HB CB Flashcards
three main central goals to conservation biology:
- study global biodiversity and its decline.
- how human populations impacts biodiversity and ecosystem health
- develop practical solutions to reduce these threats and restore biological diversity.
The Core Principles of Conservation Biology (5)
Protection of Biodiversity
Science Focused
Multi-disciplinary
Responsive
Value Driven
SCB
Society for Conservation Biology
When was the Convention on Biodiversity at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro signed?
1992
Genetic diversity is
diversity within an individual species,
different configurations of features, that can be seen on individuals of the same species of plant or animal
less genetic diversity within a population can lead to inferior offspring leading to further population declines
Inbreeding depression
Species Diversity. Two main measurements:
- Species richness (how many different individual species)
- species evenness (the variance in population size between species within the community.)
An Ecosystem Diversity is made up of
the habitats, different communities and ecological processes and the variety of ecosystems in an area
Sixth major extinction episode
Holocene Extinction
IPBES
Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services
Exponentially increasing biodiversity losses were being driven by human impact on the planet and identified 5 main drivers of change:
- Changes in land and sea use
- Direct exploitation of organisms and resources
- Climate change
- Pollution
- Alien invasive species
Why is it Important to Protect Biodiversity? (5)
Natural Resource Value
Ecosystem Service Value
Recreational and Cultural Value
Economic Value
Intrinsic value
The global value of ecosystem services has been valued at:
$33 trillion
the living components of an ecosystem. They are sorted into three groups: consumers, producers, and decomposers
Biotic factors
the non-living components of an ecosystem e.g. light, water, soil, minerals etc.
Abiotic factors
UNESCO
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
The large majority of conservation research often focuses on
identifying the impact of habitat destruction on individual species, or a collective group of species from certain habitats.
A positive interaction for one species but has a negative on the other
Predation / Parasitism / Herbivory interaction
A negative interaction for both species
Competition interaction
A positive interaction for both species
Mutualism or Symbiosis interaction
An interaction between two species where one species will gain benefits, whereas the other species will neither be positively nor negatively affected
Commensalism
Interactions between species, similar to competition where the outcome is positive for one species and negative for the other
Amensalism
A form of competition between members of the same species
Intra-specific competition
A form of competition between members of the different species
Inter-specific competition
A form of competition wherein organisms directly vie for resources, such as by aggression
Interference competition
A form of competition wherein organisms indirectly compete with other organisms for resources by exploiting resources to limit the resources availability to other organisms
Exploitation competition
Occurs in species that have or can establish hierarchies through aggressive behaviour, causing some individuals to hold a dominant status over the others ultimately resulting in a more successful reproductive output
Interference intraspecific competition
Occurs between the same species, however, it is a result of individuals exploiting the same resources such as food or habitat availability, thus reducing the amount available to others. Through either interference or exploitation, over time a superior competitor can eliminate an inferior one from the area, resulting in competitive exclusion.
Exploitation intraspecific competition
In order to deter predators, many prey organisms have evolved various adaptations
behavioural, physiological, as well as chemical defences.
Prey - Mimicry
Predator - sharp teeth, possession of poison, camouflage colouration and enhanced olfactory or visual senses
The relationship between two dissimilar organisms, which benefits both
Symbiosis or mutualism
An interaction in which one organism inflicts harm to another organism without obtaining any costs or benefits, thus no effect - people walking on grass
Amensalism
An intraspecific relationship in which one species obtains benefits such as food or shelter from another species (a host) without inducing adverse or negative effects - birds on cows
Commensalism
Comprises the entire space occupied by organisms on earth.
71% of marine waters.
