How does the legal designation of a 'keystone species' reflect its ecological role within a community?
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: D. It exerts disproportionate regulatory influence on community structure relative to its abundance
- Step 1: Robert Paine defined keystone species based on their profound top-down or engineering influence. Step 2. A keystone species (e.g. sea otter, wolf) shapes the entire ecosystem balance far beyond its direct biomass. Answer: It exerts disproportionate regulatory influence on community structure relative to its abundance. Why not the others: Species with the greatest biomass are foundation or dominant species, not necessarily keystones.
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