Food webs determine how ecosystems operate. Healthy systems require more than high species counts; they depend on intricate links among plants, prey and predators, according to international research led by the University of Waikato and the German Center for Integrative Biodiversity Research. The study, published in Nature, showed that ecosystems with greater species variety, especially among predators, perform more effectively and sustain processes such as pest control, climate regulation and overall stability.
Lead author Dr. Andrew Barnes stated that ecosystems run on species interactions, including feeding relationships and energy flow, with predators maintaining balance. Loss of predators from habitat destruction, pollution or climate shifts can spread through networks and reduce key functions.
The team reviewed more than 300 food webs from oceans, lakes, streams and soils worldwide. Results indicated up to seventy times higher predation rates in systems with broad species diversity. The analysis is the largest so far to assess biodiversity effects across complete food webs.
Senior author Dr. Benoit Gauzens noted that species interact through networks rather than alone. Conservation should therefore protect both species and the relationships that maintain productive, resilient ecosystems.
