Introduction
A recent study published in the journal Ecology and Evolution found that the presence of a mountain lion in a small suburban preserve near Stanford University in California, USA, transformed the local food web. This suggests that apex predators can reshape ecosystems, even in heavily developed landscapes.
The research was based on nine years of camera trap data from the Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve, a 4.9-square-kilometer patch of oak woodland and grassland surrounded by roads and residential neighborhoods in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Impact of the Mountain Lion on the Food Web
After mountain lion activity began increasing around 2012, researchers documented ripple effects through multiple species. Coyotes and deer shifted away from nighttime activity, while gray foxes expanded into niches left vacant by retreating competitors. Brush rabbits became more active in the mornings, and woody plant density jumped 64-fold over 17 years.
These types of multi-level effects are called trophic cascades. The most well-known example comes from the U.S., as dramatic changes occurred in Yellowstone National Park when wolves were reintroduced to their former range in 1996.
Conclusions and Implications
“Much like the well-documented cascade triggered by wolves in Yellowstone, we found that increasing mountain lion activity coincided with changes cascading through the food web, from deer and coyotes down to foxes, rabbits, and woody plants,” said lead author Chinmay Sonawane, a Stanford Ph.D. candidate, in an email to Mongabay.
“These findings provide clear, empirical evidence of the profound structural role mountain lions play,” added Zara McDonald, biologist and president of the Felidae Conservation Fund.
Source / Reference
Source: Mongabay