Chapter 20 Interaction Among Living Things

Some animals live in groups and others live in solitary
1. Some animals live in groups and some live in solitary

2. Animals live in groups for:

a) safety

b) food

3. Examples of animals that live in groups are:

- ant

- termites

- elephants

- crocodiles

- lions

4.Animals live in solitary to:

a)avoid competiton for food

b)avoid competition for space
5.Animals that live in solitary:

-sharks

-turtles

-crickets

Competition as a form of Interaction among living things
1.Living things depend on one another.
This relationship is called interaction.

2.Interaction exists:

a)among plants
b)among animals
c) between animals and plants
3.Each living thing has to interact to ensure the survival of its own species.
4.Competition is a form of interaction among living things.
Competitions happens when two or more living things need the same resources.
5.There are two types of competition.

a)Intraspecies competition (between individuals within the same species)

b)Interspecies competition(between different species)

Competition among Animals
1.Competition among animals occur when they compete with one another for necessities like food,water,mate and habitat.
2. Competition to get food:
a)animals with the same eating habit and staying in the same habitat have to compete for their food.
b)for example,carnivore animals like lion and wild dog have to compete with each other to get meat for their food.
3. Competition to get water:
a)competition for water occurs in areas limited water supply or areas facing drought
b)for example,elephant and rhinoceros need to compete to get water that is decreasing in a pond

4. Competition to get mate:

a)male animals have to compete to get female animals as their partner to reproduce.
b)for example,two deers have to fight to get their partner
5. Competition to get shelter:
a)shelter is a place where the animals get food,reproduce and protect itself
b)strong animals win the competition and stay in the place.
c)for example,two lions will fight to conquer place,the stronger lion will win and the weak one will have to move to another new place.
6. Competition happens between two or more living things are for the same necessity within the same area.Competition gets more intense when
a)there is limited food resources
b)there is limited water resources
c)trying to get a mate for breeding
d)defending or looking for territory
e)defending or looking for a shelter

EXPERIMENT
Investigate Competition Among Fish
METHOD:
1.Two aquariums A and B are the same size and filled with the same amount of water.
2.Two fishes are put in aquarium A and five fishes are put in aquarium B as in the diagram.
3.Both aquariums are left in the same place and given the same quantity of food.

4.The growth of the fishes in both aquariums is observed.

RESULT:
1.After a week, the fishes in aquarium A have grown.
2.The fishes in aquarium B are smaller in size compared to fishes in aquarium A.
EXPLANATION:
1.The number of fishes in aquarium is less. So.the fishes get enough food and space to grow fast.
2. The number of fishes in aquarium B are more. Each fish has to compete with each other to get food and space.
3. This makes the growth of in aquarium B slower.

Competitions among plants
1.Plants also need to compete with each other to get sunlight, water, space and nutrient to live.
2. Competition to get sunlight
a)plants in the tropical jungle have their own way to compete with each other to get sunlight.

b)woody plants grow tall to get sunlight.

c)plants that have interwine characteristics will climb or interwine tall trees to get sunlight.
d)there are also plants that live on other tall trees to get sunlight.
3.Competition to get water and nutrient, for example vegetables and grass growing together have to compete to get mineral salt and water.
4. Competition to get space for living.
a)plants taht grow in congested place in the area have to compete to get water and mineral salt from the soil.
b)for example,if a lot seedlings are planted in a small pot,the seedlings have to compete to get space.
5.Plants compete because of:
a)limited sunlight that can reach them
b)limited water resources
c)limited space

d)limited nutrient

The responsibility of human beings in protecting endangered species
1. If the human activities are not controlled, many animals and plants will face the threat of extinction.
2. If animals from certain species do not reproduce.the species will completely die off and disappear from the Earth forever. This is because when the old animals die, there are no young animals to replace them.

3. As more animals die, that species of animals will decrease in number. Eventually, when all the old animals die, that species will no longer exist.

4.Some species of animals such as the dinosaurs became extinct millions years ago.

5.The example of:

a)Extinct animals:

-Wolly Mammoth

-Sabre-tooth tiger

-Dodo bird

-Quagga

b)Endangered animals are:

-Tiger

-Turtle

-Tapir

-Hornbill

-Elephant

-Rhinoceros

-Orang Utan

c)Endangered Plants:

-Rafflesia

-Pitcher plant

6.There are different reasons why certain animals or plants are facing the treat of extinction such as:

a)the rhinoceros is killed for its horns

b)the tiger is killed for its hides
c)the blue whale is killed for its blubber
d)the elephants is killed for its tusks
e)the polar bears is killed for its fur
f)the leatherback turtle is decreasing as its eggs are eaten by humans
7.Animals and plants are facing the threat of extinction because of human activities such as illegal or excessive:
a)Logging
-Destruction of natural habitats and species extinction because they tend to loss their habitat
b)Hunting
-Many animals are hunted and become endangered or even extinct
c)Development
-A lot of trees in the forest are chopped down for development
8.The ways to prevent animals and plants from extinction:
a)campaign against excessive logging
b) educating the public about the importance of protecting and conserving animals and plants.
c)avoid consuming or buying products made from endangered species
d)enforcing the law
The impact of human activities on environment.1.The environmental destruction caused by humans activities such as:

a)EROSION

The roots of the trees help us to protest the soil and preventit from being blown by down strong windsor washed awy by the rain. The top layer of the soil is rich in nutrients. When the forestis cleared, this layer is exposed to wind and rain,and is soon removed or eroded. The land that is affected by soil erosion cannot be used for growing crops because it lacks nutrient.

b)LANDSLIDE

The roots of plants are useful also. Plant roots hold on to the topsoil o our land, this preventlandslide especially on slope. At the same time,the stem of plants slow down water flow and wind speed. A bareand exposed slope is more prone to landslide. When there is heavy rain or even the wind is strong, the soil is easily washed or blown down the slope.

c)FLASH FLOOD

d)WATER POLLUTION                A lot of the waste that we dump into the oceans and seas are poisonous to aquatic life,for example, nitrate, a compound made of nitrogen and oxygen. There has been a huge increase in nitrates in the rivers and lakes. This is because of the use of fertilisers, waste matter from the sewers and increasing animal farming activities. Animals produce nitrate waste. These nitrate dissolve in rain water and seep down to soil. The ground water cointainig the nirates then enters the water bodies such as rivers and streams. Eventually,the nitrares will reach us through the food chain. Nitrates in our bodies are changed into other compounds which can cause cancer in our stomach.

e)AIR POLLUTION Of all the resources that nature has gifted Man with,air is the most important and precious. The air that you breathe in all time is getting dirtier and dirtier. This is again our doing.Dust,chemical and cigaratte smoke are pollutingour air.Most of these harmful substance s are produced by human activities. Some examples are burning of fossil fuels in power station,factories releasing chemicals into the air air exhaust or waste gases from motor vehicles.

2.Human activities that cause destruction to the environmental are:
a)illegal and excessive logging
b)illegal and excessive hunting
c)improper management of development
3.The Earth belongs to all of us. However,because of the selfish and irresponsible acts of Man, our Earth is wounded.
4.Natural resources have been used up and some cannot be renewed or take a long time to do so. People are poisoned or even killed by the air that they breathe in.
5.The Earth is getting warmer and the weather is becoming more unpredictable. The damage has already been done, but not all is lost.
6.We can help to save Earth.If each one of us accepts responsibility and does or his part in preserving and protecting there is still hope for our homeland.