Professional Documents
Culture Documents
10 Biodiversity
Section 1
What is biodiversity?
Biodiversity number of different species in a given area Extinction when last members of a species die 1.7 million known species (mostly insects) Another 8 million estimated unknown species
Levels of diversity
Species diversity - # of different species (most studied) Ecosystem diversity variety of habitats, communities, and ecological processes within an ecosystem Genetic diversity all the different genes within a population
Benefits of Biodiversity
Healthy ecosystems depend on all of the species within them
Maintains balanced cycles of energy and nutrients When too many species are taken from a food web it will collapse
More benefits
Ethics, recreation
All species have a right to exist ecotourism Genetic diversity within a species increases the chance that some individuals will survive environmental changes When populations shrink, genetic diversity shrinks of prescribed drugs come from plants Antibiotics come from fungi Unknown uses for biological material Food
Extinctions
Mass extinctions extinction of many species within a short period of time
65 million years ago: climate and environmental changes caused half of the species to die Millions of years to rebound from mass extinctions
Endangered species likely to become extinct if protective measures are not used Threatened species declining population that will likely become endangered without protective measures
Introduction of nonnative species exotic species threaten native species because they have no natural defenses Pollution pesticides, cleaning agents, drugs are making their way into food webs Overharvesting species through hunting, harvesting, and poaching
Poaching illegal hunting, fishing, harvesting and trading of wildlife
Biodiversity Hotspots
Most threatened areas of high species diversity 25 areas around the world Most have lost 75% of original vegetation Mostly tropical rainforests, coastal areas, and islands Ie: Madagascar
Biodiversity in the US
Wide variety of ecosystems High numbers of species of freshwater fish, mussels, snails, crayfish High diversity among land plants
Preserving Genetic Material storing germ plasm (reproductive cells of plants and animals) Zoos, Aquariums, Parks and Gardens often house the last remaining individuals of a species
museums of the worlds biodiversity sometimes captive species dont reproduce small populations are vulnerable to genetic disorders from inbreeding these methods should be a last resort
Protect entire ecosystems rather than individual species Focus on worlds hotspots How large does a protected preserve have to be? How much fragmentation can an ecosystem tolerate?
Legal Protections
US Laws
1973 Endangered Species Act
Established list of threatened and endangered species Protects any endangered species from human harm guilty parties are fined Prevents the govt. from carrying out any project that threatens an endangered species Establish recovery plans
International Cooperation
IUCN International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources International Trade and Poaching
CITES Treaty placed ban on trade of ivory stopping the slaughter of African elephants Created in Earth Summit Preserve biodiversity and ensure the sustainable and fair use of genetic resources in all countries Objected to by some political groups