niche

While you’re out in nature, do you ever wonder if your presence changes the way animals interact with each other? Well, in 2018 researchers in California conducted a study showing how human activity can actually influence how carnivorous animals divide shared resources, referred to as resource niche partitioning.

Eastern wolves and coyotes have been interbreeding more frequently over the past several hundred years, and now their hybrids are widespread from the Great Lakes region to the east coast.

Have you ever planted a garden because your neighbor's garden was growing well? This kind of imitative behavior was the inspiration behind a 2013 study where scientists looked at the nestbox choices of pied flycatchers after the birds observed the success of nesting great tits.

A "niche" is an organism's special "slot" in an ecosystem that allows it to co-exist with other species. It's defined by the resources it needs to survive and the impact it has on its environment.