After Studying the Experiment of W

question 60

Essay

After studying the experiment of W. J. Fletcher described in Figure 52.8 from your textbook, you decide to study feeding relationships among sea otters, sea urchins, and kelp on your own. You know that sea otters prey on sea urchins and that urchins eat kelp. At four coastal sites you measure kelp abundance. Then you spend one day at each site and mark whether otters are present or absent every 5 minutes during daylight hours. Make a graph that shows how otter density depends on kelp abundance, using the data shown below. Then formulate a hypothesis to explain the pattern you observed.
Kelp abundance Otter density
Site (% cover) (# sightings per day)
1 75 100
2 15 20
3 60 80
4 25 33

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Definitions:

Women's Christian Temperance Union

An organization founded in 1874 in the United States that advocated for prohibition and tackled various social issues from a Christian perspective.

Midwestern States

A region in the United States comprising states located in the central part of the country, known for its agricultural and industrial output.

American Federation Of Labor

A national federation of labor unions in the United States founded in 1886, aimed at organizing workers to achieve better working conditions and wages.

Knights Of Labor

Founded in 1869, the first national union; lasted, under the leadership of Terence V. Powderly, only into the 1890s; supplanted by the American Federation of Labor.