Midterm 1 Flashcards
Biogeography
- The study of the past and present geographic distributions of plants and animals and other organisms including the environmental and evolutionary forces that produce those distributions
- Essentially, why a biological individual lives where it lives
When did biogeography develop as a discipline?
The 18th century.
Linnaeus, 1735
- Began to describe and name the animals and plants of the world
- He recorded the type of environment each species was found and where it was found (geographic location)
- Conflict emerging in his work between the words of the bible and the changing characteristics over time –not consistent with a single event/act of God
George Buffon, 1761
- Identified similar environments could be found in different regions of the world but they contained different groupings of organisms of the same species
- Began to identify that mammals found in North America were also found in Eurasia and he hypothesized that they could have once travelled between the two continents
Captain, James Cook (1772-1775)
- Collected thousands of species of plants
- Identified differences based on separations by landscape barriers, water, and climatic differences
- That there were more species (greater diversity) closer to the equator and few species and less diversity toward the poles
Dr. Joseph Hooker, 1843
- Dr. Joseph Hooker returned from New Zealand, Australia, Tasmania and South America with a collection of specimens.
- Noticed that the same plant families were found on different continents
- He concluded that the distance separating these continents was too great for long-distance dispersal, therefore, the southern land areas were once joined (vicariancebiogeographers)
What is a variance event?
- A process in which two or more populations of the same (but geographically separated and non-interbreeding) species become less similar to each other over time
- Differences evolve due to mutation or survival advantages of different traits in differing environments, and eventually become they become so different that they are considered a distinct species
Charles Darwin (19th Century)
- began to realize that species were not as unchanging as people thought
- Came to suggest that organisms were related to one another by evolution
- Darwin recognized that animals and plants produce far more offspring than would be needed to simply replace the breeding pair
- Therefore, there must be competition for survival
- natural selection. Offspring with more favourable characteristics lived longer
Alfred Wallace(January 1823 –November 1913)
- Thought along the same lines as Darwin
- The ideas of natural selection were published by both Darwin and Wallace –the evidence of evolution
- Darwin’s publication “On the Origin of Species” was laid out logically and persuasively and became popular
- Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace disagreed on the importance of the geological breakup of landmasses in generating biogeographic disjunctions in the Southern Hemisphere (dispersalists)
Adolf Engler (1879)
was the first botanist to make a world map, showing the distributions of regional floras
Zoogeography
began to develop in the 19th century onward, mapping warm-blooded mammal distributions throughout the world
Leon Croizat
- created panbiogeography
- species of very different geographic patterns share similar geographic patterns
- different species have very different dispersal patterns
- shared patterns are not likely to have arisen from long distance dispersal
Panbiogeography
plots distributions of a particular taxon or group of taxa on maps and connects the disjunct distribution areas or collection localities together with lines called tracks
Linking Geography and Evolutionary History
- The only explanation for repeated patterns…is that taxa once had much larger distributions before geologic events
- The over time, events split the once continuous ranges
- Most speciation occurred following vicariance events
Vicariance Biogeography
- developed following panbiogeography
- Dispersal events were rare and unimportant
- All speciation arose from the splitting of once continuous ranges through geological events
- Climactic changes as well as geologic changes can create biogeographic barriers and produce vicariance events
Modern Biogeography
-Modern biogeography began to look at the connectivity of earth continents through time, that may have at one point, been one large continental mass
What is an ecosystem?
- A community of living organisms in conjunction with the nonliving components of their environment, interacting as a system
- These biotic and abiotic components are regarded as linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows
Ecology
- Derived from “oikos” (Greek) meaning ‘home’
- the scientific study of the interactions between organisms and their environment
Environment
all factors outside the organism that influence it
Factors are either
- abiotic (physical and chemical)
- biotic (other organisms)
Proximal
- patterns explained by the present environment
- Eg. How did the weather (eg. rain) this summer influence plant growth in the region?
Ultimate
- patterns explained by the past environment (i.e. ecological experiences of ancestors through evolution)
- Eg. How has the climate over the past 1000 years influenced the plant species present in the region?
