Biology / Unit 14 Bio 3565 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Density-Independent Limiting Factors
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The idea
A density-independent limiting factor affects a population's growth rate by roughly the same proportion regardless of population density, as with many abiotic disturbances.
In practice
A severe frost kills a similar proportion of a plant population whether that population is sparse or dense.
Where people slip
A density-independent event can still be catastrophic — independence from density describes the scaling of the effect, not its size.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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