Biosphere
How are forests used? (3 Goods & 5 Services)
Goods:
1. Timber and other wood products
2. Fuelwood and charcoal
3. Non-wood forest products (honey, medicines)
Services:
1.Climate enriching
2. Regulation of hydrological cycles
3. Carbon sinks
4. Soil stabilisation
5. Cultural values
Major impacts humans have on forest… (7)
- Fragmentation
- Invasive species
- Pollutants including acid
- Logging
- Climate change
- Altering fire regimes, non-optimal land management techniques
- Extracting non-timber products
Major impacts on marine and coastal ecosystems (5)
- The operation of fisheries
- Invasive species
- Climate change
- Changes to and destruction of viable habitats
- Chemical pollution, namely eutrophication
Conservation Education: (6)
- Explaining the necessity of environmental conservation and protection through press releases and announcements on TV and radio.
- Using factual pamphlets and educational posters to explain the importance of protecting endangered species.
- Ask teachers and children to conduct plays at schools with the message revolving around conservation.
- Educational field trips to wildlife reserves and unique biology classes on local wildlife for respective schools.
- Implementing training courses for local teachers and lectures for local authorities regarding local wildlife particularly threatened by human stressors.
- Wildlife events for the public.
Conserving biodiversity and using natural services sustainably will enable (4)
- Better health
- Greater food security
- Less poverty
- A greater capacity to cope with, and adapt to, environmental change.
The present data from the IUCN’s Red List of Threatened Species suggests a rate of how many extinctions per year?
34 extinctions per million species - Considering that the current natural rate is 0.1 to 2 extinctions per million species per year
The IUCN Red List documents at least 680 extinctions and a further possible 750 extinctions out of 112,400 species in the past 500 years.
Why are amphibians are statistically the group most threatened with extinction? (3)
a combination of habitat modification, changes in climate and the fungal disease chytridiomycosis which is occurring globally
Coral species have experienced the most severe extinction risk recently…
largely due to the mass bleaching event in 1998, a year of exceptionally high sea temperatures.
Conservation – what is it and what is the overall aim?
Conservation aims to integrate various conservation policies, field ecology, demography, taxonomy and genetics, ultimately directly impacting how species and ecosystems will be managed. It mostly involves the preservation of biodiversity, which typically incorporates the conservation of all wildlife and their associated habitats due to the fragile network of species interaction.
Conservation has two central goals:
- Evaluate human impacts upon biological diversity.
- Develop practical approaches to prevent the extinction of species.
How and what will be achieved through conserving biodiversity and accessing services sustainably… (6)
- Education and raising awareness to ensure the value of biodiversity is understood and how to protect it
- Benefits of biodiversity, and the costs of its loss, need to be reflected within economics and markets
- Efficiency in the use of resources (land, energy, water) to meet the growing human population
- Gaining traditional knowledge by collaborating with indigenous communities.
- Economic intensives to capitalise on the use of sustainable farming and resources
- Strategic planning of using marine resources ensuring the conservation of biodiversity
IPCC
Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change
Comprise less than 5% of the world’s population, protecting 80% of global biodiversity
Indigenous people
Current key conservation research initiatives (4)
- Identification of species most at threat from extinction (e.g., the IUCN Red List).
- Identification of areas with extremely low or high biodiversity.
- Modelling and estimation of species distributional responses to the impacts of climate change.
- Reporting and combatting species invasions.
Current conservation techniques (4)
- Captive breeding and reintroduction
- Genetic analyses e.g. eDNA
- Habitat restoration
- Rewilding
Coral reefs are primarily damaged due to (6)
- changing water temperatures
- ocean acidification
- pollution
- invasive species
- changing weather patterns
- physical destruction from fishing vessels or shipwrecks
Globally, approximately 30-50% of coral reefs have already been lost
a species that is native to where it is found
Endemic
The diversity within species, between species, and of ecosystems
Biodiversity
A form of competition wherein organisms indirectly compete with other organisms for resources by exploiting resources to limit the resources availability to other organisms
Exploitation competition
The birth rate, which is the ratio of total live births to total population in a particular area over a specified period of time; expressed as childbirths per 1000 people (or population) per year
Natality
Relationship or interaction between two dissimilar organisms, each of which may receive benefits from their partners that they did not have while living alone
Symbiosis
Two species cannot coexist in the same ecological niche for very long without one becoming extinct or being driven out because of competition for limited resources.