Ecology deals with three levels
- Individuals
- Populations
- Communities
Evolutionary Ecology
–individuals are the units of evolution
-Assumes: specializations imposed by evolutionary history
Physiological Ecology
individual responses to environment
Behavioral Ecology
individual responses to other individuals
Populations
- abundance/distribution patterns of groups of organisms: processes of birth, death, migration
- evolutionary change occurs at the population level
- Interactions of organisms of the same species
- Interactions of two populations of different species
Communities
- interactions of multiple populations of different species
- Structure and species interactions
- energy, nutrient, chemical pathways → Ecosystem Ecology
Conservation Ecology
blend of evolution, population, community, and ecosystem ecology → apply to conservation issues
Unitary Individuals
physically and genetically distinct units (i.e. individuals) each arising from a genetically distinct zygote
Modular Individuals
consist of many interconnected units derived from the same zygote (e.g. plants, corals, sponges)
-Modular individuals can exist separately and be physiologically independent (-not attached to the parent)
Biological species
-species is defined on the basis of reproductive (genetic) isolation
Phylogenetic Species
-species is defined based on a pattern of ancestry and descent and shared derived characteristics
Subspecies
Where a species can exist in a number of different forms that are sufficiently stable
Polytipic
Consists of two or more subspecies
Monotypic species
Does not include subspecies or smaller, intraspecific taxa
Taxonomy
The science of classifying species
- historically, based on phenotypic features
- modern day, based on DNA
Taxon (plural) taxa (singular)
Is an undefined unit of classification
How is genetic diversity lost?
- small population size: smaller populations lose genetic diversity faster than large populations (Island biogeography principles)
- changes in patterns of genetic diversity among populations
- loss of allelic richness in small populations
Biodiversity
-the variety of life and life processes and includes levels of: landscape, ecosystem, species, genetic
landscape
is a collection of ecosystems
ecosystem
a discrete area (i.e., forest stand) that can be characterized by its plant and animal communities as well as the associated abiotic (physical rather than biological) conditions
community
(ecological) -a group of interacting plant and/or animal populations
population
all individuals of a given species in a prescribed area
species
a group of organisms that share similar features
genetic
a group of organisms that share specific genetic attributes
population
a group of individuals of one species living together
spatial structure
how individuals organize themselves in space
ex) -geographic distribution/range
- patterns of dispersal
- population size
age/size structure
number of individuals in each age/size class ex)-demographic rates (birth, death, migration) of individuals change throughout their lifetime
genetic structure
genetic composition of all individuals combined within the population
What determines population size?
Demographic processes: birth rates, death rates, migration rates
geographic range
entire area of the world where a species can be found
density
differences in abundance of species within its geographic range
carrying capacity
Capability of the land base to support a certain number of organisms per unit area
niche
- a two dimensional consideration of how a particular species occupies a particular space –both biotic and abiotic considerations
- describes how an organism or population responds to the distribution of resources and competition
Taxonomic Hierarchy
- Kingdom
- Phylum
- Class
- Order
- Family
- Genus
- Species
Taxonomy
- Is knows as systematics –the main goal of taxonomy is to determine the evolutionary relationship between groups of organisms
- Taxonomists are therefore also know as systematisists
Phytogeographers
study the present and past distributions of plants
Zoogeographers
study the present and past distribution of animals
Ecological Biogeography
the study of the modern relationships between organisms and the environment
Historical Biogeography
the study of past distributions and evolution of life
Conservation Biogeography
Applying the lessons learned from ecological, historical and biological biogeography to identify restoration of natural environments
Habitat
explicit spatial environment in which a species can be found
Generalists
species that tolerate a wide range of environmental conditions
Specialists
species that have very narrow environmental tolerances
food chain
pathway of food/energy transfer between species
Trophic levels
groups of species that derive food energy from a similar source
Guilds
groups of species within each trophic level that exploit a common resource in a similar manner
Basal species
feed on no other species but are fed upon by others
primary producers
plants
intermediate species
feed on other species and are prey for other species
primary consumers
herbivores
secondary consumers
carnivores (meso-predators)
top predators
feed on other species but are not prey for other species
omnivores
feed on more than one trophic levels
functional group
spp that perform the same role in a community (e.g. decomposers, top predators, herbivores, carbon-fixers)
Limiting(welfare) factors
abiotic parameters that most affect (i.e., ‘limit’) the ability of an organism to survive in an area
Critical(welfare) factor
the most important abiotic parameter that affects the ability of an organism to survive in an area
Ecological Sustainability
maintenance of biological diversity and ecosystem integrity from one generation to the next ad infinitum
ecosystem integrity
Addresses the ecological processes that are essential for ecosystems to function
ecosystem
The biotic communities and their associated abiotic attributes that interact in a defined geographic area
management
achieving goals or objectives set by society at large
ecosystem management
- Achieving societal goals in a defined geographic area for the interacting biotic communities and their abiotic environment
- Note that humans are a component of any ecosystem
sustainable development
The ability to meet humanity’s current needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.
