EE Lecture 34: The State of Biodiversity

Question 1

what went down at the 2002 Convention on Biological Diversity

Answer 1

made a 2010 target to:
significantly reduce the rate of biodiversity loss by 2010
need indicators of the state of global biodiversity

Question 2

name some species that have had very sharp popn declines

Answer 2

leatherback turtle
hippo
elegant fat-tailed possum
mauritius kestrel
red howler monkey

Question 3

describe popn trends in temperate regions

Answer 3

increase by 29% on average

Question 4

describe popn trends in tropical regions

Answer 4

decreased by 70%

Question 5

which regions show greatest increase in popns

Answer 5

temperate

Question 6

what is the living planet index

Answer 6

indicator of the state of global biological diversity, vertebrate popn trends

Question 7

how does LPI vary wrt. to income of country

Answer 7

low income countries have greater reduction in biodiversity where more people rely on local biodiv

Question 8

how much have vertebrate pops declined by? since when?

Answer 8

declined by 30% since 1970

Question 9

name some early attempts at categorising extinct pops

Answer 9

The Red Book -1969

Question 10

why were earlier attempts at categorising endangered pops not successful

Answer 10

informal

subjective - low repeatability and easy to challenge

Question 11

were the targets set by the CBD (convention biological diversity) in 2002 for 2010 met?

Answer 11

no

rate of decline is steady at best and pressures are worsening

Question 12

what scheme is in place currently to determine threatened species

Answer 12

IUCN Red List

Question 13

give order of categories for IUCN Red List

Answer 13

NE -not evaluated
DD - data deficient
LC -Least Concern
NT-Near Threatened
VU- vulnerable
EN-endangered
CR-Critically endangered
EW-Extinct in Wild
EX-Extinct

Question 14

what does NT and CR and EW stand for

LC

Answer 14

Near threatened
Critically endangered
Extinct in Wild
least concern

Question 15

what are the criteria for Red List

Answer 15

A) Pop reduction
B) Geographic Range distribution
C)Small pop size+decline
D)V small + restricted pop
E)Quantitative Analysis

Question 16

what determines whether a pop is CR on Red List

Answer 16

A)pop reduction&raquo_space;90% in 10yrs

B)extent of occurrence >50% in 10yrs

Question 17

what is criteria A for IUCN species list

Answer 17

pop reduction

Question 18

what is criteria B for IUCN

Answer 18

geographic range and distribution

Question 19

what is criteria C for IUCN

Answer 19

small pop size and decline

Question 20

what is criteria D for IUCN

Answer 20

v small and restricted pop

Question 21

what is criteria E for IUCN

Answer 21

quanitative analysis

Question 22

if a species had pop reduction of&raquo_space; 50%, which category would it be

Answer 22

vulnerable under criteria A of popn reduction

Question 23

if a species had an estimated pop continuing declince of 20% in 3yrs what category would it be in

Answer 23

Endangered under category C of IUCN small pop size and decline

Question 24

if a species had a 5000km2 extent of occurence and

Answer 24

Endangered, under criteria B of distribution of geographic range

Question 25

if a species had an extinction rate of >>50% in 10yrs/3 gen what cateogry would it be in

Answer 25

Critically Endangered under criteria E of IUCN stating quantitative analysis

Question 26

what criteria does a species need to make it endangered

Answer 26

pop reduction >>70% | extent occurence >20%

Question 27

what criteria does a species need to make it vulnerable

Answer 27

A)50% decline already B)20000km2 range & 2000km2 area of occupancy C)10% predicted to decline D)>10% probability extinction

Question 28

give an example of a vulnerable species

Answer 28

hippo

Question 29

give an example of endangered species and what makes it so

Answer 29

western leopard toad range =1750km2 fragmented habitat declining pop

Question 30

give an example of endangered species and what makes it so

Answer 30

African Wild dog | pop size

Question 31

give example of critically endangered pigeon

Answer 31

silvery wood pigeon | pop

Question 32

give an example of a vulnerable species and why

Answer 32

aldabra flying fox | one location

Question 33

why is western leopard toad threatened

Answer 33

its endangered only has range = 1750km2 fragmented habitat declining pop

Question 34

why is african wild dog threated

Answer 34

endangered | pop size

Question 35

why is silvery wood pigeon v threated

Answer 35

critically endangered | pop

Question 36

why is aldabra flying fox threatened

Answer 36

its vulnerable | only one location where it can live

Question 37

what two ways of measuring range size are there

Answer 37

1. extent of occurrence | 2. area of occupancy

Question 38

how can you measure range size via extent of occurrence

Answer 38

point the localities and range is dot to dot of outside perimeter

Question 39

how can you measure range size using area of occupancy

Answer 39

point localities, then do bar through each suggesting where range of each locality is (looks like a score through a point)

Question 40

which percentages species are threatened with extinction

Answer 40

11% birds 25% mammals 33% amphibians

Question 41

how many species are critically endangered

Answer 41

3879

Question 42

what does the number of species critically endangered suggest about how many extinctions there are per year what can you assume about the number of species that will die out

Answer 42

3879 CR | may be ~20 extinctions per year - assuming half will die out in 10 years

Question 43

what are the pros of the Red Listing approach

Answer 43

easy to use practical applicable makes allowance for rough data rather than requiring a single number

Question 44

what are the cons of the Red List approach

Answer 44

% boundaries mean orgs close to threshold could be put in the wrong category use of multiple criteria and no statistical method looks @ species as a whole but could be variations among different pops still reliant on being able to catch enough data

Question 45

How is the Red List Index calculated

Answer 45

for groups that have been asessed multiple times: calculate % species going ujp ladder and % down express as Red List Index - steepness of sloe = rate of change

Question 46

what is the Red List Index

Answer 46

based on the IUCN Red List and indicates the changing state of global biodiversity. It defines the conservation status of major species groups, and measures trends in extinction risk over time.