Ecology 6th Edition by Charles Krebs

Exercise 5

Islands in the Bahamas have a relatively simple food chain in which Anolis lizards are the apex predator feeding on spiders and insect herbivores. Hurricanes hit the Bahamas in 2000 and again in 2002, drastically reducing the abundance of lizards and spiders (that also prey on insect herbivores). Discuss what you would predict for this ecosystem after these disturbances if it is controlled top-down or if it is controlled bottom-up. Spiller and Schoener (2007) give the details of what actually happened after the hurricanes.