landscape measure
Representation of all ecosystems that occurred historically
cognitive hierarchy
- Behaviors
- Behavioral Intentions
- Attitudes and Norms
- Value Orientations
- Values
evolution
genetically controlled changes in physiology, anatomy, and behaviour that occur to species over time.
speciation
development of two or more species from a common ancestor. Ex: Finches
-Speciation events are caused by evolutionary changes. Ex: drought in Galapagos Islands-beaks strong enough for solid nuts
locus
point at which a gene is located on the chromosome
alleles
different gene forms that exist for a given locus
heterozygous –when a locus has different alleles associated with it
when a locus has different alleles associated with it
Genotype
set of genes an individual caries
Phenotype
observable characteristics based on an individuals genotype and environment
allopatric speciation
formation of new species by geographic isolation
sympatric speciation
formation of new species within the same geographic area
Mutations
differences in life cycle timing, such as reproduction timing
Cope’s Rule
evolution to larger body size.
-Example: Horses –began as a small dog-sized mammal
founder effect
The loss of genetic variation that occurs when a new population is established by a very small number of individuals from a larger population
bottleneck
a sharp reduction in size of a population due to environmental random events (earthquakes, floods, fires, or droughts) or human activities
-Likely that certain genes will be lost
Peripatric Speciation
When peripheral populations become geographically isolated from the main population
- Speciation is more likely to occur at the edges of a species range
- Central populations have higher genetic diversity
- This causes peripatric speciation
Trophic Cascade
when the abundance of an important prey species has been suppressed, it results in a loss of food for higher predators in the food web
Rapoport’s Rule
pattern of decreasing range size toward the equator compared to those that live in higher latitudes
Historical Biogeography
is the study of species specific to evolution and over evolutionary time scales using a combination of phylogenetic and distributional information
universe date
13.7 billion years ago
The Big Bang
-single point exploded
-Expanding Universe Theory
Galaxies, stars, and planets formed by coalescence of dust and gas
Earth Formation date
4.6 billion years ago
Formation of the Atmosphere and Oceans
- Earth’s atmosphere formed from gases emitted by volcanoes
- Over 4 billion years ago, water vapor from volcanic emissions condensed out of the atmosphere and collected in low-lying areas of crust, adding to and forming oceans and inland water bodies
Evolution of life on earth date
3.5 billion years ago
Cyanobacteria
is a phylum of bacteria that obtain their energy through photosynthesis, and are the only photosynthetic prokaryotes able to produce oxygen, remain a hugely important part of the food chain providing food sources for snails, insects, zooplankton and other algae species
Stromatolites
colonies of cyanobacteria
oxygen concentrations increased during
Great Oxidation Event 2.4 billion years ago —ozonosphere (Ozone layer) formed
Ozonosphere blocks UV rays
making it possible for life to leave oceans and move onto land
Multicellular life date
≈1.2 billion years ag
Land plants date
≈475 million years ago
Dinosaurs date
≈240 million years ago —went extinct 66 million years ago, (probably large asteroid impact
Earliest mammals date
≈210 million years ago
Modern humans date
≈200,000 years ago
which mass extinction is it believed that we are living through?
the 6th
End Ordovician Mass Extinction
- 444 million years ago
- 86% of species lost
- Reason: occurred over the period of about a million years and was likely caused by a short, severe ice age that lowered sea levels, possibly triggered by the uplift of the Appalachians
- The newly exposed silicate rock sucked CO2out of the atmosphere, chilling the planet
Late Devonian Mass Extinction
- 375 million years ago
- 75% of species lost
- Reason: A variety ofcauseshave been proposed for the Devonian mass extinctions including asteroid impacts, global anoxia (widespread dissolved oxygen shortages), plate tectonics, sea level changes, and climatic change
How many years between the first two mass extinctions?
