Protected Areas

Question 1

Why were areas initially protected, give an example

Answer 1

Primarily on the basis of their extraordinary scenic value or geological features, such as the Bogd Kahn Mountain in Mongolia which became the first legally protected site due to its beauty in 1783

Question 2

Why is it problematic to only make protected parks due to aesthetic reasons

Answer 2

Biodiversity and scenic value are rarely congruent, such as the Grand Canyon and Stonehenge which all have a relatively low biodiversity.

Question 3

What is the endangered species act and when was it released

Answer 3

US Congress passed the Endangered Species Act (ESA) in 1973 following the loss of Passenger Pigeon, Carolina Parakeet and Ivory-billed Woodpecker and declines of Whooping Crane, Trumpeter Swan, California Condor, Black-footed Ferret and Red Wolf.

Question 4

What is the 5 criteria needed to be under the ESA

Answer 4

1. There is the present or threatened destruction, modification, or curtailment of its habitat or range.
2. An over utilization for commercial, recreational, scientific, or educational purposes.
3. The species is declining due to disease or predation.
4. There is an inadequacy of existing regulatory mechanisms.
5. There are other natural or manmade factors affecting its continued existence.

Question 5

What are the main problems protected areas face

Answer 5

Being to small
Paper parks
Sustainable use reserves are being created rather than strictly protected ones

Question 6

What are the main problems protected areas face

Answer 6

Being to small
Paper parks
Sustainable use reserves are being created rather than strictly protected ones
Unconnected

Question 7

Give a general example of where sustainable use reserves are being created rather than strictly protected ones

Answer 7

In the neotropics than in tropical areas of Africa and Asia (WCMC 2011).

Question 8

What is a sustainable use area

Answer 8

Sustainable use reserves are often comanaged by local communities to support local livelihoods and preserve cultural legacies and ecosystem services.

Question 9

What is negative about sustainable use areas

Answer 9

Policies supporting sustainable-use reserves are
relatively recent and firmly grounded in social and political demands from disenfranchised communities rather than in the desire to conserve biological diversity

Question 10

Give a specific example of where sustainable use reserves are being created rather than strictly protected ones

Answer 10

Sustainable-use reserves and indigenous territories now outweigh that of strictly protected areas by factors of 5.5 and 4.1, respectively due to conflict over land struggles, the subsequent political organization of many local communities, and the emergence of extractive reserve initiatives

Question 11

Why is human settlement inside a protected are problematic?

Answer 11

The population sizes of several game species in many Amazonian sustainable-use reserves with >0.1 person/km2 have declined (Peres & Palacios 2007)

Question 12

What is a paper park?

Answer 12

An officially protected area but it’ll is being done to manage it effectively

Question 13

What is the in situ conservation method

Answer 13

The conservation of species in their natural habitats and is considered the most appropriate way of conserving biodiversity. That’s why protected areas form a central element of any national strategy to conserve biodiversity.

Question 14

What is the ex situ conservation method and example

Answer 14

Ex-situ conservation is the preservation of components of biological diversity outside their natural habitats. This involves conservation of genetic resources, as well as wild and cultivated or species. The Kew Seed Bank in England has 1.5 per cent of the world’s flora - about 4,000 species - on deposit.

Question 15

Compare staff numbers between the Brazilian Amazon and U.S park reserves

Answer 15

Current staffing results in an average of one
park guard per 6053 km2 of nature reserve whilst the density of guards in the 367 units of the U.S. National Park Service is more than 70 times greater (Treborgh and Peres, 1995)

Question 16

Economic benefits for protected marine areas?

Answer 16

Within 5 years of creation, a network of five small reserves in St. Lucia increased adjacent catches of artisanal fishers by between 46 and 90%, depending on the type of gear the fishers used. Roberts et al. 2001

Question 17

Why do PA’s need to be large, give an example

Answer 17

Nature sustains itself only in the context of the
system in which it evolved. Manu National Park is >2 million hectares in size but supports only60-100 giant otters, whereas a population of 500 is considered to be the minimum necessary to ensure genetic and demographic viability.

Question 18

Define protected area

Answer 18

clearly defined geographic space, recognised, dedicated and managed, through legal or other effective means, to achieve the long-term conservation of nature with associated ecosystem services and cultural values ICUN

Question 19

What is Aichi Target 11

Answer 19

By 2020, at least 17 per cent of terrestrial and inland water areas and 10 per cent of coastal and marine areas, especially areas of particular importance for biodiversity and ecosystem services

Question 20

How much of the earth is currently protected

Answer 20

Currently, some 13 per cent of terrestrial areas and 6 per cent of coastal areas are protected, while very little of the open oceans are protected.

Question 21

How connected are PA’s

Answer 21

SAURA ET AL 2017 9.3% of the world is covered by protected connected land, and this average varies extensively between ecoregions. The global goal for PA coverage is 14.7%, indicating that the spatial arrangement of PAs is only partially successful in ensuring connectivity of protected lands.

Question 22

5 reasons to protect biodiversity

Answer 22

Insurance
Moral reasons
Aesthetic reasons
Ecosystem services
Resources

Question 23

What is an extractive reserve

Answer 23

An extractive reserve is a type of sustainable use protected area. The land is publicly owned but the people who live there have the right to traditional extractive practices such as hunting, fishing and harvesting wild plants.

Question 24

Give an example of an extractive reserve and its category

Answer 24

Chico Mendes is a IUCN protected area category VI (protected area with sustainable use of natural resources) which protects those who make a livelihood from rubber tapping

Question 25

Whilst large PA’s are desirable, what are their disadvantages

Answer 25

large MPAs include difficulties of surveillance, enforcement and monitoring of vast offshore areas, as well as high total costs. While the cost per unit area may be lower for large MPAs, conducting surveillance and monitoring in such vast areas requires much more expensive technologies.