Unit 9 Flashcards
HIPPCO
-habitat destruction, degradation, and fragmentation
-Invasive species
-Population growth
-Pollution
-Climate change
-Over exploitation
Background extinction rate
normal extinction of various species as a result of changes in local environmental conditions
Bioaccumulation
an increase of build-up on the concentration of a chemical in specific organs or tissues of an individual organism
Biomagnification
an increase in the concentration of a chemical in organisms at successively higher trophic levels of a food chain or food web
Biodiversity hotspot
an area especially rich in plant species that are found nowhere else and are in grade danger of extinctions.
Biological extinction
complete disappearance of a species from earth.
Endangered species
wild species with so few individual survivors that the species could soon become extinct in all or most of its natural range
Endangered species act (ESA)
law established in 1973 designed to identify and protect endangered species in the US and abroad
Habitat fragmentation
breaking up a habitat into smaller pieces, usually as a result of human activities
Mass extinction
a catastrophic, widespread, often global event in which major groups of species are wiped over a short time compared with normal extinctions
Precautionary principle
When substantial preliminary evidence indicates that an activity can harm human health or the environment, we should take precautionary measures to prevent or reduce such harm even if some of the cause-and-effect relationships have not been fully established scientifically.
Seed bank
refrigerated, low-humidity storage environments used to preserve genetic information and the seeds of endangered plant species.
Threatened species
wild species that is still abundant in its natural range but is likely to become endangered because of a decline in its numbers