69 million
End Permian Mass Extinction
- 251 million years ago
- 96% of species lost
- Known as “the great dying”, this was by far the worst extinction event
- Cause: A perfect storm of natural catastrophes -A cataclysmic eruption near Siberia blasted CO2 into the atmosphere -Methanogenic bacteria responded by releasing methane, a potent greenhouse gas -Global temperatures surged while oceans acidified and stagnated, belching poisonous hydrogen sulfide
End Triassic Mass Extinction
- 200 million years ago
- 80% of species lost
- Cause: Many scientists contend that this event was caused by climate change and rising sea levels resulting from the sudden release of large amounts of carbon dioxide
End Cretaceous Mass Extinction
- 66 million years ago
- 76% of all species lost
- Cause: asteroid impact although some scientists attribute causes: volcanic eruptions, climate change, sea level change
Pangaea
Gondwanaland and Laurasia -formed about 270 million years ago and broke apart about 200 million years a
plate boundaries
margins of plates
Earthquake activity
reveals plate boundary location
fossils
- Lithified remains of dead plants and animals
- Primarily found in sedimentary rocks
- Strata used to date fossils
active dispersal
- Forcible ejection of seeds from pod
- Dispersal doesn’t require an external vector
- seeds may travel up to 7m from parent plant
- Gradual widening of range referred to as “diffusion”
- Known as “autochory”
Passive Dispersal
-Known as Allochory
-Seeds float and remain viable in water, allowing for riparian transport over large distances -“hydrochory”
-Wind dispersal is called “anemochory”
These methods of dispersal represent “jump dispersal” event
zoochory
plant dispersal by animals
Pre-Anthropocene barriers
Geographic features that block dispersal and colonization
Pre-Anthropocene corridors
Geographic features that promote dispersal and colonization
water barriers
oceans are barriers to freshwater fish, amphibians and terrestrial animals
land barriers
land can be barriers to marine organisms
environmental barriers
- Moisture
- Temperature
- Light
- CO2
- Nutrients
- Oxygen
- Pressure
biological barriers
Animal behavior
- avoiding crossing long distances
- Lack of prey for stenophagous predators (eat only a limited variety of food)
- Interspecific competition (competing with other species)
corridors
- Areas that allow unrestricted movement of all taxa from either side of it
- Bering Land Bridge
- Can be artificially created… Banff
Great American Exchange
- movement of terrestrial fauna
- Exchange between mammals of North and South America
- NA mammals more successful at colonizing the south than SA mammals and birds at dispersing north
- Dense tropical forest became a filter that allowed dispersal of tropical forest species but restricted S-ward migration of NA grazing faun
anthropochory
Transport of seeds/species by people
The Pleistocene Epoch
- most recent ice age
- began about 2.6 million years ago
- and lasted about 11,700 years ago
distribution
An order or pattern formed by the tendency of a sufficiently large number of observations of individuals which represents the spread of the area they occupy
range
A species range is the area where a particular species can be found during its lifetime. Species range includes areas where individuals or communities may migrate or hibernate. Every living species on the planet has its own unique geographic range
ecological biogeography
Is concerned with the short-term periods of time, at smaller scale, with local, within habitat, or intracontinental questions and primarily concerned with species and subspecies of living animals and plants
What is an ecosystem?
