Imagine a population of 600 mice and 350 chipmunks. The chipmunks and mice eat some of the same food, but the food to support 1000 mice would support only 300 chipmunks. What would α and β be for this population in which mice are species 1 and chipmunks are species 2?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

α represents the effect of chipmunks on mice, and β represents the effect of mice on chipmunks. Since 1000 mice support 300 chipmunks, the effect of one chipmunk on mice is 3.3 times (1000/300), and the effect of one mouse on chipmunks is 0.3 times (300/1000).

Imagine a Population of 600 Mice and 350 Chipmunks