L4 Long-term Ecology And Conservation Flashcards
2 current problems in ecology and conservation management
Studies rarely exceed 50 years
Historical paseline info deemed critical but often dismissed as a ‘data gap’
3 current problems in palaeoecology
Unaware of emerging conservation issues
Taxonomic resolution - cannot always ID to species level
Do not design research programmes arounf conservation needs
What is done in palaeoecology
Reconstruct the plant species assembleges and environments of the past
How can palaeoecology be applied to conservations
Reconstruct natural disturbance
Establish baseline or reference conditions
Invasive species management and determination of conservation status (native vs introduced)
Maintenece of cultural landscapes
Ecological restoration
What does it mean to determine the range of natural variability (RNV)
How mauch variation happened in the past and what managed to survive
When did the mass loss of pine in Scotland occur and how do we know this
4400 years ago
Stumps all over the highlands have been carbon dated back to this time
What may have cuased the Pine decline (5 possibilities)
Regional climatic change
Anthropogenic impact (but this would take a large population)
Volcanic eruption
Pathogenic attack
Changing fire frequency
When does pollen evidence show that the pine decline happened and what was the reason
7000 years ago
Different factors at different sites
Outcompeted by broadleaf species like oak and birch
What percentage of the native biological diversity still remains in the Galapagos
95%
What is the trend in the extinction rates of the Galapagos
What percentage of plant and vertebrate taxa are classified as threatened
Some of the highest in the world
64% of vascular plants and 49% of vertebrates
What are 3 conservation threats in the Galapagos
Invasive species
Habitat degradation in highlands
Increasing human impact
What is the conservation goal in the Galapagos (quote) and what is the reference for this
The restoration of the populations and distributions of all extant native biodiversity and of natural ecological / evolutionary processes to the conditions prior to human settlement
Charles Darwin Foundation, 2002
Give an example of an invasive plant species in the Galapagos and how it has spread
Quinine
first introduced in agricultural zone but has now spreaf to highland vegetation zones and covers more than 12000ha
Explain the conservation concerns that surrounded Hibiscus diversifolius and how they were adressed
Originally thought to be invasive and need eraditing as it is a known habitat changer
Pollen data has shown that it was clearly present before human arrival and development
What are the benefits of using a scanning electron microscope in palaeoecology and what plant group is this especially beneficial for
It has far better taxonomic resolution
Useful for species of grass as they cannot be ID’d to the species level using the pollen record
