Resource Image

Predator-Prey Interactions: Selective foraging by wolf spiders

Author(s): Cindy Bennington

Stetson University

990 total view(s), 610 download(s)

0 comment(s) (Post a comment)

Summary:
This interactive case study is intended for use in lower-division biology or ecology courses to complement the SimUText (SimBio) chapter entitled Predation, Herbivory and Parasitism.

Licensed under CC Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International according to these terms

Version 1.0 - published on 20 Jun 2019 doi:10.25334/Q4VX6P - cite this

Description

This case study introduces students to a variable, prey quality, that can affect the predator-prey relationship predicted by the Lotka-Volterra model. By presenting data from two studies, one observational and the other manipulative, students must consider the way in which experimental design can limit the interpretation of results, and are asked to think about prey choice as a trait subject to natural selection. Multiple choice questions answered using interactive technology such as Poll Everywhere allow for immediate feedback and short discussion following the reveal of each answer. Open-ended questions allow students to “think-pair-share” before discussing ideas with the entire class. Though the case can be adapted to be shorter or longer, the instructor should be prepared to spend about 30 minutes of class time for completion of the exercise as written.

Cite this work

Researchers should cite this work as follows: