Mesopredator release hypothesis

This process arises when mammalian top predators are considered to be the most influential factor on trophic structure and biodiversity in terrestrial ecosystems.

[9] The hypothesis supports the argument for conservation of top predators because they protect smaller prey species that are in danger of extinction.

[4] This argument has been a subject of interest within conservation biology for years, but few studies have adequately documented the phenomenon.

[12] The hypothesis is sometimes also applied to humans as apex predators that produce top-down effects on lower trophic levels.

However, it fails to recognize bottom-up effects that anthropogenic land transformations can have on landscapes on which primary producers, prey species, and mesopredators dwell.

[15][16] Therefore, the roles of predation and food/nutrient processes in influencing ecosystem structures remain open to controversy and further testing.