Predators-Group4

“Deep in the wilds of Venezuela, the natural order is being turned inside out. Miles of verdant forest and savannah have given way to small and scattered islands. Some of these islands are now overrun by bands of voracious howler monkeys, a glut of iguanas and hordes of ravenous ants. What is driving this bizarre transformation? A team of scientists believes that life here has run amok in large part because its top predators are gone. Similarly, the majestic wilderness of Yellowstone National Park is also showing signs of change that some scientists trace to the depletion of natural predators. Familiar and revered forests have vanished. Researchers are linking these forest losses to the expulsion of the gray wolf some seventy years ago. In Venezuela and around the world, experts are learning that predators seem to play a crucial role in the structure and function of entire ecosystems. When the predators disappear, the consequences can be dramatic. If predators are so vital, should they — and can they — be brought back? · How is St. Lucia different from Jamaica? · What did they do in St. Lucia? · What kind of results are they getting in St. Lucia? · Do you think this approach is feasible (doable) everywhere? Explain pros and cons
 * __Predators__** **//Group 4: Restoration in St. Lucia//**

Predators

Anna Burrous, Anastasia Lewis, Nick Adams, Fayth Cruse, Antonio Apolinar, and Daniel Medina

In the strange day video it talks about predators and how important they are to the environment. In our part of the movie they talked about under water predators and how important they are to reef. They talked about how St.Lucia is different from Jamaica. St. Lucia has better reefs then Jamaica but both have a lack of large fish. In St. Lucia they are making reservations for no fishing so the bigger fish can come back. They found out that small predators have returned on the reserves and there are grouper fish to. We think that it is a good idea to make reservations for no fishing around the world because it can get back predators and large fish but they will not be able to get all kinds of fish for a while. They can import fish from other places with a surplus amount of fish.

In this strange days video they talked about the St. Lucia and Jamaica reefs. Both of these tropical islands have had a shortage of large fish and they think it is due to overfishing they have talked to fisherman and they said that somedays they get fish some they do not. So on the St. Lucia islands they have put reservations out for no fishing so the predator fish may return. This has allowed small predator fish to return. There also has been a couple of grouper fish on the reservations. So now they have bigger fish in the market.

In Santa Lucia, they made a marine reserve as you mentioned to bring back predator and larger fish. Do you think this would work everywhere? You mentioned that they could get surplus fish to feed people from another area. Do these places exist? What else could be done to help the people that rely on this fish for food, to keep the people from starving? 65/75 points.