What is an ecological niche? Explain and give an example.

Grinnell was the scientist who coined the term niche. An ecological niche the place where the species and their members live together. Niche is quite different from habitat.

Niche include all the things which have impacts on a population and population impact on its environment and other species in their area. So the ecological niche does not mean the volume of area a species occupies but also include its specific functional role in its community.

For example, a lake can be considered as a habitat for fish but a lake can provide a different niche for fishes. A big fish hunting a small fish in a portion of a lake is a niche and a small fish hunting an insect in another portion of the lake is another niche.