page_title: Kaibab Plateau
section_title: Prey and predator population dynamics
hierarchical_section_title: Kaibab Plateau / Kaibab deer / Prey and predator population dynamics
caption_attribution_description: English: X Fire Tree Planting Restoration Project on the Tusayan Ranger District. April 12, 2012. Photo taken by Dyan Bone. DSC_0050a. Please give credit to: U.S. Forest Service, Southwestern Region, Kaibab National Forest.
context_page_description: The Kaibab Plateau is a plateau almost entirely in Coconino County, Arizona in the Southwestern United States. The high plain is also known as the Buckskin Mountain, Buckskin Plateau, and Kaibab Mountain.
context_section_description: Once ecologists began to study the area and reflect on the changes that had occurred there, they began to use the Kaibab deer as a simple lesson about how the removal of the deer's natural predators, which had been done in the interest of preserving the deer population, had allowed the deer to over-reproduce, and quickly overwhelm the plateau's resources. Some ecologists suggested that the situation highlighted the importance of keeping a population in balance with its environment's carrying capacity.
  The more meaningful lesson of the Kaibab suggests that human efforts to protect wildlife and preserve wild areas must be balanced with ecological complexity and social priorities that are difficult to predict. Changes take place, sometimes rapidly, but their effects linger for decades. Today, the Arizona Game Commission manages the area, controlling the numbers of deer as well as predators, and issues hunting permits to keep the deer in balance with the range.
  Although the story of the Kaibab deer rose to fame in the 1920s due to their sudden increase and decrease in population, the story can also be used to demonstrate the way in which scientific studies and ideas about history can help educate current students. The first interpretation of the deer story as demonstrated in textbooks was that predator control had destroyed the deer’s population growth. It was thought that initially the high number of deer predators were obtruding the growth of the deer’s population, therefore rules were put in place in order to minimize the predator population and allow the deer to increase their population size.  However, as scientific studies continued, ecologist Greame Caughley suggested that predator control alone could not have caused the Kaibab irruption, but rather factors like climate, grazing by other animals, and preservation policies actually had more significant impacts on the deer 
  Caughley’s opinion led to confusion by teachers and scientists over what to include and teach in ecology and biology classes, therefore this story stopped being used as an example of prey and predator population dynamics. This is important to the development of scientific studies because it shows that  events—-like the Kaibab deer controversy—-do not have a definitive start and beginning but include other opinions and approaches which teachers use to showcase the richness of controversy.
  The Kaibab deer controversy has revolutionized the way science is taught in textbooks, and the way students question ecology and biology.  In addition, students now learn that human intervention can lead to big repercussions regarding specific animal’s population and development in certain regions.
caption: X Fire Tree Planting Restoration Project, Kaibab National Forest,
  April 2012
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