EXAM 1 REVIEW Flashcards
lectures 1-8
Why should we care about the history of conservation and conservation biology?
-We are not the first human generation to be concerned about our effects on the planet.
-todays conflicts represent old divisions in how people think about nature.
What is romantic-transcendental conservation (preservationist) ethic?
Emerson believed in preservation for the spiritual value nature provides.
What is resource conservation ethic?
Pinchot believed in conservation for sustainable resource production.
What is evolutionary-ecologic land ethic?
Leopold believed in preserving biology by having man as a part of complex ecology.
What are the 4 ecosystem services?
1) provisioning
2) regulating
3) cultural
4) supporting
What are provisioning services?
Products obtained from ecosystems:
(i.e. food, water, raw materials, medicines, biotechnology)
What are regulating services?
Benefits from regulation of ecosystem processes:
(i.e. air/water purification, climate regulation, soil fertility, erosion control, pest/disease control, pollination, natural disaster mitigation)
What are cultural services?
Nonmaterial benefits obtained from ecosystems:
(i.e. recreation, ecotourism, health/well-being, spiritual/religious, aesthetic/inspiration, educational, cultural heritage)
What are supporting services?
Ecological processes that control the functioning of ecosystems and production of all other services:
(i.e. resource capture, biomass production, decomposition, nutrient recycling, etc.)
What is I = P x A x T
Impact = Population x Affluence x Technology
Is human population growth linear or exponential?
exponential
How do humans impact the environment the most?
Consumption
–Per-person (different cultures consume more than others i.e. America vs. Mali)
What does preservation ethic focus on?
Biodiversity
What does sustainable use ethic focus on?
Ecosystem services
Define the “Crisis Discipline”
The idea that decisions need to be made quickly with limited/complex information to make a change.
Why are conservation methods old and persistent?
They were created a long time ago and suggests that we cannot ignore opportunities to conserve nature in human dominated landscapes.
What is biodiversity?
–# of species found in a region
–describes both richness/ evenness
–genetic variation within and across species
What is the morphological species concept?
individuals who are grouped into species on the basis of morphological/physiological similarities. (i.e. classification ladder)
What is the biological species concept?
Individuals that interbreed in the wild to produce viable, fertile offspring are considered to be members of the same species.
What is the evolutionary species concept?
There is a distinct evolutionary lineage based on average genetic relatedness.
(i.e. phylogenetic tree)
How do we measure biodiversity?
- Species richness
- Species evenness
- Shannon diversity
What is species richness?
The number of species in a community.
–easy to calculate
–very dependent on effort/area of sampling because it must be the same to compare.
–quadrats are used.
What is species evenness?
The relative abundances compared with one another.
What is Shannon diversity?
This combines species richness and species evenness.