- A community of living organisms in conjunction with the nonliving components of their environment, interacting as a system
- These biotic and abiotic components are regarded as linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flow
keystone species
–a species whose effect on the structure of a biological community is well out of proportion to its relative biomass. The addition or the removal of a keystone species has a large effect on the richness and relative abundance of many other species
indicator species
is a species indicative of particular conditions in a system and used as a surrogate measure for other species or particular condition
umbrella species
is a species that, if flourishing, would protect other species in the biological community because of its demand for large expanses of habitat
flagship species
is a species that elicits emotional feelings from individuals leading to a potential for individuals to be more passionate about conservation of that species habitat or perhaps even contribute financially
vulnerable species
is a species that is particularly susceptible to extinction
economically or culturally important species
is a species that has positive or negative consequences for the local, regional or national economy
minimum viable population (MVP)
is the smallest spatially discrete population having a certain probability (i.e. 99%) of remaining viable (or extant –not going extinct) for a certain period of time (i.e. 1000 years)
metapopulation
is a regional population consisting of a number of spatially discrete populations distributed among habitat fragments, connected by dispersal
population viability analysis (PVA)
is a species-specific method of risk assessment traditionally defined as the process that determines the probability that a population will go extinct within a given number of years
disturbance
“A disturbance is any relatively discrete event in time that disrupts the ecosystem, community, or structure and changes resources, substrate availability or the physical environment.” -White and Pickett (1985)
- Short term physical or biological events that significantly alter ecosystems
- Natural and important part of the environment
types of disturbance
- Fire
- Wind
- Flooding
- Landslides/avalanches
- Volcanic activity
- Pathogens
- Marine disturbances
succession
Term used to describe the physical and biological changes that occur after a disturbance Two main type
primary succession
When plants and animals colonize a previously uninhabited habitat
secondary succession
When an ecosystem recovers from a disturbance
seral stages
progress of succession is divided into stages. For plants it is called seral stages
natural fire ignition source and requirements
lightning. Requirements:
- Dry conditions
- High winds
- High air temperatures
- Low air and soil humidity
adaptations to fire
Fire Resistant Bark •Deep Root Systems •Epicormic Sprouting •Seed Dormancy •Serotinous Cone
benefits of fire
- Recycling nutrients of living and dead biomass
- Clears away leaf little and dead standing trees
- New growth provides food for herbivores
- Insects use burnt trees as microenvironments
catastrophic winds
Wind speed of over 200 km/h
-Hurricanes and Tornadoes
wind micro blasts
Speeds can reach 400 km per hour
-Cause small linear patches of intense tree mortal
flooding
- Primarily affects low areas and river bottom forests near bodies of water
- controls the geographic distribution of plant species
river and lake flooding
- Caused by high amounts of precipitation and snowmelt
- As well as river ice blocking water passages
flash flooding
- Rapid flooding of a low-lying area due to storms producing large amounts of water, which overflows water bodies
- More prevalent in mountainous and semi-arid regions
coastal floods
Storm surges flooding the coastline in sea waters
flood benefits
- Riparian forests that consist of willows and sedges thrive in areas that are often flooded. These trees add to the stability of the forest
- Seeds are transported via flood water allowing forests to spread their rang
geographical range/distribution
geographical area in which a species lives
-determined by presence of suitable environmental conditions & resources
habitat patch
-an area of homogeneous environmental conditions -contains suitable conditions and resources needed to sustain a population
landscape mosaic
includes the spatial characteristics of all the natural and human-created aspects of the environment
landscape matrix
includes is the “background ecological system” of a landscape with a high degree of connectivity
metapopulation
collection of local populations interacting within the geographical range (movement of individuals
dispersal
movement of individuals away from place of birth or areas of high population density (-due to limited resources, etc)
emigration
movement of individuals out of a population
immigration
movement of individuals into a population
sink population
death rates exceed birth rates and immigration exceeds emigration -Sinkhabitats, bydefinition, cannot persist without immigration
source population
birth rates exceed death rates and emigration exceeds immigration -sources are net exporters of individual
patterns of dispersion
spacing of individuals with respect to one another
pattern of dispersion: clumped
in discrete groups ex) young staying with parents, flocking, etc
pattern of dispersion: even
regularly/uniformly spaced. ex) plants competing for light
