Density-dependent Factor | Definition & Examples | Britannica

Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos density-dependent factor Introduction References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics Images Contents Science Environment

density-dependent factor biology Ask the Chatbot a Question More Actions Print Cite verifiedCite While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Select Citation Style MLA APA Chicago Manual of Style Copy Citation Share Share Share to social media Facebook X URL https://www.britannica.com/science/density-dependent-factor Feedback Feedback Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Feedback Type Select a type (Required) Factual Correction Spelling/Grammar Correction Link Correction Additional Information Other Your Feedback Submit Feedback Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

External Websites Ask the Chatbot a Question Also known as: limiting factor, regulating factor Written and fact-checked by Britannica Editors Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Britannica Editors History Table of Contents Table of Contents Ask the Chatbot

density-dependent factor, in ecology, any force that affects the size of a population of living things in response to the density of the population (the number of individuals per unit area). Density-dependent factors often arise from biological phenomena, rather than from physical and chemical phenomena. Density-dependent factors are sometimes called regulating factors because of their potential for maintaining population density within a narrow range of values.

For example, some diseases spread faster in populations where individuals live in close proximity with one another than in those whose individuals live farther apart. Similarly, competition for food and other resources rises with density and affects an increasing proportion of the population. However, as density decreases, such as through mortality or migration, the influence of density-dependent factors also decreases. For example, disease transmission may decline as individuals perish and surviving members of a population come into contact with one another less frequently. Likewise, competition for food and water, nesting sites, areas with adequate levels of sunlight, and other critical resources falls as individuals spread out.

Also called: regulating factor (Show more) Related Topics: population population density (Show more) See all related content

The dynamics of most populations of living things are influenced by a combination of density-dependent factors and density-independent factors (that is, those that affect the population regardless of how concentrated its members are), and the relative effects of the factors vary among populations.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica This article was most recently revised and updated by Teagan Wolter.