Humans as ecosystem engineers

Humans as ecosystem engineers (Engineers Australia 2013)

While writing my last blog, I was introduced to many ecosystem engineers. Indeed, there are many ecosystem engineers out there. Some examples, aside from beavers, include prairie dogs, earthworms, zebra mussels, coral, lianas and humans. A human as an ecosystem engineer was a thought-provoking concept for me.  It is true that humans have huge impacts on ecosystems. But, for the most part, these impacts are negative. So identifying humans as a sort of engineer of life was difficult.

Ecosystem engineers impact their surroundings. But there are always negative impacts that come with the positive impacts. Beavers have a more positive than negative impact. While humans have a more negative impact.

What are humans’ skills as an ecosystem engineer? We have the ability to figure out how we can use any niche for our own benefit. Most of the time this involves exploiting ecosystems. We clear land to build shelter and farmland, we pollute and we change the structure and functions of ecosystems.

Our actions are indeed changing the environment. However it is changing the environment in an unsustainable way. We are changing the composition of the air we breathe, our actions are influencing the temperature and the weather, we are mixing species together in a jumble, paving surfaces and generally modifying our surroundings at will (Woolley-Barker 2012), without thinking about the consequences.  

However, we cannot forget that we are part of the web of life. We utilise other animals and plants for our benefit, but other animals and plants utilise us in the same way. There are some organisms that benefit from the way that we live. Rats, cockroaches, pigeons, dogs and mosquitoes are just few organisms that thrive off us (Pottage 2003).

Perhaps many more will adapt to our own way of life. Indeed, Woolley-Barker (2012) suggests that plastic-eating bacterial communities may arise, or photosynthesising plants may figure out what to do with the excess carbon in the atmosphere. But on the whole, I believe that humans must find a way of making conditions conductive of life, rather than crushing life beneath out feet. It is time to find a way to sustain a diverse web of life, and provide opportunities that were not there before, like other ecosystem engineers (Woolley-Barker 2012).  

As ecosystem engineers, we are keystone species. But what would be the consequences of removing us from the planet? Would there be a trophic cascade? I think that there would be a trophic cascade, but it would be more progressive and less disruptive than a trophic cascade induced by other species. Because we have created such long-term structures and long-term pollutants, it would take a long time for the evidence of humans to be eradicated. (For interesting facts on our lasting impact after we are gone see: http://www.worldwithoutus.com/did_you_know.html)

Many species will boom that had been hunted or somehow diminished by humans, forests would take over our cities. There would be a general change of species composition, most likely increasing biodiversity. I suppose it makes sense that as an ecosystem engineer with more negative effects than positive, the effects of removing us would be more positive. It is interesting to consider our effects on the planet, and also a motivation to lead a less damaging life.  

Image source

Engineers Australia 2013, ‘Humans as engineers’, Image, Engineers Australia, 2 April 2014 < https://www.engineersaustralia.org.au/tasmania-division/discover-engineering-tasmania>

Sources

Pottage, J 2003, Swarthmore College Environmental Studies, 2 April 2014, <http://fubini.swarthmore.edu/~ENVS2/S2003/jpottag1/Jpottag1essay1.HTML>

Woolley-Barker, T 2012, Blogspot, 2 April 2014, <http://bioinspiredink.blogspot.com.au/2012/07/the-ecosystem-engineer.html>