biodiversity Flashcards
issues of biodiversity decreasing
air and water of earth purified by organisms
-waste decomposed by fungi and bacteria
-microorganisms in soil and water convert ammonia into nitrate ions taken up and used by plants
whats biodiversity
the variety of life on earth from microbes to mammals
genetic diversity between species and different species and variety of ecosystems
how do plants influence rain fall
absorb water which evaporates into atmosphere producing clouds for rain
2 factors for measuring biodiversity at species level
species richness
relative abundance of different species that make species richness
areas of highest biodiversity
wet tropics and coral reefs
biodiversity hotspots
of unusual biodiversity and endemism
theory as to why some areas are really biodiverse
very stable ecosystems allow many complex relationships to develop between species
genetic biodiversity
important to measure biological health
without variety population vulnerable
ethical reasons for keeping biodiversity
-deny future generations of natural resources
-pleasure for people so dont destroy
-unethical human actions
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biodiversity and genetic variation
develop production of crops livestock and fisheries
problems with biodiversity hotspots
where resources are like wood
gas
oil and minerals and people destroy places for resources
why is it hard to prioritise areas for conservation
areas of greatest biodiversity are not always same as places with biggest number of endemic species
example of stable ecosystems allowing relations between species
area where organisms can grow and reproduce quickly more mutations lead to adaptations so organisms can exploit more niches
relative species abundance
the relative number of different types of organisms
enviormental changes and biodiversity
when an enviornment has extreme changes the biodiversity is low
enviornment with unflled niches and hostile
floods
storms
pathogens
with unfilled niches a new species can come and overpower existing species
how is biodiversity not constant
temps vary biodiversity
enviornment
migration
mating season
measuring biodiversity within a species
DNA analysis of gene pools of species
effect of mutations of gene pools
increase the gene pool by increasing the number of different alleles available
allele frequency
the relative frequency of a particular allele in a polulation
what happens if a mutation in species is advantageous
the frequency of the allele will increase as that allele is selected
what happens if mutation bad in species
natural selection could remove allele from gene pool but usually kept at low frequency until it transfers some benefits
effects of change in allele frequency
due to natural selection
may lead to evolution of a new species
why are endemic species vulnerable
because they have low genetic diversity so if a disease comes all of them dead
why types of arguments do governments prioritise
economic arguments
ecosystem services
services provided by the natural enviorment that benefit people
provisioning services
ecosystems provide reosurces
materials water medicines
greater biodiversity is more resources
regulating services
ecosystem processes help maintain and regulate environment
air quality water quality sewage
climate of planet
supporting services
soil formation and nutrition for food we eat
ecosystems support what we need
cultural services
biodiverse and healthy ecosystem important for human health
recreation and education
economy of country dependent on people coming to see wildlife
how can biodiversity effect the economy
floods and fires cost a lot to fix
deforestation no food
if non sustainable resources are harvested and not replaced industry collapse with ecosystem
how loss of biodiversity can effect future economy
reduces chances of finding new drug
new food
new genes that can be used in crop to benefit it
conservation
keeping and protecting a living and changing enviornment
process of conservation
projects reclaiming land
agriculture systems set up
protect single species
decrease pollution levels and emissions
ex situ conservation
takes place outside their natural habitat
example of ex situ conservation
zoos or seed banks
in situ conservation
takes place in natural habitat of organism
why do ex situ conservations exist
when an organism threatened there is no time to keep them in their natural habitat
taken out to increase chance of survival
what does ex situ conservation enable
at worst their genetic material is conserved
at best a breeding population can be returned to their natural habitat
way of maintaninng long term health of crop plants
crossbreeding plants
using wild plants to supply genes for genetic engineering
plants in ex situ
they can be cleaned and frozen which maintains them to germinate for about 200 years
problems with plants in ex situ
some seeds of species dont store well
field gene banks take up a lot of time and space
tissue cultures to conserve plants
takes time and place allows more variety to be conserved
why cant you always conserve animals in the wild
because the conditions that put them under threat continue
captive breeding programmes
endangered species are bred in zoos and parks to save species
reintroduce bred animals to wild to restore population
problems with captive breeding
no enough space for resources in zoos for all threatened species
-hard to get right condiitons for breeding
-when population small gene pool is reduced- zoos keep detailed records of genetic information
problems with reintroduction
- to wild can be not good unless reason for species going extinct is removed
-animals in captivity cant adjust to wild
-expensive and time consuming and can fail
cross species cloning
cloning of animals using closely related species as surrogate mothers
whats the primary conservation strategy
in situ conservation
in their natural habitat
problems with conservation
when land set aside conflict with people
-money to maintain area
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sustainable forestry
where people cut trees plant trees and replant so biodiversity maintained while people use forest for money
sustainable agriculture
use organic fertilisers
no chemical presticides
biological pest control
avoid soil becoming exhausted
cheaper in long term than using chemicals
