Ecology Etc

I mentioned previously that I was reading about bear management in the National Parks. Book on Bear Management  That book introduced me to Starker Leopold who was the son of Aldo Leopold.  Starker was very much involved in the bear management controversy.   Aldo is sort of considered the father of game management in the U.S. and also the start of the study of complex interactions between soil, water, plants and animals - now known as Ecology.

So that lead me to this biography of Aldo and I am about 3/4 of the way thru it.  Aldo Leopold Biography  It has numerous examples of man's impact on the complex systems and also examples of human attempts to influence or manage nature - both intended and unintended consequences.

Which is all background to this interesting article.  Nat Geo Yellowstone - Trout to Birds  It describes the decimation of several bird species in the Yellowstone area and it traces the root cause back to the introduction of lake trout in Lake Yellowstone (apparently accidentally).  The lake trout displaced the cutthroat trout which affected the food chain resulting in all kinds of dislocations ultimately affecting bird populations and the diet of eagles and bears.  And it raises the issue of whether Park Service management could or should intervene to try to preserve some sort of perceived "natural state".  I found it interesting.