In this ecosystem, hunting for deer has become a common practice among many residents of nearby communities. If hunting continues and drastically reduces the deer population, how might this impact the hawk population? Hawks do not rely on deer for food, so the hawk population would be unaffected. Having less deer would increase the mountain lion dependency on rabbits, which would lead to fewer rabbits available for the hawks. Having less deer would affect the trees in the ecosystem leading to fewer nesting sites for the hawks. Having less deer would increase the rabbit population providing additional food for the hawks and increase the hawk population.