Killer Whale Summary

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The article, “Estimation of a Killer Whale (Orcinus orca) Population’s Diet Using Sequencing Analysis of DNA from Feces” by Michael J. Ford analyzes the sensitive predator pry connection. When there is an understanding of predators and prey, there is an understanding of ecosystem function. Because the killer whale is subdivided into discrete populations, based on diet and non- visible characteristics, there may be a tie between declines in prey that leads to decreases in that prey specialized individual. This kind of relationship is hard to directly observe that is why DNA sequencing of fecal samples will help estimate the diet composition of the southern killer whale (Ford 3). Michael Ford and his assistant were able to use scent detection