Biodiversity 3-5

Question 1

Define biodiversity in simple terms

Answer 1

the number, variety and variability of living organisms

Question 2

What is the functional value of ecosystem services?

Answer 2

vital in sustaining many biological processes which, in turn are vital to survival of many different species including humans

Question 3

What is the potential value of ecosystems?

Answer 3

Undiscovered taxa could potentially hold genes that will provide benefits to future generations e.g. new food sources and medicines etc

Question 4

What is the commercial value of ecosystems?

Answer 4

provide humankind with many economically viable goods and services, Eco-tourism can provide a economic boost for local communities

Question 5

What is the intrinsic value of ecosystems?

Answer 5

Biodiversity is associated with many cultural, social, ethical and aesthetic values

Question 6

What is the main aims of biodiversity conservation?

Answer 6

to ‘mainatian the diversity of living organisms, their habitats and the interrelationships between organisms and their environment’

Question 7

What was stated in the UN conference on Environment and development (UNCED) 1992?

Answer 7

The objectives of this convention… are the conservation of biological diversity, the sustainable use of its components and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilisation of genetic resources’

Question 8

What is ex situ conservation?

Answer 8

the conservation means the components of biological diversity outside their natural habitats

Question 9

What is in situ conservation?

Answer 9

the conservation of ecosystems and natural habitats and the maintenance and recovery of viable populations of species in their natural surroundings

Question 10

Name 4 in situ conservation techniques?

Answer 10

protected area
extra PA
on farm
home garden

Question 11

Name 4 ex situ conservation techniques?

Answer 11

• embryo, semen, ova or seed storage
• DNA pollen storage
• in vitro storage
• field gene bank storage
• botanic zoo garden

Question 12

What is the conservation technique of extra PA?

Answer 12

The location, management and monitoring of genetic diversity of natural wild population in informally managed in situ conservation sites.

Question 13

How do the IUCN 2008 define a protected area?

Answer 13

an area of land and/or sea especially dedicated to the protection and maintenance of biological diversity, and of natural and associated cultural resources, and managed through legal or other effective means’

Question 14

What is an ecogeographic survey?

Answer 14

An ecological, geographical, genetic and taxonomic information gathering and synthesis process, can be used to formulate conservation priorities

Question 15

Name 3 advantages of in situ conservation

Answer 15

• appropriate for all organisms
• dynamic conservation in relation to environmental changes
• permits pathogen interactions, continues dynamic evolution

Question 16

Name 3 advantages of ex situ conservation

Answer 16

• efficient and reproducible for many species
• easy access to breeding and other form of utilisation
• little maintenance once conserved

Question 17

Define ecomorphology

Answer 17

the study of teh relationship between the ecological role of an organisms and its morphological adaptation

Question 18

What factors determine morphology of a species? (5)

Answer 18

• niche availability
• competition
• predators
• resources
• climate

Question 19

What are homologous traits?

Answer 19

= similarities that results from common ancestry,

Question 20

Define homology

Answer 20

the existence of shared ancestry between a pair of structures, or genes, in different taxa.

Question 21

What are analogous structures?

Answer 21

independently evolved features with the same function

Question 22

What is fosters rule?

Answer 22

some species get smaller and some get larger depending on resources and predation pressures

Question 23

What does fosters rule actually mean?

Answer 23

large mammals like elephants are often likely to get smaller as there are less food available
> whereas small mammals on islands where there is little competition or predation are likely to get bigger

Question 24

Define co-evolution

Answer 24

two or more species reciproclally affecting eachother’s evolution e.g. pollinators and plants

Question 25

Define convergent evolution

Answer 25

Organisms not closely related independently evolve to share similar traits as a result of having to adapt to similar environments or ecological niches

Question 26

define biogeography

Answer 26

the study of the geographic of nature, including variation on any biological characteristics

Question 27

What did Alfred Russell Wallace discover?

Answer 27

• the presence of species relates to barriers such as mountains and rivers
• the Wallace line between Australian and south east Asian fauna and flora

Question 28

What is the number of species on an island determined by?

Answer 28

the rate of immigration and extinction and also affected by the size of the island and distance from mainland

Question 29

What did Brown and Lomolino add to MacArthur and Wilson’s theory?

Answer 29

• said it was too simplistic and needed to include feedback from the systems and more interactions between organisms

Question 30

Describe the biographic factors of areas which are more biodiverse? (6)

Answer 30

• warmer
• wetter
• lower seasonal variation
• more vaired topography
• lower altitude
• larger area size

Question 31

What non biographic factors need to be considered when determining the biodiversity of an area?

Answer 31

= immigration/emigration
= distrurbance
= dispersal
= predator-prey interactions
= habitat heterogeneity

Question 32

Are the broad patterns of distribution of organisms on earth determined by abiotic or biotic factors?

Answer 32

abiotic e.g. sunlight, temperature and water

Question 33

Why is solar radiation important in biodiversity? (2)

Answer 33

• it allows plants to grow which allows animal species to survive
• also, it acts to warm the earth and temperature is the biggest factor in determining the distribution of organisms because of its effect on biological process

Question 34

Define speciation?

Answer 34

an evolutionary process in which populations become species

Question 35

Which form of speciation involves a geographical barrier?

Answer 35

• allopatric

Question 36

What are biodiversity hotspots?

Answer 36

areas with high species endemism and high level of threat

Question 37

What are the issues with hotspots?

Answer 37

• tend to be areas subject to great anthropogenic threat
• more remote, less immigration, and extinction means very unlikely to be replaced so high rate of threat
• lack of disturbance, not adapted to disease or predators

Question 38

Where are all the top 8 hotspots found?

Answer 38

on islands

Question 39

Define endemism

Answer 39

• unique to a defined geographic location

Question 40

Define neoendemism

Answer 40

comprise clusters of closely related species and subspecies that have evolved relatively recently

Question 41

Define paleoendemism

Answer 41

comprises phylogenetically high-ranking taxa usually monotypic section, subgenera/genera that may be regarded as evolutionary reacts and were once widespread

Question 42

What is direct use value?

Answer 42

economical value of natural goods

Question 43

what is indirect use value?

Answer 43

economical value of natural services

Question 44

What is optional value?

Answer 44

economic value of future benefits that a natural area could provide

Question 45

What is existence value?

Answer 45

economic value of habitat or species based on the amount people who are willing to pay to avoid its destruction