1) View the following video, answer questions, describe what happened in systems thinking terms as noted.

How Wolves Change Rivers. Retrieved 25 Mar 2021.
View at:
https://youtu.be/ysa5OBhXz-Q

http://www.dailyliked.net/wolves-changed-behavior-…

a) What were the long-term unintended consequences of the programs that eliminated gray wolves
in Yellowstone?
b) Write a simple description (problem statement) of the situation.
c) What is your main variable of interest? Hint: Possibilities include wolf population, deer/elk population,
ecosystem health
d) Generate the diagram of a simple system using causal loop diagrams (CLDs) with S and O added to the CLD not + and – https://thesystemsthinker.com/guidelines-for-drawi…

o Hint: Drawing an Influence Diagram first will help you see relationships
o Hint: Note that ecosystems can generally be reflected as some sort of balancing loop
o Hint: Start small then expand. The following steps may help you, but you are free to interpret the
the situation in another way.
? First identify a simple loop that reflects how the small ecosystem (of Wolves and Deer) was
intended to work
? Then add what happened when the wolves were removed
? Then, using the small wolves/deer ecosystem, consider the effects of removal of wolves on
the broader ecosystem.
e) Incorporate one leverage point that shows the introduction of wolves at the relevant place on the diagram. Describe the type of leverage (see Meadows) that the action reflected.