Question:
Why is krill important to the food web? We have to write an article from a
whales point of view telling krill why they are important to the food web.
Reply:
Larger whales like humpback whales and blue whales are part of a vast ocean
food web. They eat small creatures such as krill and sand eels which bloom
during summer months in cold waters in the number of hundreds of thousands
to millions. The life cycles of these small animals and the large whales
are linked together much as the lives of any prey-predator situation. In
many prey species, if the number of predators decreases, the number of prey
generally increases until the prey species begins to overuse its resources.
The population of the prey then plummets. Conversely, if the number of prey
decreases, the predator species have a harder time finding food. The prey
and the predator situation generally keeps the populations level, thereby
making sure that other resources are in adequate supply. Donšt forget to
search WhaleNet for more information about krill and whales.
Good luck!
Kim
Kim Marshall
Executive Director
Ocean Alliance (Whale Conservation Inst. & the Voyage of the Odyssey)
191 Weston Road, Lincoln, MA 01773
781.259.0423 ext. 14 fax 259.0288
www.oceanalliance.org www.pbs.org/odyssey
Please support our efforts to conserve whales and their ocean environment
through research and education :)
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