Article Title: The Fish And The Forest
Author (s): By Scott M. Gende and Thomas P. Quinn
Key Points:
- Bears catch salmon for daily food
- Salmon carcass can help fertilize the forests
- Salmon bring marine-derived nutrients that move through rivers into lakes and oceans
- These nutrients help sustain the wildlife there
- 70% of nitrogen on the trees by the river are from salmon
- Bears and salmon are both required by the ecosystem
- Nutrients travel in both directions
- State agencies now help bring salmon carcasses where needed
Summary:
For awhile the attention that the bears and the salmon have died down for a while. Scientists have begun to gain interests back towards these animals. Now scientists have found many new found discoveries of how bears eating salmon can affect the whole ecosystem. Bears themselves just look like their getting a meal, but really their eating habits are feeding the trees and plants around them. Through the killing of salmon, nutrients are released from the river leading to lakes and oceans. These nutrients are able to help sustain life on plants and even the fish. Research shows that 70% of the nitrogen found on river sides are from the salmon carcasses. But now bears have recently taken many of the salmon off the map. Through this research scientists are now helping in finding many habitats in which salmon is needed most.
Thoughts on this topic:
I would have never thought that simple animal eating habits are able to help sustain life around them by so much. Because of this discovery, many habitats everywhere in need of help could be saved, if treated. This sort of remembers me of a tragedy of the commons, but in this case, it is about bears. The depletion of the salmon population is due to their over consumption. Research even shows that they catch more than what they eat.
For awhile the attention that the bears and the salmon have died down for a while. Scientists have begun to gain interests back towards these animals. Now scientists have found many new found discoveries of how bears eating salmon can affect the whole ecosystem. Bears themselves just look like their getting a meal, but really their eating habits are feeding the trees and plants around them. Through the killing of salmon, nutrients are released from the river leading to lakes and oceans. These nutrients are able to help sustain life on plants and even the fish. Research shows that 70% of the nitrogen found on river sides are from the salmon carcasses. But now bears have recently taken many of the salmon off the map. Through this research scientists are now helping in finding many habitats in which salmon is needed most.
Thoughts on this topic:
I would have never thought that simple animal eating habits are able to help sustain life around them by so much. Because of this discovery, many habitats everywhere in need of help could be saved, if treated. This sort of remembers me of a tragedy of the commons, but in this case, it is about bears. The depletion of the salmon population is due to their over consumption. Research even shows that they catch more than what they eat.
So What?A depletion of the salmon could cause a major change to the river side as there would be a lack of nutrients
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Says Who?Says the author and many marine scientists in Alaska
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What If?What if there were no prey to feed on the salmon at all?
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What does this remind me of?This reminds me of the tragedy of the commons.
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