pattern of dispersion: random
without regard to other. Rarely occurs
movement corridors
are linear strips of ecosystems intended to facilitate the movement of species between larger landscape patches
natal dispersal
is largely an innate behavior that is expressed in young individuals that leave their site of birth and move in search of a mate and suitable unoccupied breeding habit
density-dependent dispersal
is the movement from one area of high density and intraspecific competition to areas of lower density and lower competition levels
3 factors that threaten species persistence
- habitat loss
- habitat fragmentation
- matrix quality
perforation
a type of habitat fragmentation in which human uses alter small patches within an area of natural vegetation
internal fragmentation
a type of habitat fragmentation in which linear corridors (roads, hydro lines etc) dissect an area
species-area relationship
states that the number of species increases as area of an ecosystem increases
area-sensitive species
are species that require a large area to survive and reproduce –may be the result of having a restricted ecological niche
ex) mountain lions dependent upon elk
edge effect
some species are negatively affected near habitat edges –not all species evolved with edge –many species require large areas of unfragmented habitats
edge-sensitive species
a species whose fitness is reduced near habitat edges
abiotic effects
sharp gradients across edges in temperature, relative humidity, solar radiation, and moisture
biotic effects
some species do better with edge than other –edge-generalist species can exert biotic effects on other species
human effects
human activities along edges such as pets, weapons, and disturbance
alpha species richness
is the number of species within small areas of fairly uniform habitat (example: the number of song birds or herbaceous plants species in a coniferous forest stand)
gamma species richness
is the number of species within a region i.e. the cumulative number of species observed in all habitats within a region (example: the number of song birds or herbaceous plant species in the boreal forest of Manitoba)
beta richness
is the amount of change or turnover in species i.e. species gained and lost in going from one habitat to the next (the species difference between the two habitats). A high beta richness means that different habitats are supporting very different suites of species and therefore the cumulative number of species is higher
predation
when one organism consumes another
stenophagous
predators with a narrow range of prey species
- specialist species
ex) koala, checkerspot butterfly
Euryphagous
- many prey species as a food source
- generalist species
fine-grained
- Animals with large ranges and a broad diet
- Forging is from an array of fine-scale environments within their range
coarse-grained
- Animals with a small range and a restricted diet
- Forging is coarsely divided b/w the limited areas that they can live in and can’t live in
optimal foraging theory
Benefits predators to focus on prey species that provide the highest ratio of food energy relative to the energy required for foraging
Lotka-VolterraModel
Model produces a set of sinusoidal curves in which the curve of the prey population leads the rises and declines of the predator population
competetion
- Rivalry for supremacy
- Occurs between species in an area
- Interspecific & Intra specific competition
interspecific competition
Interactions between individual of two of more species
-different species
intraspecific competition
interaction between individuals of the same species
-same species
resource exploitation competition
- Indirect contact
- Cheetah and lions competing for the same food sources (antelope)
- One specie denies another access to a resource simply by consuming it first
interference competition (physical or chemical) allelopathy
- Direct contact
- One specie prevents foraging, survival, and reproduction of the other species
Mutualism
Interaction presents benefits to both species
Commensalism
Interaction benefits one species while having no impact on the other
Parasitism
Only one species benefits at the expense of the other
Müellerian mimicry
When two poisonous or unpalatable species share the same coloring or shape
batesian mimicry
When a species that is not poisonous or unpalatable mimics the coloring or shape of a poisonous or unpalatable species
Fundamental Niche
The broad niche of a species in the absence of competition
Realized Niche
the more restricted niche of a species resulting from competition
Competitive Exclusion Principle
No two species should have completely overlapping niches
philopatric behaviour
is when an animal returns to the same general area of their birth or where they give birth to offspring for a number of seasons
ontogeny
The development of a single organism in the course of its life history
Anthropocene
A name for the current geological approach in recognition of human impacts on the natural environment
evolution
a process by which species develop
from earlier forms, as an explanation of their
origins.
adaptive radiation
The evolutionary radiation
of a group, based on a novel set of characteristics,
that allows it to adapt to a wide range of ways of
life.
zonation
distribution in zones, esp. (Ecol.) of
plants into zones characterized by the dominant
species
T or F
New Zealand was a land without browsing
mammals.
