Preying for predators - it's the key to survival!

  

I watched a fascinating documentary on the weekend about the African savannah, a grassland ecosystem that is home to the most diverse variety of hoofed mammals in the world. This exotic terrain is typified by hardy trees and shrubs and rolling grasslands that are the mainstay of the herbivore diet of the animal population living there, and it sprawls across some 25 countries in Africa. 

As natural as it may be to some (biologists), it never ceases to make me smile at how delicate even such huge ecosystems are, and how the balance between life and death can depend on factors that are not that obvious at first glance. As much as various species such as elephants and rhinoceros are always in danger of extinction at the hands of poachers, it is unquestionable that it is the presence of a very unnatural species there - mankind - that has had the greatest impact on the savannah. 

The predator-prey relationship is a fundamental to evolutionary biology and is how we got to where we are today; but we both impact it and insist on messing with it in ways that are generally destructive and upset the natural balance of things. To wit, the ongoing issue since the sixties of grassland erosion and gradual desertification of what were once fertile grounds thriving in what are warm, tropical wet-dry seasons. 

This desertification is disastrous not just to the indigenous species living there such as zebra, elephant, black rhinoceros and giraffe, but also to the cattle being grazed there today by Masai farmers. The savannah ecosystem works by nature of the trees and shrubs being rather sparsely spread out, such that abundant light and water reaches the ground facilitating cultivation of a slew of plant life that ultimately sustains not only the herbivores, but also scavengers and decomposers, and the feared carnivores that ultimately control the animal population beneath then in the food chain.

Decades ago, the policy was clear - conservationists actually culled elephant herds in particular because of an apparent overgrazing problem that was believed to be at the root of the observed desertification. The thinking was that due to huge herds of large mammals such as elephants trampling through the savannah, they were actually destroying their own pastures due to overpopulation. In terms of our negative impact on this situation, the key problem perceived by experts was that mankind was killing too many predator carnivores on safaris or via poaching, and this was the root cause of grassland erosion. 

However, the result of that misperception was that after many years of culling elephant herds to manually control their numbers, rather shockingly, it appeared that reducing elephant numbers had been of basically no benefit whatsoever, and man replacing lions and other big cats as top-of-the-food-chain predator did not work - clearing of the grasslands continued as before. So what the hell was going on?

It took some real out-of-the-box thinking and a load of observation to figure out why reducing large animal populations didn't do the trick, and in fact it was not the number of elephants that was causing grassland erosion, it was the fashion in which they were grazing and moving that was at the bottom of it all.  A real bright spark had a brilliant light bulb moment and hypothesised that it was natural selection (by animal predators) that was key; not unnatural selection by two-legged ecosystem-destroying human predators. 

Thus, large herds of animals freed of the normal level and fear of aggressive carnivores kind of became, well, too relaxed and stress-free. So what happened? Evidently, they sort of spread out and just grazed to their heart's content, enjoying long warm afternoons on the "lawn" and rarely having to rush off anywhere. A holiday from those evil carnivores, in effect. Well, whaddya know, it lead to more desertification. 

It turns out, just as the bright spark hypothesised and proved by testing it on cattle on his own grazing lands, that such relaxed and abnormal elephant behaviour hurts the environment. When predators or human herders reappeared, the animals would be relaxed and grazing one minute, then upon the growl of a few big cats, the herd bunched closer together and upon attack would stampede as a collective to escape the mauling that awaited them. 

So what, you say? Well, this thunderous trampling of the ground over compact areas actually has somewhat of a ploughing effect, exposing topsoil and trampling dead plants and grasses into the soil, along with faeces and urine and other "fertilizers", which, along with the work of decomposers, provides serious nutrients to the ground resulting in new plant growth over coming seasons. 

Therefore, the very thing that was thought to cause desertification was in fact grassland's salvation - and it all came down to the presence of predators around them - just not for the reason suspected! As much as we know about biology and evolution, we continue to be educated by it in action. It was not the removal of elephants by carnivore kills that was needed to save the grasslands, it was the herd's behaviour in the presence of that predator that changed everything! Incredible, huh?

There are a couple of lessons here, the most obvious of which is that we can never underestimate the power of natural selection and evolution, and how delicately the existence of so many apparently insignificant components of an ecosystem are actually intertwined together; in this case that comes all the way down to the critical role insects such as termites and scavengers play in fertilising and maintaining an ecosystem populated by huge mammals. 

Perhaps the most important lesson, not only in the African savannah but also in the modern jungles of the business world, is how the presence of predators is actually a good thing. Yes, there will be a few who will get eaten alive as part of the natural selection process, and I would argue that this is something that should happen more often in business - not less. Those who are under-performing should be weeded out and replaced with stronger candidates, not moved sideways endlessly, having learnt little and contributing even less. If you ain't essential to maintenance of the ecosystem which you live and work in then selection should dictate your fate. I mean, look at what happens to even grasslands when the population is allowed to wander aimlessly! 

The major single problem I see in business today is the shuffling around of the same set of local names in some kind of circle of incompetence, from one position to another, and one job to another, never appreciated enough to keep around for long, but always being given the reference needed to get the next position - i.e. to get rid of them. There is no more lethal (pardon the pun!) combination than a weak performer and a weak/weaker manager who is incapable of doing their actual job. This is how people mistakenly become overly (overtly?) cocky and begin to feel they have a right to their job, not that their continued existence in it has to be actually earned. Whether the value being created is by fertilizing grasslands or making the company lots of money is irrelevant - the outcome has to be a beneficial one, for all. 

In business and at work, in total analogy with the carnivores and the herbivores, a perceived threat or competitor or even office enemy is not so much a danger to your continued survival; rather, it is a positive, and it should impact your behaviour in a way that is more beneficial to the ecosystem you exist in. We all need to not get too comfortable in our padded swivel chairs in the office and the boardroom, and having our behaviour tweaked by the ongoing presence or proximity of a "predator" actually can keep us at the top of our game. 

I am convinced that many of those who reach "job for life" status become both bored and less productive; we actually need challenge to be "alive". In analogy with the elephants, it's not being eaten by a lion that benefits the ecosystem most - it is the mere presence of that carnivore and the fear of being eaten alive that modifies the herd's behaviour - beneficially. In other words, we need (more) competitors and predators in our life science ecosystem, not less, and if you don't want to compete then step out of the jungle and if you can't stand the heat then get out of the (jungle) kitchen. Both apply! 

Who would have thought that a weekend documentary about African grasslands and the daily struggle to survive could make me think of the city and its business jungle? Well, you know people, we are still animals after all and as advanced as we like to think we are, it is incredible how similar to animals we often are - particularly when threatened or in the face of stiff competition for rather slim pickings. It's a jungle out there my friends, quite literally, so - back to work!