maintaining biodiversity Flashcards
Why is biodiversity important for protecting species?
Biodiversity maintains the balance of ecosystems, and the loss of even one species can disrupt food chains, nutrient cycles, and other interdependent relationships in the ecosystem.
What is an ecosystem?
An ecosystem is all the organisms living in a particular area and the non-living conditions, such as temperature, that affect them.
What can happen if a species in an ecosystem is lost?
The loss of a species can disrupt food chains, nutrient cycles, and interdependent relationships, potentially causing drastic changes to the ecosystem.
What is a keystone species?
A keystone species is a species on which many other species in an ecosystem depend. Its loss can cause dramatic changes in the ecosystem.
Can you give an example of a keystone species?
The wolf is a keystone species in America. Without wolves to hunt them, elk populations increased, causing overgrazing and the loss of plant species, which affected other species like beavers and songbirds.
Why is maintaining genetic diversity important?
Genetic diversity provides valuable genetic resources, such as crops, medicinal plants, and animal breeds, which are essential for products like food, clothing, drugs, fuels, and industrial materials.
How do genetic resources contribute to our everyday lives?
Genetic resources provide raw materials for food, clothing, drugs, fuels, and industrial materials, such as wood, rubber, paper, and chemicals.
How do genetic resources help us adapt to environmental changes?
Genetic resources allow us to develop crops and other organisms that can survive in changing environmental conditions, such as drought-resistant plants in the case of climate change.
Why are genetic resources important to the global economy?
Products derived from plant and animal species are traded locally and globally, and maintaining genetic diversity supports industries that depend on these resources.
How might genetic resources be used in response to climate change?
Genetic resources, such as drought-resistant plants, can be used to genetically engineer crops that can survive in changing climates, helping to maintain food production.
What is monoculture, and how does it affect soil?
Monoculture is the practice of growing a single variety of crop in the same field continuously. It causes soil depletion as the crop uses up specific nutrients, leading to decreased soil fertility.
What is continuous monoculture?
Continuous monoculture involves planting the same crop in the same field without interruption, which depletes soil nutrients over time.
What is soil depletion, and how does it affect farming?
Soil depletion occurs when crops use up the soil’s nutrients, leading to lower yields and the need for increased fertiliser use to replenish nutrients.
What are the economic costs of soil depletion?
The economic costs of soil depletion include higher spending on fertilisers to replace nutrients and decreased crop yields in the long term.
How does biodiversity contribute to aesthetic value?
Biodiversity creates beautiful landscapes, attracting people who enjoy the natural environment. Protecting biodiversity helps preserve these attractive landscapes.
How does biodiversity support tourism and the economy?
Areas with high biodiversity attract more visitors, leading to economic advantages from tourism, such as increased revenue from visitors to nature reserves or parks.
