Question

Difference between biotic potential and environmental resistance

Answer 1

Have you ever heard the expression that some efforts are like trying to push a boulder uphill? In biology, environmental resistance is a little bit like the hill and the boulder is a population of organisms. If you were trying to push a boulder on flat ground or downhill, it would be much easier. Same with pushing a pebble or piece of gravel uphill. It would be no big deal. But a boulder going uphill is a different story.

Environmental resistance factors are all the things that keep a population of organisms from endlessly increasing. They lower the chances for reproduction, affect the health of organisms, and raise the death rate in the population. Environmental resistance factors include factors that are biotic (living) and abiotic (non-living). Biotic factors are things like predation, parasitism, lack of food, competition with other organisms and disease. Abiotic factors include drought, fire, temperature, and even the wrong amount of sunshine. You can see how all these things, biotic and abiotic, would become an uphill battle to your boulder-pushing.


Biotic potential, the maximum reproductive capacity of an organism under optimum environmental conditions. It is often expressed as a proportional or percentage increase per year, as in the statement “The human population increased by 3 percent last year.” It can also be expressed as the time it takes for a population to double in size (doubling time). In disease-related studies it is comparable to the “force of infection,” the number of susceptible individuals each infected individual further infects.


Full expression of the biotic potential of an organism is restricted by environmental resistance, any factor that inhibits the increase in number of the population. These factors include unfavourable climatic conditions; lack of space, light, or a suitable substrate; deficiencies of necessary chemical compounds or minerals; and the inhibiting effects of predators, parasites, disease organisms, or unfavourable genetic changes.


Hope this will help you..... ✌