Conservation

Question 1

Explain the definition and richness of biodiversity

Answer 1

The variety of plants, animal, and microorganisms in the world or in a particular habitat

Question 2

Historically contextualise contemporary rates of extinction

Answer 2

Five mass extinctions have naturally occurred throughout time, but current causes and rates are unprecedented

Question 3

Discuss the moral and ethical justification for conservation

Answer 3

Ecosystem services (production and livelihoods), non-use (water regulation, climate regulation), intrinsic value (recreation, health)

Question 4

Typology of threats to biodiversity

Answer 4

Habitat loss, overexploitation, invasive species, cascading effects

Question 5

Name the main scientific disciplines that come together in conservation science

Answer 5

Conservation genetics – maintaining genetic diversity and fitness and reducing inbreeding
Conservation ecology – population demography and community dynamics
Social science – understanding human behaviour (PESTLE)

Question 6

Describe examples of the ways in which science can be used to save endangered species and habitats

Answer 6

Threat diagnosis, threat mitigation, protection

Question 7

Discuss structured approaches to the use of evidence and decision-making in the face of uncertainty in conservation

Answer 7

Evidence > solutions > implementing > monitoring > evidence …

Question 8

Describe the key socioeconomic drivers of conservation threats, and the importance of tackling them

Answer 8

Poverty and reliance on ecosystem services

Affluence and over-consumption

Question 9

Demonstrate understanding of the need for conservation priority-setting in a world of limited resources for conservation action.

Answer 9

Many species and areas suffering = a need to decide which is more important

Question 10

Differentiate between various conservation prioritisation approaches developed to identify key regions of the planet for conservation.

Answer 10

Biodiversity hotspots, megadiverse countries, key biodiversity areas

Question 11

Define the concepts of irreplaceability and vulnerability, and exhibit understanding of their importance in a conservation context.

Answer 11

Irreplaceability – are there any other options if the species/area is lost?
Vulnerability – how threatened is the species/areas?

Question 12

Explain how species-specific conservation prioritisation methods, such as the EDGE approach, utilise extinction risk and biodiversity data to identify species for conservation action.

Answer 12

They consider how evolutionarily distinct the species is, and whether it is globally endangered, by looking at the tree of life and the IUCN red list

Question 13

Describe some key global biodiversity targets and some of the indicators developed to track progress towards them

Answer 13

CBD has a vision that by 2050, biodiversity will be valued, conserved, restored, and sustainably used
Indicators – RLI sRLI and LPI

Question 14

Explain how the Red List Index (RLI) and sampled approach to Red Listing (sRLI) were developed, as examples of biodiversity indicator development

Answer 14

Criteria (population reduction, restricted geographic range…) are used to measure thresholds, which indicates the category of extinction risk (critically endangered, endangered, vulnerable…)

Question 15

Contrast strength and weaknesses of different biodiversity indicators, such as the Living Planet Index (LPI) and Red List Index (RLI)

Answer 15

Helps with identifying the level of threat for different species, and aids conservation prioritisation,
Data deficiency, small species coverage within invertebrates, data collection is time consuming

LPI - changes over time
RLI - status at one time

Question 16

The process of strategic planning

Answer 16

Status assessment – mapping locations and numbers of individuals etc
Status review – synthesise data from multiple papers/reports and measure reliability
Vision > goals > problem analysis> objectives > results to address objective > activities to address the results

Question 17

How to construct a problem tree

Answer 17

Ultimate causes in themes > intermediate step > threats to different species > threats to specific species

Question 18

The process of plan implementation and what makes a plan a success

Answer 18

Regional strategy > national action plan > actors > national action plan > actors etc… constant reviewing and adapting is essential

Question 19

Understand how logistics and science inform captive breeding programmes

Answer 19

Status of wild population, role of population, demographic factors, genetic factors, resources required, feasibility, risk > breeding recommendations

Question 20

Identify the value of captive collections in broader ex-situ conservation

Answer 20

research, education, awareness, political lobbying

Question 21

Explain the in-situ contribution made by captive collections, to field projects and research.

