sharks in the ecosystem
· The health of the ecosystems in the ocean undeniably are dependent on sharks. Seagrass beds and coral reefs are among some of the species that need sharks. Coral reefs are packed with biodiversity and are home to 25% of the Ocean’s marine life. They also contain chemical compounds that can be used in medicine for cancer, AIDS and other diseases, thus making them extremely desirable for human use as well.
· Sharks are the top predators in oceans due to the fact that they don’t have many natural predators. They help regulate the flow of the ecosystem they live in by feeding on animals that are below them in their food chain which then limits the number of those species, which will in turn limit the number of those species’ prey and so on.
· Another way they help maintain the structure of their ecosystem is through intimidation. Since sharks are undoubtedly an intimidating species (even to humans) they cause species to change niches and how active they are through fear. This in turn will cause changes in abundance in the trophic levels below sharks.
· There is a direct correlation between top predators and greater biodiversity. It has been found that areas that do not have top predators experience absences of species lower than them on the food chain. Without top predators it has also been found that there is the potential for unnatural predation by lower predatory species which can lead to the overeating and increased competition that will ultimately affect abundance of species and species richness.
· Top predators also create food for scavengers as well as being scavengers themselves. If a shark is feeding on something and doesn’t finish it, the shark is leaving food for another species. On the flip side, if there is an uneaten meal a shark may feed on it. This is very important for ecosystems because it helps remove sick and weak animals from the ecosystem.
· Sharks are the top predators in oceans due to the fact that they don’t have many natural predators. They help regulate the flow of the ecosystem they live in by feeding on animals that are below them in their food chain which then limits the number of those species, which will in turn limit the number of those species’ prey and so on.
· Another way they help maintain the structure of their ecosystem is through intimidation. Since sharks are undoubtedly an intimidating species (even to humans) they cause species to change niches and how active they are through fear. This in turn will cause changes in abundance in the trophic levels below sharks.
· There is a direct correlation between top predators and greater biodiversity. It has been found that areas that do not have top predators experience absences of species lower than them on the food chain. Without top predators it has also been found that there is the potential for unnatural predation by lower predatory species which can lead to the overeating and increased competition that will ultimately affect abundance of species and species richness.
· Top predators also create food for scavengers as well as being scavengers themselves. If a shark is feeding on something and doesn’t finish it, the shark is leaving food for another species. On the flip side, if there is an uneaten meal a shark may feed on it. This is very important for ecosystems because it helps remove sick and weak animals from the ecosystem.