Question

Tree Diagram: Wise rabbits understand that foxes are dangerous predators.

Answer 1

The introduction of biological animals like rabbits and foxes in forests is a dangerous problem as it decreases the population of small marsupial animals in those regions. The food chain and food web gets altered at the level of primary consumers and secondary consumers.

It is shown in the diagram below of a food-web depicting the consumers and producers at the primary, secondary and tertiary level.

There is a behaviour of camouflage in rabbits which prevents them from getting eaten by foxes in forests. The example includes that of snowshoe hare. They are present in North America and Canada. The colour of skin varies according to their temperature and climatic conditions. The rabbits shed the brown summer coats and form white coats after a weather change. This white color camouflages with the surrounding white snow and prevents them from getting eaten by the foxes in those regions. The color of pigment in these hare changes due to differences in temperature leading to transition from brown color to white color thus preventing them from getting eaten by foxes. It was confirmed by following radio-collar experiments in which the rabbits were tagged.