Ecological niche

Definition

In ecology, a niche is the match of a species to a specific environmental condition. It describes how an organism or population responds to the distribution of resources and competitors and how it, in turn, alters those same factors. "The type and number of variables comprising the dimensions of an environmental niche vary from one species to another [and] the relative importance of particular environmental variables for a species may vary according to the geographic and biotic contexts".

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Johnston Carrying capacity Cascade effect (ecology)Cassidinae Cell (biology)Cell cycle Cell signaling Cell theory Cellular respiration Chaparral Character displacement Charles Darwin Charles Sutherland Elton Chemical bond Chemical element Chemoorganoheterotrophy Chemoorganotroph Chemosynthesis Chemotroph Circulatory system Climate Climate change Climax community Cline (biology)Coevolution Cold seep Commensalism Common chiffchaff Common name Community (ecology)Competition (biology)Competitive exclusion principle Conservation biology Consumer-resource model Consumer (food chain)Consumer–resource interactions Convergent evolution Copiotroph Cross-boundary subsidy DNA Dandelion Darwin's finches Decomposer Decomposition Deimatic behaviour Density dependence Depensation Detritivore Detritus Developmental biology Disturbance (ecology)Dominance (ecology)Dowitcher Duckweed Earliest known life forms Ecological collapse Ecological debt Ecological economics Ecological effects of biodiversity Ecological efficiency Ecological extinction Ecological facilitation Ecological footprint Ecological forecasting Ecological indicator Ecological network Ecological pyramid Ecological resilience Ecological stability Ecological stoichiometry Ecological succession Ecological threshold Ecological trap Ecological yield Ecologist Ecology Ecology of the San Francisco Estuary Ecomorph Ecopath Ecosystem Ecosystem based fisheries Ecosystem diversity Ecosystem ecology Ecosystem engineer Ecosystem model Ecotone Ecotype Edge effects Effective population size Emergence Endemism Endocrine system Endolith Energy Energy flow (ecology)Energy quality Energy systems language Environmental humanities Environmental niche modelling Enzyme Epidermis (botany)Epigenetics Equus ferus ferus Eukaryote Euphorbia Evolution Evolutionary developmental biology Evolutionary ecology Extinct Extinction debt F-ratio (oceanography)Feed conversion ratio Feeding frenzy Fermentation Field research Fitness landscape Flagship species Flightless dung beetle Flower Food chain Food web Foraging Foster's rule Foundation species Function (biology)Functional ecology Functional group (ecology)Fungus G. Evelyn Hutchinson Galapagos Islands Gene expression Gene flow Generalist and specialist species Genetic drift Genetics Genome George Gaylord Simpson Great Plains Greater Antilles Green world hypothesis Ground tissue Guild (ecology)Habitat Habitat (ecology)Habitat fragmentation Herbivore Herbivore adaptations to plant defense Heterotroph Heterotrophic nutrition History of biology History of life Homeostasis Human digestive system Hydrothermal vent Ideal free distribution Immune system Index of biology articles Industrial ecology Insectivore Insular biogeography Intermediate disturbance hypothesis Internal environment Interspecific competition Intertidal ecology Intertidal zone Intraguild predation Intraspecific competition Introduced species Introduction to evolution Introduction to genetics Invasive species Island biogeography Janzen–Connell hypothesis Joseph Grinnell Joseph H. Connell Kelp forest Kestrel Keystone species Kinetotroph Kiwi (bird)Kleiber's law Konik Lake ecosystem Land change modeling Landscape ecology Landscape epidemiology Landscape limnology Latitudinal gradients in species diversity Leaf Lemna minor Liebig's law of the minimum Life Limiting similarity Lipid List of biology journals List of feeding behaviours Lithoautotroph Lithotroph Logistic function Lotka–Volterra equation Lotka–Volterra equations Macroecology Macroevolution Malthusian growth model Marginal distribution (biology)Marginal value theorem Marine food web Marine habitat Marine microorganisms Mathematical models Matter Maximum sustainable yield Mechanical philosophy Meiosis Mendelian inheritance Mesopredator Mesopredator release hypothesis Mesotrophic soil Metabolic theory of ecology Metabolism Metapopulation Microbial cooperation Microbial ecology Microbial food web Microbial intelligence Microbial loop Microbial mat Microbial metabolism Microbiome Microecosystem Microevolution Microorganism Middle French Mimicry Minimum viable population Mistletoe Mitosis Mixotroph Molecule Monomer Muscular system Mutation Mutualism (biology)Myco-heterotrophy Mycoloop Mycotroph N-dimensional space Native species Natural enemy Natural environment Natural selection Nervous system Niche apportionment models Niche construction Niche differentiation Non-indigenous species Non-trophic networks Normal distribution North Pacific Gyre Nucleic acid Nutrient cycle Occupancy–abundance relationship Oecologia Oligotroph Omnivore Ontogenetic niche shift Optimal foraging theory Ordination (statistics)Organ (biology)Organelle Organic compound Organism Organotroph Outline of biology Outline of ecology Overexploitation Overpopulation PH Paradox of the plankton Parasite Parasitic plant Parasitism Patch dynamics Pathogen Peer review Phage ecology Phloem Photoheterotroph Photosynthesis Photosynthetic efficiency Phototroph Phylogenetic niche conservatism Phylogenetics Phytoplankton Planktivore Plant Plant defense against herbivory Plant stem Polymer Population (biology)Population cycle Population dynamics Population ecology Population model Population size Population viability analysis Post-transcriptional modification Predation Predator Prey switching Primary nutritional groups Primary production Priority effect Productivity (ecology)Prokaryote Protein Protist Purple-throated carib Quantum biology R/K selection theory Random generalized Lotka–Volterra model Rapoport's rule Realized niche width Recruitment (biology)Reductionism Regime shift Regulation of gene expression Reinforcement (speciation)Relative abundance distribution Relative nonlinearity Relative species abundance Reproduction Reproductive system Resistance (ecology)Resource (biology)Resource selection function Respiratory system Restoration ecology Richard Levins River ecosystem Robert MacArthur Root Roswell Hill Johnson Science Scientific law Scientific method Scientific theory Self-replication Semiaquatic Semipalmated sandpiper Sexecology Shoaling and schooling Shoot (botany)Small population size Soil food web Sonoran Desert Source–sink dynamics Spatial ecology Specialist predator Speciation Species distribution Species distribution modelling Species diversity Species homogeneity Species richness Species–area relationship Spirodela polyrhiza Spotted owl Stimulus (physiology)Storage effect Structure Succulent plant Symbiosis Systems ecology Tawny owl Taxonomic rank Taxonomy (biology)Terrestrial animal Theoretical ecology Thorson's rule Tide pool Timeline of biology and organic chemistry Tissue (biology)Tritrophic interactions in plant defense Trophic cascade Trophic level Trophic mutualism Trophic state index Umbrella species Unified neutral theory of biodiversity United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Urban ecology Vacant niches Vascular plant Vascular tissue Virus Warbler Water Willow warbler Wolffia arrhiza Xerosere Xylem

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