Rocky Mountain Juniper

Rocky Mountain junipers show a different response to elk cascade dynamics: they're browse-resistant. While aspen and cottonwood suffered under elk pressure and recovered when wolves changed elk behavior, junipers expanded into areas elk avoided. They're cascade beneficiaries but through a different mechanism—they fill niches that cascade changes create.

Juniper expansion demonstrates that trophic cascades create winners and losers among plants, not just uniform vegetation recovery. Species that were suppressed by elk (aspen) recover; species that compete with elk-browse-tolerant vegetation (juniper) advance. The cascade restructures plant communities, not just plant abundance.

The business parallel is second-order effects that create unexpected competitors. Junipers are like companies that benefit from market restructuring through niche expansion rather than direct benefit. When regulation changes favor one competitor, the market restructures—and the ultimate winner may be neither the regulated nor the directly favored, but a third party exploiting the restructured landscape.