Who do these elephants interact with?
An ecosystem works through the food chain which consists of several organisms that depend on one another. They always begin with plants which are the only organisms on earth that don't eat but rather take sunlight energy (photosynthesis) while all other organisms, including animals, receive energy from food. On the first level are herbivores who eat the plants and excrete the sugars and other useful materials which they use to survive. On the second level are predators who eat the bodies of their dead prey.
There are several other species that interact with the Sumatran elephants. Close interactions between two species living in direct contact results in an ecological relationship known as symbiosis, meaning living together. There are three types of symbiotic relationships which are parasitism, mutualism and commensalism. However, only two of the three apply to the case of the elephants.
Parasitism is a relationship in which a symbiont lives off and harms the host.There are endoparasites and ectoparasites. Endoparasites live inside of their host while ectoparasites live outside of their host. Of the parasites that are involved with the sumatran elephant, mosquitos and louse are ectoparasites while leeches and warble flies are endoparasites. Those which are endoparasites live on the skin of the elephant which is 2.5 cm thick and covered in fine hair called lanugo, lay eggs and form infections.
The second symbiotic relationship applicable to the Sumatran elephant is mutualism. Mutualism is a relationship in which both species benefit from the interaction. An example of mutualism are egret and piapiac birds. These birds use elephants as an advantage point to spot prey and to pick off ticks, lice or endoparasites that get attached to the elephant. As elephants travel through the forest, many seeds from the trees fall onto their backs which these birds use for food. The way these elephants benefit from this interaction is due to getting freed of these parasites by the birds and getting their skin cleaned. The way that these birds are affected with the elephants being critically endangered is that they would have a harder time finding prey.
Predation is a relationship between organisms in which one benefits at the expense of the other by attacking and killing the prey. Elephants are very friendly animals are able to communicate with other members of the herd. One of the reason why they participate in clumped distribution and remain in herds is to better notice danger. Although rare, tigers have the tendency to kill and eat young elephants, traveling in herds is the reason why this rarely occurs as well as the mothers often looking after her young. Although fully gown elephants do not have any predators, the species interactions predation exists between tigers and young elephants. The tigers would not be greatly affected with the elephants finding themselves on the list of endangered species since their diet does not usually depend on young elephants. In fact, most animals stay out of the way of the elephants.
However, the diminishing in the number of these elephants would have more of a broader effect. Just like the African elephant, Sumatran elephants function in the role of the ecosystem "engineer" and as a keystone species. They maintain trails and open access to water for other species. They also create micro habitats by shedding trees for small vertebrate species such as lizards and uproot small trees which would open grassland areas, shifting new habitat to new forests. Elephants have a diet consisting of plants and although most other animals don't use them as prey, they still contribute to the ecosystem in a very unique way. It is by the consumption of these plants that their dung disperses many seeds and helps to enrich soils which could bring life to new forests and enhance the habitat for other grazing animals and their predators.
There are several other species that interact with the Sumatran elephants. Close interactions between two species living in direct contact results in an ecological relationship known as symbiosis, meaning living together. There are three types of symbiotic relationships which are parasitism, mutualism and commensalism. However, only two of the three apply to the case of the elephants.
Parasitism is a relationship in which a symbiont lives off and harms the host.There are endoparasites and ectoparasites. Endoparasites live inside of their host while ectoparasites live outside of their host. Of the parasites that are involved with the sumatran elephant, mosquitos and louse are ectoparasites while leeches and warble flies are endoparasites. Those which are endoparasites live on the skin of the elephant which is 2.5 cm thick and covered in fine hair called lanugo, lay eggs and form infections.
The second symbiotic relationship applicable to the Sumatran elephant is mutualism. Mutualism is a relationship in which both species benefit from the interaction. An example of mutualism are egret and piapiac birds. These birds use elephants as an advantage point to spot prey and to pick off ticks, lice or endoparasites that get attached to the elephant. As elephants travel through the forest, many seeds from the trees fall onto their backs which these birds use for food. The way these elephants benefit from this interaction is due to getting freed of these parasites by the birds and getting their skin cleaned. The way that these birds are affected with the elephants being critically endangered is that they would have a harder time finding prey.
Predation is a relationship between organisms in which one benefits at the expense of the other by attacking and killing the prey. Elephants are very friendly animals are able to communicate with other members of the herd. One of the reason why they participate in clumped distribution and remain in herds is to better notice danger. Although rare, tigers have the tendency to kill and eat young elephants, traveling in herds is the reason why this rarely occurs as well as the mothers often looking after her young. Although fully gown elephants do not have any predators, the species interactions predation exists between tigers and young elephants. The tigers would not be greatly affected with the elephants finding themselves on the list of endangered species since their diet does not usually depend on young elephants. In fact, most animals stay out of the way of the elephants.
However, the diminishing in the number of these elephants would have more of a broader effect. Just like the African elephant, Sumatran elephants function in the role of the ecosystem "engineer" and as a keystone species. They maintain trails and open access to water for other species. They also create micro habitats by shedding trees for small vertebrate species such as lizards and uproot small trees which would open grassland areas, shifting new habitat to new forests. Elephants have a diet consisting of plants and although most other animals don't use them as prey, they still contribute to the ecosystem in a very unique way. It is by the consumption of these plants that their dung disperses many seeds and helps to enrich soils which could bring life to new forests and enhance the habitat for other grazing animals and their predators.