Answer 21

Fund raising, improving skills and expertise, community engagement, nature reserves

Question 22

Why is ecology important for understanding zoonoses

Answer 22

To understand the origin and transmission of a disease

Question 23

How can ecology inform preventative measures for zoonoses

Answer 23

By highlighting origins, transmission routes of disease as well as exposure factors

Question 24

How does large-scale analysis provide extra information for zoonoses

Answer 24

By filling gaps in knowledge to fully understand reservoir-host distribution, disease prevalence, exposure risks etc

Question 25

Explain the importance of islands to biodiversity conservation

Answer 25

They are often biodiversity hotspots: distinct and vulnerable species, restricted range and population size, low genetic diversity, susceptible to habitat alteration, out-competed by introduced species, lack of defences against new predators

Question 26

Formulate a simple plan for a single day of management of a threatened bird species

Answer 26

Columns of table: number each nest, note when last visited, outcome of last visit, current situation, what activity to do today, what to do tomorrow

Question 27

explain the principles of sampling in the context of wildlife survey design

Answer 27

Conservation management (threatened species monitoring)
Species control (invasive and pest species)
Resource management (stock assessment)
Ecological research (population dynamics etc.)

Question 28

evaluate and identify appropriate analytical techniques for any given wildlife survey problem

Answer 28

Absolute abundance: Complete census, Plot sampling, Distance sampling, Mark recapture, Indirect counts
Relative abundance: Controlled effort counts, Occupancy

Question 29

Describe the basic components of a camera-trap and how they work.

Answer 29

Use passive sensors which detect heat in front of it. A change in heat triggers the sensor to turn the camera on, and they shut down between photos

Question 30

Assess some of the strength and weaknesses of camera-trap surveys as a tool for monitoring biodiversity.

Answer 30

It’s biased to the area of the camera trap, can be expensive to carry out larger studies, cheaper than what they used to be
Wildlife is more likely to be spotted this way than in person, assess multiple things (presence and absence, behaviour, relative abundance)

Question 31

Contrast different camera trapping methods and evaluate the potential to use different methods in the same study.

Answer 31

Distribution/occupancy, predator/prey relationships, relative abundance, activity cycles

Question 32

Assess the benefits and challenges of running surveys in human-dominated landscapes

Answer 32

Volunteers are often available to save money, easy to access a lot of areas
Can be biased towards accessible areas, GDPR, gaining permission

Question 33

Describe the basic components of exponential and logistic growth models

Answer 33

Exponential – rate is proportional to size of population

Logistic – rate decreases with the increasing number of individuals

Question 34

Define concepts of density dependent and density independent regulation and population carrying capacity

Answer 34

Density dependent – Population limited by food supply, nesting sites etc
Density independent – populations aren’t limited by their numbers
Carrying capacity - the maximum population size an environment can sustain

Question 35

Review how species characteristics influence population processes - in relation to life tables, age and stage structured models

Answer 35

Birth, Immigration, Deaths, Emigration

Question 36

Define and understand the concept of ‘Conservation genetics’

Answer 36

Uses genetic markers to help conserve biodiversity and manage species and populations

Question 37

Understand the concept of ‘Reintroduction’ in a conservation context

Answer 37

This is the translocation of an organism inside its natural range, to areas from which it has been lost. Reintroduction aims to re-establish a viable population of the focal species within its natural range.

Question 38

Explain the concept of ‘Genetic drift’ and how it leads to the loss of genetic variation and adaptive potential in threatened populations

Answer 38

Genetic drift – allele frequencies change from generation to generation due to random sampling error. It stops natural selections and increases in smaller populations

Question 39

Define Inbreeding and inbreeding depression, how these concepts differ and explain their impact on wild threatened populations

Answer 39

Inbreeding – mating between individuals that are more closely related than expected by chance
Inbreeding depression – reduced biological fitness due to the mating of related individuals

Question 40

Define ‘Founder events’ and ‘Bottleneck events’ in relation to reintroduction of threatened species and explain how they impact population viability.

Answer 40

Founder event – when a new population is established from a small number of individuals drawn from a large ancestral population
Bottlenecks – only small number of original populations survives after an event, so there is less genetic variation within the populations

Question 41

Define the concept of ‘Genetic rescue’ and explain how it can be applied to threatened populations to alleviate genetic risks.

Answer 41

Introducing individuals from outbred populations to reverse the deleterious effects of inbreeding