![]() This restoration appeared to trigger a trait-mediated trophic cascade. Such indirect trophic effects are known as a “trait-mediated trophic cascade”.Ī rather famous (and controversial) natural experiment was conducted when the grey wolf, Canis lupus, was restored to Yellowstone National Park in the United States in 19 after a 70-year absence. These changes include a suite of predator avoidance traits or adaptations, including behavioural, physiological, and anatomical traits that enhance fitness (doi: 10.1016/S0169-5347(02)02578-8). But indirect trophic effects, where one species changes another species in some way that benefits a third species, are difficult to detect and to document. This is known as a trophic cascade.ĭirect trophic effects are obvious – predators kill prey. Thus, the presence of just a few top predators has numerous effects – direct and indirect – that cascade down the trophic levels within an ecosystem. ![]() Predictably, prey animals tend to avoid their predators, even when doing so restricts the prey species’ access to valuable resources, such as food, water or habitat (doi: 10.1007/s1053-5). The position in a food web or food chain that an organism occupies is referred to as its trophic level. For example, predators at one level in a food web are often are prey at the next level. Predator-prey relationships are subtle and multi-faceted.
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