything that can change a species’
population
• Natural & Human influence
Predation
Disease
Floods
Accidents
Drought
Fire
Hunting
Pollution
Shade
Parasites
Storms
Starvation
Habitat Loss
Carrying Capacity for a Species:
http://culturingscience.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/carrying-capacity.jpg
Overshoot:
More individuals of a species
living in an area than can be
supported over a long time.
http://www.paulchefurka.ca/Overshoot_2.jpg
Carrying Capacity Overview:
• Defined as a sustainable population level
for a species within an environment
• Influenced by abiotic (non-living) and biotic
(living) factors
• Connecting resource use & availability
with population
http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/image/planetary/earth/apollo17_earth.jpg