An Arctic fox (Alopex lagopus) captures a Least Auklet (Aethia pusilla) in the Aleutian Islands.

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During the 100-150 years since they were introduced to the Aleutian Islands, the Arctic fox (Alopex lagopus) and Norway rat (Rattus norvegicus) have extirpated native seabirds from most of the islands through predation. Burrow nesting species have been particularly affected. The Least Auklet (Aethia pusilla) is an abundant seabird species in the Aleutian Islands. The introduction of foxes and rats to many islands and the subsequent loss of seabirds have indirectly affected other characteristics of island ecosystems, such as soil nutrient levels, plant community composition, and predominant nutrient sources (terrestrial versus marine). This photograph originally appeared on the cover of Ecological Monographs (76:1) in February of 2006.

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Primary or BEN resource type	Photograph
Url	You must be logged in to access all resource information.
Associated files	You must be logged in to access all resource information.
Format	jpeg
Temporal and geographic description	Aleutian Islands, Alaska, USA.
Ecological Core Concept	Interspecific interactions -- Predation and herbivory Interspecific interactions Human impacts -- Species introductions Human impacts Ecosystems -- Food webs and trophic cascades Ecosystems
Drought & Water-Ecosystem Services Collection	Off
Conservation Targets Under Global Change Collection	Off
Big Data Collection	Off
Editor's Choice	No
Audience	Undergraduate upper division 15-16 Undergraduate lower division 13-14
Pedagogical Use Description	This photograph could be used to illustrate predation or the effects of an introduced species.
Keywords	predation, invasive, introduced, predator, food web, indirect effects, trophic cascade
Key taxa	Arctic fox, Alopex lagopus, Least Auklet, Aethia pusilla
Life science discipline (subject)	Ecology
Primary Author Controlled Name	Anthony DeGange
Primary Author Affiliation	U.S. Geological Survey
Primary Author email	tdegange@usgs.gov
Rights	Copyright 2006 by the Ecological Society of America.
Resource Editor	Unknown
Reviewer A	Unknown
Reviewer B	Unknown
Date Of Record Submission	2008-04-16

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