Lecture 18: Evolution and conservation

Question 1

human activities change the environment;

Answer 1

• habitat loss (forced move,adapt or die out)
• climate change (or rainfall impact will affect the suitability of habitat for different species)
• pollution (degrade habitats and reduce their suitability)

Question 2

Consequences of change:

Answer 2

• reduced population sizes
• extinction of populations
• extinction of species
• loss of ecosystem

Question 3

dodo extinction date

Answer 3

1681

Question 4

great auk extinction

Answer 4

hunted, eggs were removed and consumed as food, became rare museums and collectors were keen to have one

Question 5

chinese river dolphin extinction :

Answer 5

extinct in 2006, due to overfishing and pollution

Question 6

looking at historical extinction and current extinction what can you tell

Answer 6

introduced species use to be most devastating, then habitat loss then human exploitation.
NOW; habitat loss, intro species, human exploitation

Question 7

all species are the outcome of

Answer 7

evolution

Question 8

correlates of extinction questions to consider

Answer 8

• Are some species more likely to become extinct than others?
• Are species at threat randomly distributed?
• Does this depend on their ecology?
• Does this depend on where they live?

Question 9

Phylogenetic niche conservatism

Answer 9

• species inherit their niches from their ancestors.
• so new species are v similar to parent species - DO THEY SHARE SIMILAR CHANCES OF EXTINCTION?
• share similar life histories

Question 10

niche:

Answer 10

the way in which an organism fits into an ecological community or ecosystem

Question 11

e.g. of phylogenetic niche conservatism:

Answer 11

• Old world leaf warblers
• Very similar in appearance
• Also similar in ecology
• Insectivorous
• Feed on trees
• Short-lived
• Many co-occur

Question 12

Consequences of phylogenetic niche conservatism

Answer 12

• Closely related species share similar levels of threat, because they are ecologically similar
• Low rates of adaptability: conservatism is a consequence of this
• Low rates of evolution: also conservatism results from this

Question 13

IUCN threat;

Answer 13

measure of how likely populations are to become extinct in coming years
(extinct, endangered etc.)
-Life history & ecological variables
-Chosen carefully
-Used statistical analysis to compare threats and these variables

Question 14

phylogenetic conservatism is measured by

Answer 14

looking to see whether evolutionary distance correlates with differences in traits

Question 15

evolution is faster

Answer 15

outside of the tropics

Question 16

evolution is slower in

Answer 16

small, wide-ranging & generalised groups

Question 17

Niche conservatism greater in the

Answer 17

in the tropics

Question 18

Niche conservatism is quicker in

Answer 18

small, wide-ranging & generalised groups

Question 19

phylodiversity - prioritising

Answer 19

• Some areas and groups are more or less adaptable in the face of threats
• Some areas contain more unique species than others
• Phylogenies contain unequal distributions of species
• Based on phylogenetic information can prioritise

Question 20

Phylogenetic diversity:

Answer 20

is defined as the total amount of history shared by a group of species

Question 21

Phylogenetic diversity: further back they’re connected back in their phylogeny the

Answer 21

higher their Phylogenetic diversity

Question 22

what should be an important consideration in deciding which species to conserve?

Answer 22

PHLOYGENY

Question 23

conservation should aim to

Answer 23

conserve as wide a range of phylogenetic diversity as possible

Question 24

what should be focussed on conserving;

Answer 24

• Focus away from species rich groups in which individual species are threatened
• Focus on evolutionarily distinct species
• This is because phylogenetic diversity correlates with genetic and functional diversity

Question 25

speciation is high on

Answer 25

islands

Question 26

past rates of speciation ____ to estimate

Answer 26

difficult

Question 27

current areas with high richness known as

Answer 27

hotspots

Question 28

hotspots;

Answer 28

• -These are areas of currently unusually high diversity
• Prioritising these will maximise conservation of phylogenetic diversity
• Also serve as pools of species in the future -> future speciation