Predator Prey Relationships Research Paper

There are many different types of relationships between animals, some including mutualism, parasitism, and predation. Each type has specific characteristics that set them apart and all of which have some sort of impact on each other. With the steady increase in human population and the vast amount of urbanization that are springing up around the world, many animal relationships are being put in jeopardy. Urbanization has an impact on species relationships, both interspecies and intraspecies, through an indirect and direct relation. With regards to cheetahs and gazelles, they have a predator-prey relationship. This type of interaction is affected by indirect causes of urbanization.
Predator-prey relationships
The relationship between predator and prey requires a simple definition. Predation, which is another way of saying predator-prey relationship, is the killing of a particular species on a different species to gain nutrients (Baenninger 1978). There are five steps in which this relationship can take place: 1) Searching for relevant stimuli, 2) hunting or chasing …show more content…
Hunting in packs also is more successful than hunting alone since it increases the chances of catching the prey (Baenninger 1978). Group hunting allows many predators a unique opportunity to combine optimal foraging, group decision-making and athletic ability in successfully attaining their prey (Bailey et. al. 2012). In the context of hunting, cooperation can simply mean two or more individuals (related or not) increasing their fitness (success and, therefore, their chance of survival and reproduction) by acting together to achieve a common goal (Bailey et. al. 2012). The fact that population sizes of predators are typically limited by the population sizes of their potential prey is another indication that wasteful killing is unlikely to be found routinely in normal circumstances, especially within group hunting (Baenninger