Elephants are not the most dominant species in African grasslands, yet they influence community structure. The grasslands contain scattered woody plants, but they are kept in check by the uprooting activities of the elephants. Take away the elephants, and the grasslands convert to forests or to shrublands. The newly growing forests support fewer species than the previous grasslands. Which of the following describes why elephants are the keystone species in this scenario?
A) Essentially all of the other species depend on the presence of the elephants to maintain the community.
B) Grazing animals depend upon the elephants to convert forests to grassland.
C) Elephants prevent drought in African grasslands.
D) Elephants are the biggest herbivore in this community.
E) Elephants help other populations survive by keeping out many of the large African predators.
Comparison of small subunit rRNA gene sequences from three eukaryotes and three bacterial species
Boreal forests, such as this one in Siberian Russia, are dominated by a few species of conifer trees
(a) Pronghorn, native grazers of the temperate grasslands of North America.
These species are all at risk of extinction.
Marriages Between Whites and African Americans: The Race-Ethnicity of the Husbands and Wives
Typical characteristics of r-selected and k-selected species