One potential benefit that beavers contribute to the ecosystem as keystone engineers is the creation of wetlands. Their dam-building activities often lead to the formation of ponds and wetlands, which can serve as valuable habitat for various plant and animal species. These wetlands can also help to filter pollutants out of the water and provide flood control.
If beavers were to be removed from the ecosystem, the absence of their engineering activities could have negative impacts on the surrounding environment. Without beavers creating dams and ponds, there may be a decrease in wetland habitats, which could lead to a decline in biodiversity. Additionally, the lack of beaver dams could result in increased erosion along riverbanks and altered water flow patterns, impacting the overall health of the river ecosystem.
Beavers, large members of the rodent family in North America, are often referred to as “ecosystem/keystone engineers” by wildlife managers. Ecosystem engineers are described as animals that create, alter, or destroy a habitat. Beavers contribute to river ecosystems by bringing down old and dead trees along riverbanks. They use these trees to make their dams. Although these dams are primarily used for protection and food storage, scientists report that these dams change the surrounding environment in different ways.
Given this information, in three to five sentences, describe a potential benefit that beavers contribute to the ecosystem as keystone engineers and describe a plausible impact that the removal of beavers could have on the surrounding ecosystem.
(4 points)
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