Animals engineers nature and shape its landscapes

From elephants to ants

 

From elephants to ants... Animals that engineer nature and shape its landscapes

By building burrows and dams, or even moving around, some animals, such as ants, beavers, salmon, moles, and hippos, are sculpting the planet, collectively altering landscapes in the same way as major floods, according to a recent study conducted by University College London.

"Attention has always been focused on individual animals, but with this study, we've discovered the collective importance of engineer animals," Gemma Harvey, a physical geographer at Queen Mary University of London who led the recently published study, told AFP.

The study, in total, counted more than 600 species of terrestrial and freshwater organisms that actively influence Earth's landscapes, including shrimp in South America, marsupials in Australia, large herbivores in Africa, termites and ants in Asia, and earthworms, bears, and freshwater insects in Europe.

Shaping Landscapes

The British researcher added, "By estimating the collective energy of these animals, we discovered that they compete with other important forces, such as floods, in shaping landscapes."

The study explained that the animals identified collectively contribute an estimated 76,000 gigajoules of energy to geomorphological processes each year, equivalent to the energy generated by more than 500,000 major river floods or 200,000 monsoon seasons.

From Elephants to Termites

Among these species are giant animals such as elephants, grizzly bears, and hippopotamuses. Gemma Harvey explained that this African mammal, which can weigh up to a ton and a half, "can create new river channels" in African swamps by trampling and moving between its sleeping and feeding areas. Another example is beavers, which the researcher said "create a lot of habitat, but they may also help mitigate flooding or revitalize low-flow rivers during droughts."

In the Czech Republic, for example, a group of beavers rehabilitated a military site that had been under development for seven years earlier, creating dams and dikes that create wetlands suitable for protecting crayfish, saving the community more than $1 million.

However, this engineering role isn't limited to these familiar species. It also includes "smaller animals" that are "no less important," although they "tend to be overlooked," according to Harvey, because they are "less visible because they live underground or underwater."

One of the most astonishing examples is the construction of termite colonies in Brazil, where hundreds of millions of mounds connected by tunnels have been built over an area the size of Britain. The researcher noted that "these animals moved a huge amount of soil" in this construction, visible from space. Harvey noted that "many animals have yet to be studied, or perhaps even discovered." She added, "There are millions of insects to be studied. We haven't studied marine ecosystems yet."

Threatened

What makes Harvey excited to continue her study is that it has shown that more than a quarter of the species identified as building animals (28%) are rare or endemic, and 57 of these are considered threatened with extinction according to the IUCN Red List.

Harvey commented, "As we lose species, we lose these unique processes," and with them the balance of ecosystems, noting that there is still a lack of knowledge about these processes. The researcher intends to expand the scope of the study, particularly considering the effects of climate change.

The geophysicist added, "We think about what we have already lost from our landscapes with some species becoming extinct or having their numbers significantly reduced." Gemma Harvey, who is determined to provide "new insights" into biodiversity conservation, hopes that this type of research will influence programs aimed at reintroducing species essential to mitigating extreme climate events.