The faltering fortunes of the worlds 31 largest carnivores are having ripple effects far beyond simple predator-prey relationships, setting off cascades of ecological change that could prove as significant a threat as climate change to earthly life as we now know it. Thats the sobering conclusion of a paper published last Friday in the journal Science on the subject, Status and Ecological Effects of the Worlds Largest Carnivores. The present-day situation and general outlook for these species is not so great, in the view of the papers international team of authors, led by William J. Ripple of Oregon State University at Corvallis. Populations are shrinking, range is contracting, the pressures of habitat loss and persecution are increasing. More disturbing is that the ecological ramifications of their continuing decline is still, at this rather late date, not well understood — even for the seven species about which the most is known: African lions and leopards, gray wolves, dingoes, Eurasian lynx, pumas and sea otters. [Please click the link below to read full article.]
Posted on: Fri, 24 Jan 2014 02:37:50 +0000
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