Name: Ashwin Sudhir

Ecology Lab - Predator Prey Interactions

In any ecosystem, there are interactions between predators and prey, and herbivores,
carnivores, and omnivores. The population numbers of each group depend on those
interactions. Too many predators might cause the loss of a prey species. Not enough prey
could eliminate the predator population because they would not have enough to eat. This
simulation will explore interactions of organisms that live in a forest ecosystem.

Process

1. Open the simulator: https://www.learner.org/wp-content/interactive/envsci/ecology/ecology.html

2. The simulation will start with two plants highlighted. What do you think will happen to these plants in this
ecosystem? Can they both survive together? Why or Why not.

I think they are both food for the herbivores in the ecosystem. I think they only one survive because they
aren competing with each other and only one will remain while the other will die out.

3. Run the simulation until it stops at Day 100. Observe the population in the graph.

4. Describe what happened to Plant A and to Plant B:

Plant A and B started in equal amounts. However, plant A grew its numbers while Plant B’s species died out

5. The competitive exclusion principle states that two species in the same environment will compete for
resources. In those cases, one species will be the winner and one will be the loser. Consider the two plants.
What resources are they competing for, and why would one of them be the winner? Your answer requires you
to make some assumptions about how these plants live.

They would both be competing for nutrients, water, and sunlight in order to survive. Plant A would have been
the winner due to its location and its superior speed in reproducing.

What happens when an herbivore is added?

6. RESET the simulation. Choose the rabbit and then determine what happens when it eats plant A and then
plant B and when it eats both types of plants. Enter the final totals in the data table by estimating from the
graph. Run the simulation until it reaches 100 days. Reset between each test. Note: You can roll your mouse
over the line on the graph to get the population number.

Plant A final population Plant B final population Rabbit final population

Rabbit (eats only plant A) 3335 4998 2055

Rabbit (eats only plant B) 10000 0 0

Rabbit (eats both Plant A & B) 0 3333 6667

7. In which scenario is the ecosystem the most stable? Suggest a reason for this and use the word
COMPETITION in this explanation.

The most stable is when the rabbit only eats plant A because there is a balance in each plan and the rabbit.

8. Most herbivores are GENERALISTS and will eat almost any plant available to them as food. It is unrealistic
to have an herbivore that only eats plant A. Though some animals are SPECIALISTS and only eat one type of
food. - Reset the simulation and activate all 3 herbivores and set them to eat both plant A and plant B.

What happened to plants A and B when all three herbivores were present and ate both types of plants?

Most of the animals preferred plant A was 0 while plant B was 3333

9. This scenario is different from when there was just a rabbit present. Some generalists also prefer certain
food types. Suggest a reason for the outcome when all three herbivores were present.

They most likely preferred Plant A as it depleted the fastest

10. Add a squirrel to the ecosystem that also eats both plant A and Plant B. Describe what happens to the
squirrel in this setting.

All of the squirrels die out

11. Why do you think this outcome occurs in this setting? (Why did the squirrel do so poorly?)

The squirrels normally eat both herbivores and plants, however in this it just eats plants. This meant the
squirrels lost a big portion of its food supply.

12. Squirrels are omnivores. Rest the simulation and change the squirrels’ food source to include snails and a
tree (plant C).
 What happens to the squirrels now? The squirrels had a population of 19103

What happens to the herbivores? They all died out

13. Suggest a reason that added a food source that only the squirrels ate impacted the ecosystem so much:

They squirrels multiplied too quickly for the food sources to keep up

14. CHALLENGE: How can you get the herbivores and plants and the squirrel to coexist in this ecosystem?
You will need to adjust what each one eats until you can create a graph where they all survive.

Rabbit Snail Deer Squirrel

What each eats: Plant A and B Plant B and C Plant A and C Plant C and
Herbivore C

15. Describe the populations of each of the organisms in this food web. *Answers may vary on this one?>

Which plant has the largest population size? Plant C

Which type of animal has the smallest population Omnivore

16. Another aspect of the competitive exclusion principle is that animals that compete within the same
environment may eventually come to occupy their own NICHE. A niche is a way of life, and includes how the
animal lives, what it eats, reproduction strategies and more. For example, a hawk and owl both eat the same
kinds of food, but the owl hunts at night and the hawk during the day.

How did your final ecosystem (The Challenge from #14) illustrate this aspect of the competitive exclusion
principle?

It shows the competition because Herbivore B had the highest populations while the other ones were low
Part 2: Explore Predator and Prey Interactions

Predators and prey populations often cycle. For example, if there are more rabbits in an ecosystem, there can
be more wolves. As the wolves increase in number, the number of rabbits will begin to decline. This is called a
PREDATOR PREY CYCLE.

Process: Click the green button that says “presets” to clear your other data and start fresh.

In this simulation, we are going to simplify things. You will have a rabbit, plant A, and a wolf.

- Set the simulation to run with these plant A, a rabbit, and a wolf.
- This time, use the “STEP” button to run the simulation to year 30.

17. Complete the table below. ( - Scroll over the lines to determine the population size at each time period.)

Day 0 Day 5 Day 10 Day 15 Day 20 Day 25 Day 30

Plant A 5000 3824 2821 4010 3850 3634 4148

Rabbit 1000 3114 2047 1705 2306 1977 1847

Wolf 10 13 30 31 41 60 70

18. What happened to the plant population between day2 and day 10? Explain why this occurred.

It decreased greatly because the herbivore population was increasing. This caused more demand for the
plant population.

19. What happened to the rabbit population between day 5 and day 10? Explain why this occurred.

It decreased greatly because the predator population increased causing more demand for the rabbits. The
plant population also decreased so there was less supply for the rabbits to eat.
20. What happened to the plant population between day 10 and day 20? Explain why this occurred.

It increased because there were less squirrels available. This meant the plants had less predators causing
the supply to increase.

21. At 30 days, compare the wolf population to the rabbit population:

There were 70 wolves which kept eating and decreasing the population of the rabbits.

20 Click the run button to take the simulation to day 200. What ultimately happens to all three populations?

The populations eventually equalize and balance out into an equal pattern

23. Predict what would happen if we added another herbivore to the system. *You can run this sim if you
want*

Would the number of wolves It would stay the same because the populations eventually balance
increase? Why or why not out

Would the number of rabbits The number of rabbits would decrease because there is twice as
increase? Why or why not? much competition for food.

Assessment *These answers are not in the simulation, APPLY what you have learned.

24. Pandas are animals that are SPECIALISTS and only eat one type of food (bamboo) in the forest where
they live. If another animal moves into the forest and eats that type of food. What will likely happen to the
panda?

The pandas and the other species would compete until one of the two die out.

25. Two species of barnacles live in shallow areas of the

24. A wolf is a KEYSTONE species. Explain how the wolf indirectly affects the population numbers of plants.

The wolf indirectly affects the plants because it directly affects the herbivores which directly affects the
plants. More predators means less herbivores which means more plants. Less predators would mean more
herbivores which would mean less plants.