true
only 2 terrestrial mammals in New Zealand were…
bats
unique things about kiwi bird
- has a keen sense of smell
- bones contain marrow not air sacks
- nostrils at the tip of its beak
- has 4 toes
- eye sockets are separated by large nasal cavities (like mammals)
- nocturnal with poor vision
Tuatara
- named the “living fossil”
- ancestry is 200 million years old
- no evidence about its evolution
- 3rd eye in the centre of its head
absence of mammalian predators caused what in New Zealand
-unusually high numbers of birds that are poor flyers or cannot fly at all
First Human Influx in New Zealand
-occurred in the 12th century
-Maori from Polynesia about 800 years ago
to New Zealand
-brought the rat and Maori dog
The Second Human Influx in NZ
1769 -1840
- Captain James Cook landed in New Zealand
- claimed it on behalf of the British Crown.
- brought rats and pigs
The Third Human Influx in NZ
1841 -1900
-brought 100 bird species and 25 mammal
species
-brought for reasons of sport, commerce
and to remind the settlers of home in Britain
NZ contains how much of the world’s endangered species?
11%
New Zealand’s altitudinal zones
-characterized as abrupt where dark green forest
gives way to tawny grassland
-due to this ‘abruptness’ often sharp ecological boundaries exist
Types of Alpine Vegetation
- 4 types
- grassland vegetation
- wetland vegetation
- rock plant communities
- shrubs and flowering plants
- most alpine species occur nowhere else
adaptive features of alpine plants
-flowers are often large
-leaves are wooly to help trap heat
-optimum rates for photosynthesis and respiration are
at lower temperatures t
-long-lived
-Some produce soluble carbohydrates
-Flower budding are typically formed in the proceeding
summer
-ABSENCE OF COLOUR IS A DOMINANT FEATURE
environmental ethics
- considered a luxury
- often involves the human condition and moral choices
environmental ethics definition
involves human moral attitudes toward the environment.
Bronze Age
-seismic shift occurred in Britain with the arrival of agriculture
-first time power was obtained through the use of
commodities (livestock and crops)
-permanent settlements based on agriculture emerged
-Laws were made and taxes imposed and trade expanded
‘age of enlightenment’
-humanism, a belief humans benefit without
knowledge of religion or a spiritual connection to
something greater than themselves.
Agricultural Issues
- 1 in 5 people lack access to clean drinking water
- 2 in 5 people globally lack clean sanitation
- Where for survival, an individual needs at minimum 5 litres a day
- Those in the U.S.A. use on average 578 litres per day
- trying to grow plants where they don’t naturally grow
- 51% of greenhouse gases are produced by livestock
Future of Agriculture
-Vertical farming in multi-story buildings in cities close to markets are being explored as a future option.
Conservation Biogeography
- Based on a thorough understanding of the principles of ecology
- Must integrate ecology with social, political, and economic systems
- Focus is generally on species in perial
Island Biogeography
- Species richness increases with island size
2. Species richness decreases with distance from (continental) sources
Species richness on islands
immigration = extinction
-if immigration or extinction rates change than equilibrium will reassert itself
Species richness island distance from continent
large near island > large far island
large far island = small near island
small near island > small far island
Single Large reserves could be designed
- to reduce extinction rates
- to accommodate large viable populations
- to minimize fragmentation
- to minimize edge effects
- to protect species that are dependent on contiguous habitat
Several Small reserves could be designed
- more habitat diversity
- complementarity principle (minimum overlap of species)
- facilitate dispersal distances of target species
- higher biodiversity
- buffer against stochastic extinction events e.g. fire, flood, pathogens
Peregrine Conservation Biogeography in Manitoba
-associated with conserving the breeding distribution of the species within the Province by means of a Peregrine Recovery Plan and Strategy
Peregrine MB Plan
- viable captive population
- develop methods to release onto the landscape
- expand current breeding population beyond urban settings
Peregrine Recovery
- adaptable nature helped the recovery
- ability to bred in a domestic environment
- falconry methods contributed towards release methods
- urban nesters helped with their recovery
K-selected species
- Large in body size
- Slow maturing with delayed sexual development
- Long lived with high survival rates
- Low rate of production
- Small population size
- Stable population through time if the environment does not drastically change
R-selected species
- small in body size
- rapidly developing
- sexually mature in one year or less
- short lived
- highly reproductive
