The Importance of Large Carnivores to Healthy Ecosystems

摘要: Land managers often are responsible for the maintenance of species diversity and resilience. This requires knowledge ecosystem dynamics over decades centuries. Resource-driven (bottom-up) models have guided early thought on managing ecosystems. Under this paradigm, carnivores little ecological value, throughout 20 th Century carnivore management strategies (often extirpation) reflected that concept. An alternative hypothesis, however, states herbivores reduce biomass plants, but in turn, is checked by presence carnivores. As such, great value. Their predation activities create impacts ripple downward through trophic levels an ecosystem. Here we discuss some potential pathways which contribute to processes diversity. The subtleties these interactions strong implications Without considering indirect impacts, short-sighted might cause extensive long-term changes structure function.