The organisms in a community depend on each other in many ways. This is called interdependence. Animals depend on plants for food and shelter. Many plants depend on insects such as bees for pollination, and some depend on animals to spread their seeds. Decomposers depend on dead organisms for food.
Food webs show how feeding links connect many species. Because of these links, a change in one population affects others. If a species that is eaten by others is removed, the species that depend on it for food may decline. If a predator is removed, the species it ate may increase in number.
For example, if all the foxes in a wood are removed, the number of rabbits will probably increase. The rabbits then eat more plants, which can reduce the number of plants and the animals that depend on them.
A stable community is one where all the species and environmental factors are in balance, so population sizes stay fairly constant over time. Interdependence helps keep a community stable, and removing one species can unbalance it.