Blog Question 7/31

Hi all,

I hope you enjoy this last week of lab, and I hope you have learned a lot!

For this week, please read this article: http://www.popsci.com/sunfish-species-bizarre

Answer the following questions:

1. Why do you think the sunfish looks the way it does? Why did it evolve to look the way it does? How does it's appearance and features help it live and survive? Take a guess.

2. Why and how do you think new species appear?

3. What do you think the sunfish's future looks like in terms of survival?

Wildebeest Questions Ethan Weed

How do the drowned wildebeest contribute to the ecosystem?

It is estimated that roughly 0.7% of the wildebeest population dies due to drowning when attempting to cross rivers and other bodies of water. Once their bodies collect alongside rivers, organisms such a vultures consume the meat off of the bodies bones. Vultures are scavengers, and often eat other organisms that have already died. Not only that, but it has been found that fish also consume the decaying wildebeest, making up about 50% of their diet. Decaying wildebeest are vital to providing their ecosystem both food and nutrients.

What conclusions could be made and what are the greater implications of these findings?

Through examining and collecting data on how dead wildebeest effect their ecosystem, researchers now have a better understanding of the impact that they actually have. The research collected goes to show that every organism within an ecosystem plays a role in providing things such as food. These organisms are capable of both providing to the ecosystem when they are alive and also dead.

Wildebeest

Every year in the Serengeti, hundreds of thousands of wildebeest migrate through the Mara River. As they stop to feed and rest, the environment and its various inhabitants take the lives of around 6500 of these animals. When the rest of the herd moves on, the dead carcasses of the wildebeest continue to contribute to the rich Serengeti ecosystem.

The bodies initially provide food for the other animals in the environment. They make up 50% of the local fish diet, feed crocodiles, and attract scavengers such as vultures. As they decay, they release essential nutrients such as phosphorous, nitrogen, and carbon into the environment. According to the Science article by Elizabeth Pennisi, "Annually, the bodies add about 13 tons of phosphorus, 25 tons of nitrogen, and 107 tons of carbon to the ecosystem in half a dozen pulses that each last about a month." Even the bones, which take up to seven years to decay, sustain microbes that in turn feed fish and other river- dwelling creatures.

These effects are essential to maintaining the Mara River ecosystem. What may seem like nothing more than a dismal mass death actually provides vitality and fosters growth throughout the river and the surrounding environment. Studying how the large-scale wildebeest deaths affect this specific ecosystem is very important. “The [wildebeest] findings have implications for understanding the ecological role of past and present animal migrations,” says David Janetski, an aquatic ecologist at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Ecosystems are vast, complicated webs of influence and when organisms- even those that may only pass through an environment- decline, everyone is affected. Understanding this is a key to understanding the best preservation and restoration methods.

Blog Post #4: Wildebeest

During their yearly migration, around 6,500 wildebeest drown in river crossings. However, there's some positive to it. They add 13 tons of phosphorus, 25 tons of nitrogen, and 107 tons of carbon back with their decomposition. And by doing that, they are fueling many kinds of plant, animal, and microbial growth. Their bones support a film of microbes that become fish food. And they also feed a lot of animals with their meat. 

One big implication that researchers can't understand the ecological role of past and current animal migrations. However, this does show a good example of how an ecosystem should look. 

I personally would not like to complete this kind of research. You have to really go there and survey the land, doing very dangerous and extensive work. I personally wouldn't want to get to so close to an animal who many kill. I'd prefer to watch videos than see it in real life. 

Wildebeest

During the great migration of the wildebeest, 0.07% drown while crossing the Mara River. The wildebeest that drown have a great impact in the ecosystem by feeding other animals such as crocodiles and 50% of the fish's diet. They produce the 13 ton of phosphorous, 25 tons of nitrogen, and 107 tons of carbon which contains many nutrients for animals and plants.

I would want to do research on a similar phenomenon that involves different animals because this is something that can help us understand what is going on and it can also show that having animals die this way instead of getting hunted by people can have a great impact on the ecosystem. From this I can also learn what animals are benefiting from this and how and where all of the nutrients end up.

Drowning Wildebeest

Drowning Wildebeest 

Sandy Flores

The mass migration of wildebeest is one of the most iconic sights of Africa, but due to river crossings many of this creature has drowned or got eaten by other predators. Even though for this sad event that happens at the river crossings, these deaths have contributed to the ecosystems. Researchers have been trying to find what kind of nutrients does the carcasses provide for the ecosystems. Half of the biomass from the carcass is bones, which takes 7 years to decay. The meat is consumed by vultures and crocodiles giving them nutrients. When the meat is gone and there is only bone, the bones turn into a film of microbes that feeds fishes and other water dwellers. These carcasses has provided 13 tons of Phosphorus, 25 tons of Nitrogen, and 107 tons of Carbon. Even though these deaths are tragic, only 0.7% die from the herd each year. 

This article was very interesting to read because it show the importance of an wildebeest carcass to an ecosystem and how it helps and adapts. Researching a similar phenomenon with in an animal would be very interesting because you can see how this adapts to our ecosystem. Being able to figure out how a certain animal effects one ecosystem would be intriguing to research.    

WIldebeest

Drowned Wildebeest contribute to the ecosystem because the meat eaters, like Crocodiles and Vultures eat off the meat of the Wildebeests. Since it takes at least 7 years for their bones to decay, it grows microbes on them which the fish the water now eat. I would want to research a similar phenomenon because to me, it's very interesting how the ecosystem works and how other factors are able to affect in ways that we wouldn't imagine. We never realize the big impacts that "natural" occurrences have.