Ecosystems On The Brink
List the major ideas, concepts, or key points- point by
point
Food webs inmany parts of the world are beginning to flip
- Humanity is putting stress on the planet in the form of farms, cities, and global
warming - A scientist created a mathematical model that allowed them to predict the change before it
happened - The scientists have tried to create detailed food webs but have found that there are
usually hundreds of thousands of animals inside a food web - Scientists have found that there are many weak
bonds rather than strong bonds inside of a food web - Originally the idea of the predators controlling
the ecosystem was met with much skepticism. The idea did not seem right that so
few predators could influence the entire ecosystem - We have
done unplanned experiments such as over fishing cod and hunting land predators
such as wolves as well as introduced invasive species - Scientists found that after a decrease in the wolf
population showed a boom in elk and herbivore population. The increased
herbivore population caused a decrease in vegetation in the
area - Scientists have found that restoring an ecosystem
to its original self is a very difficult process - Originally scientists believed that recovery for
cod would take 5-6 years. This was later found to not be true - It was
later found that the rate of reproduction was also important rather than just
simply the structure of the food web - Cod eggs
were even eaten a fish called the forage fish. This lowered the birth rate for
the cod - Cod numbers have fallen to one percent of the number pre-crash but has risen to 30%
in recent year - Food webs can change from hunting, fishing, competition with other species, and climate
changes - Scientists have predicted that preventing ecosystems from flipping is better than reversing ecosystems that have already
been flipped - Equations have been thought up which included reproduction rates and the rate in which
species interact with one another - Scientists are currently developing technology
that can foreshadow fluctuating
changes
Summarize the AUTHOR'S main point or idea- at LEAST 1-2
paragraphs
In the article "Ecosystems
on the Brink," the author writes of how ecosystems are changing and the
consequences that come along. A detailed food web entangles hundreds of
thousands of animals. The author writes of how the right changes even small ones
can alter. For example, in a three level trophic level pyramid, removing the top
level predator would cause the trophic level between them to bloom decreasing
vegetation. Scientists have also found that those changes are substantial and
very hard to reverse.
Write a reaction paragraph to the article stating your own thoughts on the
topic, using specific citations from the article to support your
views
I have known that food webs were so
binded however I did not know how complex it delicate it was. I did not
know that removing the top level predator would cause the decline of an
ecosystem. For example I didn't know that removing carnivores would increase
herbivores dramatically decreasing vegetation. An example of this would be
removal of Wolves. The removal of wolves would increase elk numbers. The
increased elk population would decrease vegetation ruining the ecosystem.