Question

To my esteemed Biology colleagues: 10/15/19 I am National Park Ranger, Imani. I am writing you as my park is in desperate need of your assistance. I have worked in Everglades National Park here in Florida for over 30 years and I am seeing a crisis in our ecosystem. I am hopeful that you will be able to advise me on solving this crisis. Approximately 10 years ago, a local petition was circulated that required us to remove all of the alligators from the park. Many of our local residents, who are cattle farmers, were concerned about the amount of cattle that had been killed by the gators and petitioned to have all the alligators humanely euthanized. Since that time, we have seen huge increases in the populations of our wood stork, our gar, and our raccoons. Our residents are now upset that many areas of the everglades are no longer inhabited by any Bass and Bluegill. The Bass and Bluegill are common catches among people who enjoy fishing and have lowered the amount of revenue that the local fishing guides earn. My hope is that you are able to help us determine how to balance our local ecosystem. I would really like to know how these problems all started and what the National Park Service can do to help! Thank you, Ranger Imani Jackson
Based on the resources above, use the next page to craft a letter to Ranger Imani that answers all of the following questions:

Explain the difference in the roles of producers, consumers, and decomposers in the Everglades.
Based on your knowledge of how to classify living organisms, in what domain and kingdom do the producers, consumers, and decomposers belong?
How did energy travel in the Everglades BEFORE the alligators were removed?
How did removing the alligators from the food web change how energy flowed in the Everglades?
How did the problem begin, and what action(s) should Ranger Imani take to solve this issue?

I have to write a letter PLEASE HELP ASAP

Answer 1

Answer:

See explanation below.

Explanation:

1. Explain the difference in the roles of producers, consumers, and decomposers in the Everglades.

In the Everglades, producers would be all species of organisms that are autotrophs such as different species of plants. Consumers are categorized into three: primary, secondary and terciary consumers. Primary consumers feed on plants (e.g. insects), secondary consumers eat the primary consumers (e.g. mice or rats), while tertiary consumers are higher predators that eat the secondary consumers (e.g. racoons). Finally, decomposers are bacteria, archaeans, fungi, or worms that live in soil which decompose organic matter.

2. Based on your knowledge of how to classify living organisms, in what domain and kingdom do the producers, consumers, and decomposers belong?

In Biology, the three domains are Archaea, Bacteria, and Eukarya; while there are six kingdoms: Archaebacteria, Eubacteria (true bacteria), Protista, Fungi, Plantae, and Animalia.

• Producers, that is plants, belong to the Domain Eukarya and the Kingdom Plantae.
• Primary, secondary, and tertiary consumers also belong to the Domain Eukarya and to the Kingdom Animalia as they are all animals and eukaryotes.
• Decomposers are classified into the three domains: Archaea, Bacteria, and Eukarya. Bacteria belong to the domain Bacteria, archaeans belong to the domain Archaea, and worms and fungi belong to the domain Eukarya. On the other hand, decomposers are classified into Archaebacteria, Eubacteria, Protista (oomycetes), Fungi, and Animalia (worms).

3. How did energy travel in the Everglades BEFORE the alligators were removed?

Aquatic plants (producers) <-- bass <-- bluegill <-- gar <-- alligator

Aquatic plants (producers) <-- zooplankton <-- bass/bluegill <-- wood stork <-- alligator

Plants (producers) <-- cattle <-- alligator

Plants (producers) <-- insects <-- rats <-- racoons <-- alligator

4. How did removing the alligators from the food web change how energy flowed in the Everglades?

Once the alligators were removed from the food web, the populations that were once in decline began to recover because of the lack of predators. Consequently, the lack of alligators led to the uncontrollable growth of racoons, wood stork, and gar, which could also cause an alteration as they consume ecologically and economically important fish species such as the bass and bluegill.

5. How did the problem begin, and what action(s) should Ranger Imani take to solve this issue?

The problem began when the populations of alligator, an apex predator that sits at the top of the food chain, grew at an accelerated pace. This led to the uncontrolled predation of other organisms that are also fundamental to maintain an ecological balance. Therefore, Ranger Imani decided to humanely euthanize the alligators, which were preying upon them. This led to a huge increase in wood stork, gar, and racoon populations.

Alligators should not be completely removed because they help to maintain an ecological balance. Instead, Ranger Imani should work on controlling populations by implementing Wildlife Population Management strategies, such as sustainable fishing, to prevent a certain species population from reaching a high number of individuals in order to keep a healthy ecosystem where all populations are stable because removing all apex predators is not the appropriate strategy as it significantly alters the ecosystem.