Competitive exclusion
A term that encompasses all the ecosystems on Earth. It, therefore, includes both non-living elements (like sunlight and water) and living organisms
Biosphere
Excessive richness of nutrients in a lake or other body of water, frequently due to run-off from the land, which causes a dense growth of plant life
Eutrophication
Genetic material obtained directly from environmental samples (soil, sediment, water, etc.) without any obvious signs of biological source material
eDNA
Several hierarchical levels in an ecosystem, consisting of organisms sharing the same function in the food chain and the same nutritional relationship to the primary sources of energy
Trophic levels
A specific version of a gene
Allele
A long strand of genetic information
Chromosome
Allele whose phenotype will be expressed in an individual that possesses that allele
Dominant allele
Genetic makeup of an individual
Genotype
Change in the genetic coding of a gene
Mutation
Individual’s inheritable physical characteristics
Phenotype
Allele whose phenotype will be expressed only if an individual is homozygous for that allele
Recessive allele
Theory of evolution by natural selection
states that organisms that are better suited for their environments will survive and reproduce compared to those that are poorly suited for their environments
Progeny
offspring
A process where a single cell divides into two identical daughter cells
Mitosis
The age-specific schedule of reproductivity and mortality of a population of individuals, influenced by natural selection.
it is a combination of factors depicting the lifecycle of an organism
Life history
Includes factors such as the number, size and sex ratio of offspring, the timing of reproduction, age and size at maturity and growth pattern.
Life history traits
Where one genotype produces different phenotypes under different environmental conditions
e.g some caterpillars mimic flowers or twigs of a specific tree depending on their diet
Phenotypic plasticity
The exchange of genetic material between different organisms which leads to production of offspring with combinations of traits
Genetic recombination
The transfer of genetic material from one population to another via reproduction, and can occur between two populations of the same species through migration
Gene flow / gene migration
The difference in DNA sequences between individuals within a population.
Genetic variation
The movement of populations, groups or individuals, enabling gene flow
Migration
The formation of new species as a result of geographic, physiological, anatomical, or behavioural factors that prevent previously interbreeding populations from breeding with each other.
Speciation
Occurs when a population is greatly reduced in size, limiting the genetic diversity of the species
Genetic bottlenecks
The total genetic diversity found within a population or a species
Gene pool
Is a mechanism involving random fluctuations of allele frequencies from generation to generation due to chance events, usually seen in small populations.
Genetic drift
change in the inherited traits of a population of organisms through successive generations
Genetic evolution
A section of a chromosome that corresponds to one or more DNA sequences that carry the coding information required to produce a specific protein, which in turn, carries out a selective function within the cell.
A gene
The combination of alleles (specific version) of a gene that an individual receives from both parents determines the genotype (genetic makeup) for a particular trait. The genotype, a collection of the genes, consequently determines the phenotype, which are the observable characteristics like hair and skin colour
Which suggests that no organism is ever completely adapted to the surroundings, thus they will always evolve, because of continued environmental change influencing natural selection to alter adaptations over time
‘The Red Queen hypothesis’
Cell division where the resulting cells (sperm and eggs) only contain half the chromosomes which then join together at fertilisation to make a complete compliment of chromasoms.
Meiosis
Darwin’s Theory of Evolution via natural selection: (4)
- In each generation that survives, more individuals are produced.
- Genetic variation exists among individuals and can be inherited.
- Individuals with advantageous traits will survive.
- When reproductive isolation occurs, new species will form.
Migration produces two known effects:
- Increase the variability within a population because it provides the variability that a population will require to survive if the environment changes drastically.
- Preventing a population of that species from diverging to the extent that it becomes a new species. As migration continues to work over an extended period of time, the new mutation will therefore be shared between populations. This blending effect helps stabilize the similarities between the population and helps to prevent more isolated populations from evolving reproductive barriers that may lead to speciation.
