94 



THE ORGANISM: 



association among such tilings as the number of or- 

 ganisms, the main activities of plants and animals, 

 the amount of food, and the environmental condi- 

 tions, a dynamic balance is still maintained. The 

 equilibrium is the consequence of the interaction of 

 two things, bwtic potential and environmental resistance. 

 The biotic potential is the amount of increase in or- 

 ganisms that Vk'ould occur if all offspring were to sur- 

 vive. Environmental resistance is the biological and 

 physical restriction upon number of individuals that 

 causes the balance of nature. Environmental resist- 

 ance occurs in the form of competition, predation, 

 disease, food supply, and extent of suitable habitats. 

 Therefore, the balance of nature refers to the fact that 

 each habitat has a carrying capacity, or saturation level, 

 insofar as the number of organisms it can support is 

 concerned. There is an equilibrium about which 

 fluctuations occur. 



SELECTED READINGS 



Galston, A. W., 1961. The Life of the Green Plant. Founda- 

 tions in Modern Biology Series. Prentice-Hall, Engle- 

 wood Cliffs, N.J. 



Griffin, D. R., 1962. Ammal Structure and Function. Modern 

 Biology Series. Holt, Rinehart & Winston, New York. 



McElroy, W. D., 1961. Cellular Physiology and Biochemistry. 

 Foundations of Modern Biology Series. Prentice-Hall, 

 Englewood Cliffs, N. J. 



Ray, P. M., 1963. The Living Plant Modern Biology Se- 

 ries. Holt, Rinehart & Winston, New York. 



Simpson, G. G., et al., 1957. Life. Harcourt, Brace & 

 World, New York. 



Swanson, C. P., 1960. The Cell. Foundations of Modern 

 Biology Series. Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, N.J. 



Weisz, P. B., 1963. The Scientre of Biology. McGraw-Hill 

 Book Co., New York. 



Wilson, G. B., and J. H. Morrison, 1961. Cytology. Rein- 

 hold Publishing Corp., New York. 



