NOUN ni yoru NOUN?

[nobap]

In "noun A ni yoru noun B",
which noun denotes the cause/means?

I came across this sentence:
廃棄ペットによる生態系破壊

Does this mean that 廃棄ペット is
the cause of 生態系破壊, or vice-versa？

How would you translate this sentence?

Thank you very much.

[Javizy]

In "noun A ni yoru noun B",
which noun denotes the cause/means?

I came across this sentence:
廃棄ペットによる生態系破壊

Does this mean that 廃棄ペット is
the cause of 生態系破壊, or vice-versa？

How would you translate this sentence?

Thank you very much.

The noun preceding による is the cause, so the sentence would translate something like "damage to the ecosystem caused by abandoned pet animals".

[nobap]

Thanks a lot Javizy!

Does this mean that a translation like "Pets abandoned because of ecosystem destruction"
is wrong?

[j_bertoni2279]

The main noun is ecosystem destruction, so that's the subject. The pets are the cause ("ni yoru"). You'd need to reverse the nouns to get to the translation you're suggesting.

[nobap]

Thanks for the replies.

The latter mentioned translation was made by someone else,
and I wasn't sure if it was right.

Thanks for clearing it up.