Main causes of genetic bottlenecks:
- Natural disasters
- Overhunting
- Habitat destruction
The number of offspring the organism leaves in the next generation.
Reproductive fitness
The general lifecycle of organisms; ultimately, how organisms allocate energy to survival and reproduction to maximize their fitness; including passing on their advantageous traits
Life history theory
Factors including the timing of reproduction, size and number of offspring, sex-ratio of offspring and individual growth rates
Life history traits
When an increase in one life history trait (improving fitness) is coupled to a decrease in another life history trait (reducing fitness), so that the fitness benefit through increasing trait 1 is balanced against a fitness cost through decreasing trait 2.
Trade-offs
An organism’s reproductive capacity (the number of offspring its capable of producing).
Fecundity
Reproducing or breeding only once in a lifetime
Semelparity
Reproducing several or many times during a lifetime
Iteroparity
Cost, such as time and energy, associated with raising offspring that reduces the parents’ ability to produce or invest in other offspring
Parental investment
Changes in the appearance of an organism as a result of genetic mutation and environmental conditions, in which the organism responds positively enabling them to cope with environmental conditions present in their natural habitats
Phenotypic adaptation
Slow life history (7)
Species that have
- Larger body sizes and lower population growth rates
- Slower growth
- Slower reproductive output
- Long gestation times
- Later ages at maturity
- Longer lifespans (longer generation times)
- Termed K selected
Fast life history - Species that have… (7)
- smaller body sizes and lower population growth rates
- Higher reproductive output
- Shorter gestation times
- Earlier ages at maturity
- Shorter lifespans
- Termed r selected
- early maturation and a higher number of offspring with less parental investment
Several males mate with a single female and the parental responsibility is shared by the female and her several mates
Cooperative polyandry
Where one male mates with several females in a breeding season
Polygyny
Where one female mates with several males in a breeding season
Polyandry
Holding and defending resources is essential for male reproductive success.
Resource defence polygyny
Involves the male staying with the female in order to deter other males from mating with her
Mate-guarding hypothesis
Males stay with a female to help protect and raise their offspring, resulting in healthier offspring
Male-assistance hypothesis
the female ensures that the male does not have other offspring that might compete with her own by interfering with the nay of the male’s mating calls
Female-enforcement hypothesis
where males compete for territories with the best resources and mate with the females that enter the territory, drawn in by the volume of resources.
Resourced-based polygyny
involves females controlling the resources
Resource defence polyandry
Multiple females and males mate with each other, and males may care for the broods of several females. It allows groups of males and females to live together without mate competition.
Polygynandrous groups
Major costs of parental investment:
- Decreased parental survival.
- Increased time until the next breeding attempt.
- Reduced future fecundity (via suppressed feeding and growth).
The benefits of a longer lifespan with respect to reproduction include:
- A greater number of reproductive events, therefore, a higher number of offspring per lifetime.
- If juvenile mortality is high, there is enough time to reproduce again to provide more offspring.
The behaviour of an animal that benefits another at its own expense.
Altruism or reciprocal altruism
Spatial proximity to kin allows maximal inclusive fitness can include alloparental care
Nepotism or Kin selection
Often the reproductive success of kin is at the expense of ones own survival and reproduction
Apparent Altruistic behaviour
A measure of fitness for relatives that are not directly descended from an individual
Indirect fitness (Inclusive fitness)
Limitations on the future evolutionary pathways caused by previous adaptations
Phylogenetic inertia
Parental care that is provided by an individual toward offspring that they are not genetically related to.
Alloparental care
Where some individuals in the group or “colony” do not reproduce for the benefit of others
Eusociality
A group of organisms within a colony, each with a specific role
Caste
Where all the competing organisms obtain some of the resources.
Scramble competition
Sociality
Group living
Advantages to individuals living in groups
- access to food and other resources such as water or shelter
- defence from predators
- access to mating opportunities
The study of the timing of life cycle events
Phenology
A seasonal movement of animals
Migration
The process of transformation from an immature form to an adult form in two or more distinct stages
Metamorphose
A sense of smell indicating a direction to navigate towards
Olfactory cues
Impacts of climate change on species migration (4)
- Rising sea levels - habitat loss and changes to prey abundance.
