Size Selective Predation and its Effects on Zooplankton Populations

Abstract

Many lakes around the world have plankton communities that are structured by an ecological phenomenon known as size selective predation. Size selective predation is a form of predation that selects for prey of a specific desired size by the predator. Size selective predation can have an effect on both size distribution of the prey population as well as the composition of zooplankton taxa in a lake ecosystem. The overarching question being asked in this experiment is how the different zooplankton populations are affected under conditions where they are subjected to size selective predation. Within our study, we assessed the effects of size selective predation in two lakes in British Columbia, and reproduced the natural phenomenon in the lab using live zooplankton and their predators to simulate interactions in the natural world.