Carnivores helps plants without thorny defences thrive
The presence of carnivores helps plants without thorny defences thrive, a study of life on the savannah reveals.
Researchers found that species without thorns thrived in areas favoured by carnivores because plant-eating animals deemed it too risky to graze at these sites.
The team added that declining carnivore numbers was likely to have an impact on the links that connect carnivores, herbivores, plants and people.
A study published earlier this year suggested that three-quarters of the planet's large carnivores were experiencing declines in their populations.
It added that the majority now only occupied less than half of their historic range, and this contraction could have a wide-reaching and long-lasting impact on ecosystems.
