//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: The Yellowstone Case // Story: The Big Cats of Bakula: The Apple's Lesson // by PantheraMan //------------------------------// The new destination of the trio was a place of woods, open plains, rivers, streams, elk, bison, and much more. "Where are we exactly?" asked Applejack "This is the place you humans call Yellowstone National Park." Answered the lion "And just why are we here in Yellowstone?" asked Big Mac "I took on this trip to teach you a lesson, the first was that predators have emotions, now, I'll show you why they're important, and this place is home to the best story on the subject." Answered the lion. "HHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL" After that howl, they saw a herd of elk running for their lives, and a pack of fourteen wolves chasing after them. The elk were fast, but the wolves had lots of endurance, and with it, they were able to run down a female to exhaustion, work together to pull her to the ground, and kill it by ripping out her throat. When they accomplished the task, they began eating their quarry. "Now THIS is nature being plain cruel." Said Big Mac "In those eyes of yours, it may seem that way, but nature see's it very differently. You see, that elk was sick, and there was no way she was going to get better, so these wolves ended her suffering by killing her, and by taking out the sick, old, weak, and the wounded, they keep the herds healthy and strong, and help prevent weaker animals from passing on their genes, unlike humans who hunt healthy game animals and break that law of nature." Explained the lion. Out of the nearby forest, a huge male Grizzly Bear came right up to the wolf pack, Applejack and Big Mac were expecting to see a big brawl, but to their amazement, the wolves just walked away from the carcass, and let the bear eat their hard earned meal. "What the...there's 14 of them, and one of him, why aren't they attacking him?" asked Applejack "The wolves as a team are a formidable force, but they know this grizzly can easily kill many of them with just single strikes from his might paws, so they know to step aside when he comes in to feed, and this is one reason wolves are important. Stolen kills from wolves are rather important to grizzlies, especially when they wake up from hibernation and they're starving." Answered the lion. The lion then showed them a stream with lots of vegetation, and explained why he did so. "When wolves kill and eat elk, they help keep the plants like willows, aspens, and cottonwoods from being destroyed by the elk, you see those aspen over there? they stand where they were once abundant, but they stopped growing at the same time the wolves disappeared from Yellowstone, but since the return of the wolves, they are now thriving. Over there in those willows, you can see a yellow warbler. With the recovery of the willows and the other streamside plants, this has improved the prospects for the birds that nest in those habitats. See that beaver in the water? with the regrowth of the willows, this provides great habitat for beavers, which eat small willow trees, and new beaver dams have in turn, made more habitats for moose and other animals, like that huge bull moose in that pond. Other animals that have new homes in those ponds are muskrats, and otters. More rodents means more predators like foxes." "Well no wonder why people make such a big deal about wolf hunting. This is just amazing! now I know that without predators, whole ecosystems get destroyed." Said Big Mac "Correct, but we're not done yet. Come, I still have some left to show you on this matter." Replied the lion.