Read the following statements and select the correct option. Statement 1: The prickly pear cactus introduced into Australia in early 1920s caused havoc by spreading rapidly into millions of hectares. Statement 2: When certain exotic species are introduced into a geographical area, they become invasive and start spreading fast because the invaded land does not have its natural predators.

Step-by-step solution

Besides acting as ‘conduits’ for energy transfer across trophic levels, predators play other important roles. They keep prey populations under control. But for predators, prey species could achieve very high population densities and cause ecosystem instability. When certain exotic species are introduced into a geographical area, they become invasive and start spreading fast because the invaded land does not have its natural predators. The prickly pear cactus introduced into Australia in the early 1920’s caused havo