Describe your chosen ecological system.
Yellowstone ecosystem is best known as a national park. It has several attractive sites. Many beautiful mountains are covered by expansive forests, stunning waterways, and enormous waterfalls. The geothermal pools and springs dot the scene making the place one of the most remarkable ecosystems.
The main predators and herbivores
The main predators include the wolves, the bear, wolverines, and the coyotes.
Plants herbivores eat. The major herbivores found in the park include the moose, bison, elk mountain goats, and deer.
Plants herbivores eat
The main plants in the Yellowstone that herbivores eat include the deciduous species, several trees such as the pine, and both the white and Engelmann spruce.
Other organisms that rely on those same plants to survive.
Other organisms that depend on plants to survive include the birds and insects. [Editor1] An example of bird species found in Yellowstone is the woodpeckers, which belong to the Picidae family. Their foods are basically found on the barks of trees, which the bird obtains by hammering their peaks to extract insects. Woodpeckers may have black, tan, white, or brown feathers. Most woodpeckers have red accent feathers zygodactyl feet. Insects present in Yellowstone include the beetles. They are similar to other insects and have the head, thorax, abdomen, and six legs. They have a tough and solid bodies, and powerful chaws.
Effect of removing the chosen predator from the system
Removing a predator from the ecosystem can be catastrophic. The role of predators is to consume prey; in doing so, they control their number of herbivores in the ecosystem. Predators assist in maintaining balance among different organisms in an ecosystem. For instance, the wolves consume elk in Yellowstone. This reduces the number of prey and alters their behavior, including the way they select the habitat. Too many elks consume more vegetation, which puts pressure on the ecosystem. Additionally, removing the predator affects the existing checks and balances and causes disruption.
How the absence of predator affect the water chemistry in the chosen ecosystem
The absence of a predator affects the water chemistry in the sense that when the population of elk increases, they consume a lot of vegetation, including along the riverbanks. Additionally, the elk remain in one place, wiping out all the vegetation, which widens the riverbanks due to erosion. Moreover, the temperature of rivers becomes warm since there is no shade to cool the river, which contributes to the rivers drying up. Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
The ecology of fear in your chosen system
The ecology of fear of removing wolves in the ecosystem is that the absence of wolves in Yellowstone simplifies or degrades the ecosystem. The number of elks increases since they roam freely in the park and consume a lot of vegetation in various areas since there are no checks, hence causing the land to become bare. Additionally, due to the increased number of herbivores, the structure of vegetation will be affected, the productivity and the composition of species in the environment will also be affected. Therefore, predation risks alter the structure and composition of the ecosystem due to lack of balance since more pressure is exerted on one aspect of the ecosystem.
Non-lethal techniques to keep wolves from killing livestock
There nonlethal techniques that can be used to control wolves in the ecosystem includes, first, removing any carcasses around grazing fields or near the homestead, wolves have a strong scent and can discern prey from far. Secondly, farmers should use trained dogs to guard animals. The mere presence of dogs keeps wolves away. It also alerts herders of the presence of any predators and helps them to take steps to prevent any conflict between the livestock and the wolves. The third is to put up barriers that are also essential in the sense that it deters and keeps away the wolves from wandering close to grazing land and hence minimize conflict between the wolves, the livestock, and humans.