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HIV/AIDS (human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immune deficiency syndrome) (that’s a long name) is a sexually transmitted disease which affects the nervous system. It makes it weaker, and more vulnerable to other diseases.

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Influenza (often referred to as the flu) is a virus which affects pretty much everyone, and can infect the nose, throat and lungs. It’s highly contagious, and always evolving, so people tend to get vaccinated against it every year.

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Symbiotic relationships are natural ties between organisms. These ties can be actions which benefit or hurt either organism.

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Animals mark their territory often to make sure they keep their own bounds in the ecosystem. This tiger is marking its territory by hugging this tree.

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Once the territory is marked, animals must defend it from other animals that may compete for it. These lions are fighting

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Many animals will fight to defend their territory. Cats will fight with scratches and bites, along with many other felines.

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It doesn’t have to be the same species, either. Rhinos and elephants can fight to make sure neither enters the wrong area, sometimes resulting in the death of one of them.

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Speaking of rhinos, their niche is their horn. They mostly use it to defend themselves, but they can also use it to dig for water.

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Plants can have niches too, like bamboo. Bamboo is stiff and difficult to break, which allows it to stand so tall and flourish.

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Some animals will perform for the mate they want, mainly by dancing (or fighting whoever else could be competing).

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Pheromones are a type of smell or hormone that organisms release to communicate. Ants, for example, can release a smell that lets other members of their colony know that they are under attack, moving to a new shelter, or where food is.

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Estivation is when cold-blooded animals enter a dormant state, during warmer parts of the year (like summer).

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Hibernation is when animals enter a state of minimal activity, often warm-blooded animals sleeping during the winter.

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Instincts help animals perform actions without thinking about it. They’re an unconscious drive to act on an immediate threat or condition, such as a dog that can’t help itself from shaking to dry itself after a bath or a swim.

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Learned behaviors are different in one aspect- they are taught and learned within a group of individuals. A common example is teaching a dog to play fetch with a tennis ball or a frisbee, and bringing it back to the owner.

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Imprinting is a way for organisms to learn behaviors, often one to identify species and aid them in knowing what creatures to approach or not.

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Classical conditioning is a way of learning a behavior unconsciously mostly through experiencing a situation over and over again and needing to adapt to it.

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Organisms will think of solutions to a problem until one of them works, seemingly at random.

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Often referred to as desensitization, habituation is the act of becoming used to a specific stimuli which occurs regularly in the area. Floridians are habituated to hurricanes, and New Yorkers are habituated to snow.

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Migration is the act of moving habitats, typically along with the rest of your community. This can happen for many reasons, such as dangers in the current habitat or preferences that are met in the new habitat.

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Excretion is a process used to remove waste from the body, often that of food which has been digested. This prevents clogging inside of the digestive system, and diseases which may linger inside of fecal matter from making their way into the body.

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Camouflage is a way for animals to hide themselves in plain sight; chameleons and octopi are very skilled with camouflage, as they can change their color based on their surroundings.

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Tuberculosis (TB) is an infections bacterial disease which affects the lungs. It’s spread by airborne droplets (coughing and sneezing).

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Snakes and worms have a unique form of movement, in that they slither around and essentially just slide themselves in the direction they wish to go. Their bodies are built to do this, and it can also count as a niche they have.

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Carrying capacity is a measure of how populated an ecosystem can be without causing problems. When there’s too high of a population, problems begin to arise as they can’t easily make more room within the same ecosystem. They mus either move to a new habitat, or die off.

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This image isn’t specifically connected to zoology, but it’s the same concept.

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Water, food, space, and cleanliness are a few major factors that help determine the carrying capacity, as they limit how many organisms can use such factors for survival. Either the resources can be distributed evenly, or the organisms which need them will begin to fight for them.

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Dutch Elm Disease (DED) is a fungal disease spread by the elm bark beetle onto elm trees. It has destroyed many American elms within the past century.

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Pfiesteria is a heterotrophic (makes its own food) algae which was found along the coast of NC and in tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay. It sprouts harmful algae blooms which can kill fish in the area, and spread further.

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A symbiotic relationship where both organisms benefit from an act. Bees use flower nectar to make honey, and in turn pollinate the flowers.

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A symbiotic relationship where one organism benefits at the other’s expense. Mosquitos take small amounts of our blood via bites, then use it to produce offspring.

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Another symbiotic where one organism benefits at the other’s expense. Zebras are prey to lions, and get chased, killed and eaten by them. This one could be associated with the food chain.

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A symbiotic relationship where both organisms are hurt. Seagulls and other birds will compete for resources, and hurt the others to earn it for themselves.

I’d put this with the relationships which benefit only one, but I can see why it’s listed like this.

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Generally, the resources these they fight for are things like food, shelter, and mates.

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A symbiotic relation where one organism benefits and doesn’t affect the other. Barnacles sometimes situate themselves under humpback whales, for shelter. This doesn’t affect the whale at all.

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All species have a keystone species. This is an organism which mostly all others in the area depend on. The absence of these species would drastically affect the ecosystem.

Any primary producer is a keystone species, all energy that we can consume starts here.

Apex predators , or generally any predator, keeps their prey’s population regulated.