Trophic Cascade
Yellowstone wolf reintroduction — keystone species dynamics
Trophic Levels
Apex predator (wolves)
Mesopredator (coyotes)
Primary consumer (elk)
Producer (vegetation)
Remove Apex Predator
Restore Wolves
Reset
Wolf presence:
1.0
Hunting pressure:
0.5
Vegetation recovery:
0.3
Remove wolves → coyotes explode → elk boom → vegetation collapses.
Trophic cascade:
top-down control through food web. Yellowstone 1995: wolf reintroduction transformed ecosystem.