Assignment :Trophic Cascades
Review the website: Hhmi's biointeractive( Exploring Trophic Cascades).
Complete the first slides of the introduction. Next, follow the first example of sea otters, and answer the following questions.
What does the otter eat?
How does the consumption by the otter effect the growth of the Kelp forest?
Is this a direct or indirect effect?
Is this a positive or negative effect?
What happened to the kelp forest when the otter was hunted to near extinction?
Removal of the sea otter, a top predator also had an impact on two other species, the gull and the Eagle.
How did the gull diet change with the removal of the otter from the ecosystem?
How did the eagle diet change with the removal of the otter from the ecosystem?
Choose 1 of the case studies provided and write a summary of what happens when the top predator is present, including direct, indirect, positive and negative effects. Complete what happens when the top predator is removed.