Question:
Fly larvae of a species feed simultaneously on a shared rotting fruit. If the density of fly larvae is high, then all the larvae grow up to be smaller sized adults than if the larval density were low. Which one of the following processes best describes this observation?
Fly larvae of a species feed simultaneously on a shared rotting fruit. If the density of fly larvae is high, then all the larvae grow up to be smaller sized adults than if the larval density were low. Which one of the following processes best describes this observation?
Show Hint
Scramble competition occurs when resources are evenly distributed among all competitors, leading to decreased individual growth for everyone involved.
Updated On: Jan 8, 2026
- Scramble competition
- Interspecific competition
- Competitive exclusion
- Apparent competition
Hide Solution
Verified By Collegedunia
The Correct Option is A
Solution and Explanation
Step 1: Understand the concept of scramble competition.
Scramble competition occurs when resources are limited and individuals compete for those resources. In this type of competition, the resources are spread thin among all individuals, resulting in a decrease in individual growth rates.
Step 2: Analyze the given situation.
In this question, the larvae of the species feed on a shared resource (rotting fruit). When the density of larvae is high, they are competing for the same limited resource, which leads to all of them growing into smaller adults compared to when the larvae density is low. This directly points to scramble competition, as the competition for resources impacts the growth of all individuals equally.
Step 3: Eliminate other options.
Interspecific competition refers to competition between different species, but this question is about the same species competing.
Competitive exclusion is when one species outcompetes another, leading to the exclusion of the inferior competitor, which is not the case here.
Apparent competition involves indirect competition where two species affect each other through a shared predator or pathogen, which does not apply here.
Conclusion:
Thus, the correct answer is scramble competition.
Scramble competition occurs when resources are limited and individuals compete for those resources. In this type of competition, the resources are spread thin among all individuals, resulting in a decrease in individual growth rates.
Step 2: Analyze the given situation.
In this question, the larvae of the species feed on a shared resource (rotting fruit). When the density of larvae is high, they are competing for the same limited resource, which leads to all of them growing into smaller adults compared to when the larvae density is low. This directly points to scramble competition, as the competition for resources impacts the growth of all individuals equally.
Step 3: Eliminate other options.
Interspecific competition refers to competition between different species, but this question is about the same species competing.
Competitive exclusion is when one species outcompetes another, leading to the exclusion of the inferior competitor, which is not the case here.
Apparent competition involves indirect competition where two species affect each other through a shared predator or pathogen, which does not apply here.
Conclusion:
Thus, the correct answer is scramble competition.
Was this answer helpful?
1
0
Top GATE EY Applied Ecology & Evolution Questions
- In a population of 534 blue sheep, there are two alleles, P and Q, at an autosomal locus. Allele P has a frequency of 30%. The number of sheep with the QQ genotype is 262. Assuming that this population is at Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, the expected percentage of sheep with the PQ genotype in the population is:
- GATE EY - 2025
- Applied Ecology & Evolution
- hardy-weinberg principle
- Which one of the following mechanisms is expected to generate tightly linked genes?
- Which one or more of the following conditions is/are necessary for the evolution of increased nectar production in an insect-pollinated plant via natural selection?
- GATE EY - 2025
- Applied Ecology & Evolution
- Evolutionary Biology
The population of whirligig beetles in a lake grows or declines exponentially, i.e., \( N(t) = N(0)e^{rt} \), where \( N(t) \) is the population size at time \( t \), \( N(0) \) is the initial population size, and \( r \) is the per capita rate of population change, occurring only due to birth and death.
A researcher tracks population sizes for a year and finds the following:
Assuming that the individual birth rates remain constant throughout the year and only death rates are affected, which one or more of the following statements is/are true?
- A phylogenetic tree representing the evolutionary relationship between various vertebrates is shown below. Given this tree topology, which one or more of the following statements is/are correct?
- GATE EY - 2025
- Applied Ecology & Evolution
- Evolutionary Biology
View More Questions
Top GATE EY Ecology Questions
- Which one or more of the following would make a plant community more susceptible to invasion by exotic plants?
- The table below describes the number of tree species in a forest whose seeds are dispersed by large or small animals, and whether they are insect or wind pollinated. In the past, seed dispersers and pollinators were abundant in this forest. Now, there are very few large animal dispersers, but the number of small animal dispersers has not changed. There are also very few insect pollinators in this forest. Which one or more of the following inferences about trees in the forest can be drawn from these changes in seed dispersers and pollinators?
- In a grassland (P), there are 8 plant species with a similar number of individuals of each species. In another grassland (Q), there are 12 species with uneven abundances. Which one of the following statements about the Shannon’s diversity index of P and Q is correct?
- Fungus S infects elm trees and fungus T infects chestnut trees, and both kill their hosts within a year of infection. A forest with equal density of elm and chestnut trees is colonized by both pathogenic fungi. A 100 years later, the elm tree population has declined and the chestnut trees have become extinct. Which one of the following mechanisms would NOT contribute to this outcome?
Figure F shows how predation rate changes with increasing prey density.
Which one of the figures represents the per capita death rate of prey under the conditions of F?
View More Questions
Top GATE EY Questions
- During the process of succession in a community, species that are good colonisers are gradually replaced by species that are good competitors. Which one or more of the following statements is/are consistent with this pattern?
- GATE EY - 2026
- Ecological Succession
- Observations of algal species showed that their diversity was higher in pools where there were grazing snails compared to pools without snails. Which one of the following statements best explains this result?
- GATE EY - 2026
- Species-Area Relationships
Which one or more of the following is/are greenhouse gas(es)?
- GATE EY - 2026
- Ecology and Climate Change
- You are a plant ecologist studying a plant in the genus Veronica. You notice that, at open rocky sites, Veronica grows as a creeper spreading low to the ground, whereas in grasslands, the stem stands upright. You collect seeds from multiple populations in each habitat type and grow them under uniform conditions in a greenhouse. You find that all the plants grown in the greenhouse have stems that stand upright. Which one or more of the following explanations best support(s) your observations?
- GATE EY - 2026
- Evolution and Adaptation
- Honey bees are haplodiploid, which means that the relatedness is, on average, expected to be 0.75 between
- GATE EY - 2026
- Social Evolution
View More Questions