- Increasing temperatures - food web collapses, alternating sex ratios and changes in phonological responses
- Ocean acidification impacting mineral dependent organisms, indirectly affecting the food web
- Extreme weather such as drought and heavy precipitation can affect breeding timings and cause mortality
A species that has a large range and habitat whose conservation results in many other species benefitting
Umbrella species
A change in the structure of an ecosystem, and thus energy transferred, because of the removal of a top predator or integral species.
Trophic cascade
A species that most or all of the other species in an ecosystem are directly or indirectly dependent upon
Keystone species
The main factors that determine species conservation are (3)
- whether the species’ range is restricted, such that they are an endemic species;
- decreasing population trends
- the ecological status of a species
Selecting a species for nature conservation should be based upon (3)
- Limited distributional or geographic range (e.g. endemic species)
- Species with specific and narrow ecological niches.
- Low population figures.
Types of conservation techniques: (3)
- Captive breeding and reintroduction of species that were close to extinction / very endangered.
- Protective legislature of certain species due to population levels.
- Rewilding
the volume of renewable and non-renewable natural resources that combined produces various benefits to humans.
Natural capital
Ecosystems provide what services (4)
provisioning
supporting
regulating
cultural
The intermixing of two distinct yet closely related taxa, which may deeply affect the genetic make-up, long-term survival and evolution of the species
Hybridisation
A standardised measure of how much land and water is needed to produce the resources that are consumed, in addition to how much waste is produced.
Ecological footprint
What are the current challenges that face conservation? (4)
- Climate change
- Growing human population
- Agricultural practices and policies
- Politics and lack of policies
The United Nations predicts that the global human population is estimated to reach
9.2 billion by 2050
Environmental issues related to agriculture include (7)
- climate change
- deforestation
- genetic engineering
- irrigation problems
- pollution
- soil degradation
- waste build-up
Factors associated with soil erosion include (4)
- decline of nutrients and organic matter
- acidification
- compaction
- waterlogging.
How many species on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, have an increased extinction risk due to climate change?
10,967
Ecosystem services provided by mangroves include: (6)
- Flood mitigation.
- Aerial roots provide a buffer zone of protection to the coastline from storm damage.
- Stabilisation and protection of soil, preventing erosion.
- Improving nutrient retention and water quality.
- Plants absorb excess nitrates and phosphates preventing contamination of nearby waters
- Sequestration of carbon dioxide.
Actions to protect, sustainably manage, and restore natural or modified ecosystems, that address societal challenges effectively and adaptively, simultaneously providing human well-being and biodiversity benefits
Nature-based solutions
CBD
Convention on Biological Diversity
Nature-based solutions span a wide range of practices; however, we can group them here into four broad categories:
- Forestry practices such as replanting new forests and improved forestry management.
- Wetland-related practices such as peatland and mangrove restoration.
- Restorative agricultural practices that strengthen soil biodiversity.
- Ocean-based practices involving seagrass and kelp restoration.
Advantages of nature-based solutions: (7)
- Reduce net emissions
- Expand carbon sinks
- Provide habitats for biodiversity
- Benefits for human health and well-being
- Help our society and economy adapt to climate change
- Make more resilient and nicer places to live and work
- There are a number of different ways nature-based solutions can be implemented both in urban and rural environments.
A non-management approach to species conservation involving reintroductions to allow for species interactions to create a self-sustaining ecosystem.
Rewilding
The world’s natural assets including geology, soil, air, water and all living things.
Natural Capital
The benefits of rewilding (4)
- Enabling connectivity between habitats will allow for species to easily migrate in order to adapt to the changing climate
- Carbon sequestration through the restoration of carbon sinks like native woodlands and peat bogs.
- Improves overall biodiversity
- Improves local economies through nature-based capital and creates new job opportunities
