Overview of Module: 1) Content. In this module, students explore how predators influence ecosystems through both consumptive effects (direct predation) and non-consumptive effects (fear-driven changes in prey behavior). Using coral reef ecosystems as a case study, students investigate how herbivorous fishes balance feeding opportunities with predation risk and how these behavioral tradeoffs can scale up to shape ecosystem patterns such as grazing halos. Students also examine how reef structural complexity (rugosity) and human impacts such as overfishing and coral loss influence the reefscape of fear and coral reef resilience. Throughout the module, students connect individual behavior to broader ecological processes and ecosystem function. 2) Activities. Students engage in a series of interactive, inquiry-based activities using authentic ecological data and real-world research examples. They use Google Earth to compare coral reef systems with and without grazing halos, construct and interpret conceptual food web models, analyze underwater video observations of herbivore feeding behavior, and visualize ecological data using histograms and boxplots. Students then apply statistical analyses, including t-tests and ANOVA, to test hypotheses about how predation risk and habitat complexity influence grazing behavior. The module emphasizes scientific reasoning, data interpretation, and connecting quantitative evidence to ecological theory. 3) Impact. This module helps students develop a deeper understanding of predatorprey interactions while strengthening quantitative and scientific reasoning skills in an applied ecological context. By integrating authentic research, global ecosystems, and data-driven inquiry, the module promotes engagement and helps students see ecology as a dynamic and evidence-based science. The activities are designed around the Ecological Society of Americas Four-Dimensional Ecology Education (4DEE) framework and broaden cultural and geographic perspectives by highlighting tropical marine systems often underrepresented in biology curricula. Instructors may choose this module because it combines active learning, quantitative skill development, and contemporary ecological research in a format that is scalable and accessible for undergraduate biology courses. Learning Objectives: Differentiate between consumptive effects (CEs) and non-consumptive effects (NCEs) of predators, using ecological examples and be able to construct a conceptual model for each that represent direct and indirect species interactions. Describe the tradeoff organisms face between acquiring resources (e.g., food) and avoiding predation risk and be able to connect the consequences of tradeoffs across scales, from individual behavior to landscape patterns visible in satellite imagery. Predict how predator effects and reef rugosity (i.e., structural complexity) could interact to effect herbivore feeding behavior and how this in turn could influence coral and use a design a conceptual model to illustrate your prediction. Compare group means using boxplots and statistical tests (t-test and ANOVA) and draw biological conclusions from p-values. Evaluate how human activities such as overfishing of predators and loss of reef structural complexity influence the reefscape of fear and the resilience of coral reef ecosystems. Support was provided by:Agrant from the United States National Science Foundation (DBI-RCN-UBE 2120141).
Laura Catano (Fri,) studied this question.