A possible effect is that the number of organisms living in that ecosystem decreases because many lose their habitat and can no longer survive or reproduce there.

Core idea

When land is developed (for houses, roads, malls, etc.), natural shelters like trees, logs, burrows, and dense vegetation are removed or broken into small patches. With less shelter , many animals have nowhere safe to hide, rest, raise young, or escape harsh weather and predators.

Main ecological effect

The most direct ecological effect is:

  • Decrease in population sizes of affected species, as more individuals are eaten by predators, exposed to the elements, or unable to find nesting sites.
  • Over time, this leads to a decrease in biodiversity (fewer species and less variety of life in that area).

In many homework and quiz contexts, the expected one-line answer is:

A possible effect is a decrease in biodiversity due to loss of habitat and shelter for organisms.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.