To:

From:
Date:
Subject:

Memorandum

Professor Karen Thompson
Timothy Barth
01/16/16
Writing to Define and Describe

The following memo contains the technical definition and description of a trophic
cascade. I am attempting to define what a trophic cascade is and how it works in
relation to our understanding of ecosystems.

Audience
My technical definition and description is written for a general audience with a standard
high school education. Preferably those who enjoy spending time in our nations public
parks and enjoy learning about animals and how they interact with one another.

Purpose
Most high school biology courses cover what a trophic level is in relation to a food
web/chain. I want to expand the audiences prior knowledge and introduce them to a
process that is relatively new to the scientific community. In order to explain what and
how this process works I will use the popular example about wolf reintroduction in
Yellowstone National Park. I want to take what sounds like a complex concept and make
it more palatable for an audience that should be interested in how predators shape
ecosystems.

Placement
The placement of this definition and description is not limited to one specific location. It
could be placed in a national park or recreational area that has informational placards
along designated trails where this process is prevalent. It could also be made available
for online viewers who are looking for more information on the subject matter.

Visualization
A basic illustration of how the presence of wolves in the Yellowstone ecosystem affects
elk grazing behavior. I had a hard time finding a high quality, subject specific visual.

Technical Definition: Trophic Cascade

According to the online Britannica Encyclopedia, a trophic cascade is defined as an
ecological phenomenon triggered by the addition or removal of top predators and
involving reciprocal changes in the relative populations of predator and prey through a
food chain, which often results in dramatic changes in ecosystem structure and nutrient
cycling. A condensed definition of a trophic cascade can be defined as the effects
predators have on prey populations, and the ecosystem both inhabit. The following
ecological terms; food web, food chain, trophic levels, ecosystem, abundance, and
biodiversity are defined because of the role they play in trophic cascades.

Food Web: A visual display of what an organism consumes in an ecosystem.

Food Chain: Linear visualization of energy passed on from organism to organism derived
from a food web.

Trophic Levels: The level an organism occupies in a food chain. It is comprised of five
different levels. (This is a model used to categorize organisms with some that overlap.)
Level 1: Plants and algae that make their own food via photosynthesis are called
primary producers
Level 2: Herbivores that consume plants and algae are called primary consumers.
Level 3: Carnivores that consume herbivores are called secondary consumers.
Level 4: Carnivores that eat secondary consumers are called tertiary consumers
Level 5: Carnivores that have no natural predator except for humans are called
apex predators.

Ecosystem: A community of organisms and the non-living components necessary to
sustain life in their environment such as water and soil.

Abundance: In ecology abundance refers to the number of individual species in an
ecosystem.

Biodiversity: A measure of how many organisms live within an ecosystem.
Biodiversity is important because each organism plays an important role in
maintaining ecosystem health.

As our understanding of food webs and relationships between differing trophic levels
has improved, so has our classification of these processes. The phrase trophic cascade
was coined in order to label a natural phenomenon unique to apex predators and the
subsequent far spread effects these species have on subsequent trophic levels.

Technical Description: Trophic Cascade

The importance of apex predators has been a popular area of study in the western
United States in national parks for the last 20 years. I will be referencing the infamous
trophic cascades in Yellowstone peer reviewed article on wolf reintroduction in order to
explain how trophic cascades work.

Background
The gray wolf was eradicated from Yellowstone National Park for 70 years before they
were reintroduced in 1995. Since the 1960s biologists had advocated for
reintroduction, as the elk population grew unchecked by any natural predator.2
Overgrazing was a major problem
resulting in unhealthy elk herds that
were becoming more susceptible to
disease. More importantly, other
species farther down the food chain
were seeing a decrease in
population size. Yellowstone
offered scientists a controlled
setting and the ability to observe in
great detail how the reintroduction
of an apex predator can influence
species habitat and abundance
within the Yellowstone ecosystem.
Figure 1: Biodiversity Trophic Cascade. Photo credit: tes.com


Findings
After wolf reintroduction elk grazing behavior drastically changed and instead of being
concentrated in the river valleys where they were more prone to wolf attacks, they
retreated to the tree line. Over time the river ecosystem rebounded in foliage and
primary producers fueling the return of other species to the area.3 For example, aspen
and cottonwood trees returned to the area followed shortly by more beaver. The
beaver then created dams from these trees that retained water, decreased soil erosion,
and provided more food and habitat for fish and other wildlife. Bison were also now
1

1 Figure 1. Accessed January 10, 2016. https://www.tes.com/lessons/_gRvCApIQBLPWg/aaa-

biodiversity-trophic-cascades
2 William J. Ripple, Robert L. Beschta, Trophic cascades in Yellowstone: The first 15 years after wolf
reintroduction, Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society, Elsevier Ltd. (2011): 1.
3 William J. Ripple, Robert L. Beschta, Trophic cascades in Yellowstone: The first 15 years after wolf
reintroduction, Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society, Elsevier Ltd. (2011): 2.

able to access valley grasses that had previously been scarce because of the unchecked
elk populations.

Conclusion
Trophic Cascades only work when apex predators are present in an ecosystem. The
Yellowstone experiment provided empirical evidence for the importance of wolves in
the Northwest and has made Trophic Cascades credible in the scientific community.
Another example of a Trophic Cascade can be observed in the way sea otters keep sea
urchin populations in check, resulting in healthier kelp forests off the Pacific coast.