Population sizes of three African animals in 1990 and in 2000.

Lion and cheetah populations compete for the food source of zebras, and lions outcompete cheetah.

Limiting factors are those factors in the ecosystem which can limit the growth of population of a species in an ecosystem. Predation and competition are two limiting factors in the ecosystem that can decrease or extinct the population of a species. Predation is a limiting factor in which predatory organisms are dependent upon a prey organisms. This is natures way of limiting the surplus growth of prey population and to maintain a balance in ecological community. Competition is a limiting factor in which one or more same or different type of organisms compete for the same resource in an ecosystem. The one which is more competitive will derive those resources other than the one which is less competitive.

According to the given data, it is evident that the population decline in predator cheetah and lion populations because of decline in zebra population but the decline in cheetah population is more than that of lion. It explains the fact that lion is more competitive than cheetah in deriving the food which is already limited. Therefore, lion outcompete cheetah.

1: most common garden plants prefer loam — soils with a balance of different-sized mineral particles (approximately 40% sand, 40% silt, and 20% clay) with ample organic matter and pore space. however, some plants grow better in sandy soils, while others are well-adapted to clay soils.

2: available water capacity is the maximum amount of plant available water a soil can provide. it is an indicator of a soil's ability to retain water and make it sufficiently available for plant use. available water capacity is the water held in soil between its field capacity and permanent wilting point.

3: it is the same for all living things (plants and animals). it also includes very tiny organisms that our eyes cannot see. they are known as microorganisms, and include viruses, bacteria and fungi.

the principles and empirical processes of discovery and demonstration considered characteristic of or necessary for scientific investigation, generally involving the observation of phenomena, the formulation of a hypothesis concerning the phenomena, experimentation to test the hypothesis, and development of a conclusion that confirms, rejects, or modifies the hypothesis.