Question

On the slopes of the Washington Cascades, ecologists have studied some closely related vole species for decades. Many of these vole species, when they occur on separate mountains, tend to choose very similar seed sizes for food. However, when these species occur together on the same mountain slope, their food choices tend to differ, with some species selecting small seeds and others feeding exclusively on larger seeds. This behavior may be an example of:_________.

a. intraspecific competition.
b. resource partitioning.
c. habitat fragmentation.
d. niche fragmentation.
e. intraspecific range diversion.

Answer 1

b. resource partitioning

Step-by-step explanation:

Resource partitioning, in biology, refers to the use of limited resources by similar species in different ways in order to reduce competition in an environment in which both populations of the similar species inhabit together. Similar specifies tend to rely on the same resources for survival. When similar species dwell in the same environment, to avoid extinction of one species as a result of intraspecific competition, one tends to use resources which are slightly different from the resources the other one rely on. This resource partitioning behavior is what is observed in the vole species.