Research overview: rewilding and trophic cascades from carnivore restoration

Restoring large carnivores can reshape entire ecosystems through trophic cascades, in which predators influence prey behavior and numbers, which in turn affects vegetation and other species. This overview surveys research on the ecological effects of returning big cats and other large predators to landscapes, a central theme in rewilding. Studies examine how restored carnivores can regulate herbivore populations, alter their distribution and grazing, and indirectly benefit plant communities and biodiversity, drawing on examples from various predator restorations. Researchers debate the strength and context-dependence of such cascades and caution against overgeneralizing iconic cases. The overview frames carnivore restoration not merely as saving a species but as recovering ecological function, a key argument in the rewilding movement. It matters because the case for reintroducing big cats often rests partly on their role as ecosystem regulators, making the science of trophic cascades central to justifying and designing predator restoration.