Impact of Human Activity on Biological Diversity: Threats and Conservation Strategies

1. Chapter 4 How does human activity affect biological diversity.

2. 4.1 Reducing Biological Diversity • Urbanization (the building of cities) and industrialization of agriculture and forestry are putting stress on our ecosystems. • Results in a decline in our diversity: • Genetic Diversity (less variation within species) • Species Diversity (fewer number of species) • Ecosystem diversity (less habitats, etc.) • This threatens the ecological, economic, and cultural benefits we get from it.

3. 4.1 Reducing Biological Diversity • Some species are becoming extinct. • Others are endangered. • Other are booming beyond control. • REDUCES BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY overall!!!! • The decline of biological diversity of our planet is accelerating with every decade.

4. Extinctions and Extirpation • Extinction- the disappearance of every individual species from the entire planet. These can be man made or natural. • For example: by comets, volcanoes or an ice age. • Extirpation- a local extinction or the disappearance of a species from a particular area or location. • For example: the grizzly bear was once found on the prairies where they HAD a rich supply of food. Now they are found only in the mountains. Oil, forestry, natural gas, roads and buildings threaten its existence.

5. The current rate of extinction is from 100 to 10,000 species a year. This is between 100 and 1000 times faster than our best estimate of historical rates.

6. MISSING December 1989 • REWARD GOLDEN TOAD

9. Order to Extinction Special Concern Threatened Extirpated / Extinct Endangered • Woodland • Caribou • Wolverine • Ferruginous Hawk • Short eared owl • Swift Fox • Burrowing Owl • Grizzly Bear • Greater Prairie • Chicken • Wood Bison • Peregrine Falcon

11. Threatened of being extirpated from northern Alberta Threatened of being extirpated from northern Alberta Extirpated from the Manitoba Prairies Extirpated from the Manitoba Prairies

12. Natural Causes of Extinction and Extirpation. • Natural selection is usually a very slow process. • Natural causes for extinction or extirpation include catastrophic events such as - floods • - volcanic eruptions • - or fires

13. - Other natural causes include : - lack of food or overpopulation - disease

14. Natural Extinction • If a habitat remains intact for a long period of time, animals can become overspecialized. • adaptations by an organism that suit them to only a narrow set of environmental conditions. For example: The Panda and Bamboo or the Koala bear and Eucalyptus. • If the environment changes, the species will not be able to survive.

16. Human Causes Habitat Loss Introduced Species Pollution Over harvesting Sport Hunting

17. Human Causes of Extinction and Extirpation • Most extinctions today are caused by humans. • Habitat Destruction : • Construction of buildings, agricultural development, logging and the damming of rivers all change the environment very rapidly. • Pollution affects both the areas immediately around the source and areas further away

18. Some pollutions can cause an increase in the number of birth defects within a certain species. • Examples include : • - Pesticides • - Herbicides • - and Fertilizers

19. Introduction of Non-Native Species • New species being introduced will compete with the native species for the same resources, causing a decline in the numbers of the native species. • http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/whirling-disease-fish-tests-bow-river-1.3741902 • If natural predators do not exist in the new area, the introduced species can reproduce with nothing to keep it in check.

20. Introduction of Non-Native Species

21. Over-Hunting For sport or for using the animal for food or clothing. Over-hunting has caused many species to be extirpated or extinct. Wild Bison Passenger Pigeon

22. Overhunting

23. Effects of Extinction and Extirpation • Reduce Biological Diversity. • If an animal is gone its predators’ numbers will decrease and become threatened. • Its prey’s numbers will increase and could become pests.

24. 4.3 How Can We Reduce Our Impact on Biological Diversity?

25. Strategies to Conserve Biological Diversity How can the government help? Fixing Biological Diversity Protect Habitat Restore Ecosystem Reintroduce Species Control Foreign Species Conserve Genetic Resources • In-situ • Conservation. • = • Keeping the • animals in their • current • environment. • Repairing • damaged • ecosystems. Put species that Are extirpated back into their natural Environment. Prevent species from other areas from invading natural ecosystems Ex-situ conservation = Store as many Genetic variations as possible.

