ShippehCat
DSCN1165
This trophic interaction is that of a pill pug using decaying wood as a home and as a food source.
I would think that the most influential species in my location used to be the white-tailed deer that lived there. This was the area they often bedded down in and they made the area their own. However, due to construction they no longer inhabit the area. The current influential species is most likely now the grasses/flowers in most of the floor area. They provide food for the herbivores in the area, a nesting space for the insects, cover for potential prey animals. Without it, the space would be a completely different ecosystem, probably, at most, a tree filled section. At worst it would be muddy dirt and ground with a much smaller species diversity, as the grasses provide many things for many organisms. If you replaced it with an invasive species, the surrounding forest area would be taken over. If the invasive species could survive, it would overwhelm the nearby marshy land, draining the water and the current cabbage plants. There are invasive species that could easily strangle and kill the trees nearby. In fact, in the past we have actually had problems with vine type plants that have had to be forcibly removed before tree death occurred.
One organism in the area is the rabbit (the picture of dead furs and whatnot). The article would say that this herbivore is not limited by food, but by the predators. In this area, that would be coyotes, foxes, and possibly large feral cats. The mosquito would be limited by prey. If there are no prey for the mosquitoes, then they will not be able to breed in the area. The skunk cabbage in the area is probably limited by nutrient flow (and predation?). There is no lack of water in the marshy section, so that is probably not a limiting factor.
Question; There are three different types of ecosystem in my small area; marshland, tree cover, and a grassy clearing. Are these shifting? I would suspect that over time the grassy clearing area will grow into the tree cover, with very little undergrowth. The new trees might be enough to drain the small marshland area, shifting that to grasses; or possibly the marshland is what is preventing the grassy clearing from supporting trees. What is the role of succession in my area?
DSCN1165
This trophic interaction is that of a pill pug using decaying wood as a home and as a food source.
I would think that the most influential species in my location used to be the white-tailed deer that lived there. This was the area they often bedded down in and they made the area their own. However, due to construction they no longer inhabit the area. The current influential species is most likely now the grasses/flowers in most of the floor area. They provide food for the herbivores in the area, a nesting space for the insects, cover for potential prey animals. Without it, the space would be a completely different ecosystem, probably, at most, a tree filled section. At worst it would be muddy dirt and ground with a much smaller species diversity, as the grasses provide many things for many organisms. If you replaced it with an invasive species, the surrounding forest area would be taken over. If the invasive species could survive, it would overwhelm the nearby marshy land, draining the water and the current cabbage plants. There are invasive species that could easily strangle and kill the trees nearby. In fact, in the past we have actually had problems with vine type plants that have had to be forcibly removed before tree death occurred.
One organism in the area is the rabbit (the picture of dead furs and whatnot). The article would say that this herbivore is not limited by food, but by the predators. In this area, that would be coyotes, foxes, and possibly large feral cats. The mosquito would be limited by prey. If there are no prey for the mosquitoes, then they will not be able to breed in the area. The skunk cabbage in the area is probably limited by nutrient flow (and predation?). There is no lack of water in the marshy section, so that is probably not a limiting factor.
Question; There are three different types of ecosystem in my small area; marshland, tree cover, and a grassy clearing. Are these shifting? I would suspect that over time the grassy clearing area will grow into the tree cover, with very little undergrowth. The new trees might be enough to drain the small marshland area, shifting that to grasses; or possibly the marshland is what is preventing the grassy clearing from supporting trees. What is the role of succession in my area?