Conservation 11.6-11.8 Flashcards
What are human influences on biodiversity?
- deforestation
- agriculture ( reduces natural fauna and puts monoculture crops)
- climate change ( Co2 increase, reduces habitats and warms oceans, coral reefs dying)
- littering and pollution can cause harm to environments
What does deforestation do to biodiversity?
- Reduces population of the species of trees
- Gets rid of animals habitats so they migrate or die
- Removes food source for organisms living there
- Means more CO2 is in the air because fewer trees to take it in.
What does agriculture do to biodiversity?
Removes all plants that naturally live there, and plants one type of crop which is a monocultural crop
- Sometimes deforestation to make room for them
- Removal of hedgerows also gets rid of species that inhabit the area
- Herbicides can be used to kill weeds as they compete for sun and nutrients
Statistical evidence of climate change
- Warming trend over the last 50 years
- Sea level rising
- Ocean temps rising
- Mountain glaciers and snow declining
How can climate change affect biodiversity?
- Melting of polar ice caps means extinctions of animals that live there like a polar bear, some may migrate
- Low lying land will be flooded if sea levels rise, gets rid of habitat for species including people
- Higher temps in the ocean are destroying coral reefs
- Higher temps also means species will fail like plants
- Insect life cycles will also change which means they can go extinct and lose biodiversity
Why should you maintain biodiversity?
- Aesthetic reasons
- Ethical reasons
- Social reasons
- Economic reasons
- Ecological reasons
What are the aesthetic reasons?
- Presence of plants and animals enriches our lives, helps us relax
- Patients can recover quicker from illness when supported by the natural environment
What are economic reasons?
- Soil erosion and deforestation reduces crop yield and can affect peoples food
- Need to conserve resources for things we use like wood, we can’t just exploit it all or we will run out
- High biodiversity protects against abiotic stresses like natural disasters and extreme weather which could cost a lot to repair damage
- Areas rich in biodiversity are attractive as travel destinations and can attract tourists
What are ecological reasons?
- All organisms depend on each other to survive, so if one species is harmed, all other species will also be impacted. For example, if bees species declines, the plants won’t be pollinated, they won’t grow, animals won’t have any food to eat, humans won’t be able to eat either. Bees are a keystone species as they have a large effect on an ecosystem
What is in-situ conservation?
Conservation within the natural habitat
What is ex-situ conservation?
Conservation outside the natural habitat
What are the rankings of preservation for species?
Extinct - no species
Extinct in wild- none found in the wild
Endangered - in danger of extinction
Vulnerable - Considered likely to become endangered
What is sustainable development?
Providing economic needs for us now without limiting the future generations resources
Give two examples of in-situ conservation?
- Wildlife reserves
- Marine conservation zones
What happens in wildlife reserves?
- Controlled grazing
- Restricting human access
- Controlling packing
- feeding animals
- reintroducing species
- removing invasive species
- halting succession