If Sharks Disappeared by Lily Williams; illustrated by Lily Williams. 2017. Published by Roaring Book Press.
Brief summary: This book explains how if the sharks, apex predators, were eliminated, the ocean would become unbalanced. Sharks typically eat the weak. This allows the healthier animals to reproduce. But if sharks become extinct, then many other marine life will have higher populations, causing them to eat all the fish. Those fish eat plankton, but if there is too much plankton, the water would be a thick sludge. Many land animals rely on the ocean for food, and they would start to starve and die too. This cause and effect pattern could continue spreading across the globe.
Comments: This narrative nonfiction book did a great job of explaining trophic cascade with simple terms and illustrations. I recommend this book for science units as well as teaching the importance we, as humans, have to keep the earth balanced. There is a glossary, Sharks Are In Trouble, How You Can Help Save Sharks, and Author’s Note. The end pages have drawings of various sharks. There is one fold out.
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