Conservation Flashcards
Biomimetics
Developing man made systems that mimic biologically produced substances, mechanisms and processes
Ring tailed lemur - not hunted for food and does not produce any harvestable resource.
Give 2 reasons why they should be conserved.
Species interdependence
Ethical reasons
Educational reasons
Biomimetics
Aesthetic reasons
Why might it not be enough to simply protect the individuals of a species in order to conserve them?
Need suitable habitat
May depend on other species
EDGE species
Evolutionary Distinct and Globally Endangered - threatened species that have few or no close relatives on the tree of life.
Flagship species
Species selected to act as an ambassador, icon or symbol for a defined habitat, issue, campaign or environmental cause.
Keystone species
A species that influences the survival of many other species in an ecosystem.
Endemic species
Species that are native to and found only within a limited area.
Roles of IUCN
(International Union for Conservation of Nature)
- coordinating global data on biodiversity conservation
- increasing understanding of the importance of biodiversity
- deploying nature based solutions to global challenges in climate, food and sustainable development
Human activities that threaten biodiversity. (Biodiversity is the variety and abundance of life on Earth. As humans, our survival depends on the other species with which we share the planet.)
- Deliberate exploitation
- Accidental harm
- Deliberate eradication
- Change in biotic factors (living things within an ecosystem eg. plants, animals and bacteria).
- Change in abiotic factors (non living things within an ecosystem eg. water, soil and atmosphere).
- Habitat destruction.
CITES
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species
role of CITES
Regulates the international trade in endangered species and their products.
Wildlife and countryside act
- bans certain methods of killing or taking wild animals
- restricts introduction of certain animals and plants
- designation of protected areas eg SSSIs and NNRs (National Nature Reserve)
Examples of management activities
- maintaining a plagioclimax (a managed ecosystem)
-removal of introduced species - fencing off visitors
- restricting building development
- provision of food sources or nesting sites
protected areas in the UK
Studland Bay (SSSI - Site of Special Scientific Interest)
Lundy Island (MNR - Marine Nature Reserve)
IWC
International Whaling Commission