26. Reducing Our Impact on Biological Diversity Protected Areas :Canada is currently covered by 244 540 km2 of protected areas. In-Situ Conservation : The maintenance of populations of wild organisms in their functioning ecosystem. This allows the ecological processes of an area to continue undisturbed.

27. Ex - Situ Conservation : The conservation of components of biological diversity outside of a natural habitat. Whooping Crane

28. To protect endangered species we need to preserve the habitat they live in. The largest threat to habitat is human development and pollution. Banff National Park. Y2Y 12% of BC is protected parks! Protecting Habitat

29. Banff

30. Protecting and Restoring Habitat • Many farmers in Alberta have taken it on themselves to restore natural wetland ecosystems • Nature Conservatory of Canada, purchases repairs and protects lands within Canada for species at risk.

31. We have to fix the damage!

32. Bringing in foreign species into an environment can be damaging to ecosystems. Have no natural predators Cause interspecies competition And can even take over and destroy an ecosystem. Controlling the Spread of Exotic Species

33. Zebra Mussel

34. Ex Situ Conservation • In some cases protecting animals in their habitat is not easily done. So we have to find other ways to protect the genetic diversity of our ecosystem. • Seed Banks store seeds of rare plants. • Animals are difficult how can we preserve animals if we can’t do it in nature?

35. Genetic Diversity?!?

36. Questions • 1. What is in-situ conservation? How is different from ex-situ conservation? • 2. Why is it important to protect ecosystems and habitat? Provide and example of a species at risk that would benefit. • 3. What are some ways the Canadian Government has been involved in protecting Biological Diversity? Give an example. • 4. What methodis have been used t conserve genetic resources? What issues do they have to overcome?

37. Chapter 4.1 Questions • 1. State 2 examples of where biological diversity may be reduced? • 2. What kinds of natural causes lead to the extinction of a species? • 3. In what ways can human activity lead to the extinction or extirpation of a species? Use examples in your answer. • 4. Explain the term overspecialization. • 5. Suppose an organism is extirpated from an area. In what way(s) might other organisms be affected? Use examples.

38. 4.2 Essential Question: How do we select desirable traits when breeding plants and animals?

39. Ways to selectively breed Artificial Selection: 3. Genetic Engineering 2. Artificial Reproductive Technology 1. Cloning Plants

40. Selecting Desirable Traits Artificial Selection : A process of selecting and breeding certain members of a species that have a desired trait with the intention that the offspring will demonstrate that trait.

41. Cloning Plants • If we see a strain of a plant that has good characteristics we can clone it • Vegetative Reproduction via cuttings • Self-pollinate the plants / crops • Take cells of the plant, grow them in hormones and nutrients and they will develop into seedlings. The seedling can be planted. • Some of this technology is thousands of years old. Back to the Egyptians.

42. Cloning Plants

43. Cloning Plants

44. Modern Day Corn • Came from a grass • Some were selected because of their large seeds. • They were cross-bred with other plants and today we have corn.

46. Oops • There have been cases of genetically modified plants crossing with weeds that are now resistant to pests. • These weeds are growing out of control like a foreign species and competing with crops for water, food etc.

47. Artificial Reproductive Technology : This refers to any method of artificially joining a male and female gamete. Artificial Insemination : This is the introduction of harvested sperm from a bull with desired traits, into a female. The benefit to this technology is that it allows the bulls sperm to be in many different places at the same time.

49. In Vitro Fertilization :This is when the sperm from a bull with desired traits and the egg from a cow with desired traits are mixed together in a Petri dish. At this point the embryos can be place in host cows to give birth to the offspring with the desired traits.

50. Artificial Reproductive Technology • Artificial Insemination. • A Desirable bull will have its sperm transplanted into a desirable cow. • 1 bull can inseminate many cows. • In vitro fertilization – • Many eggs and many sperm are harvested from desirable cattle. • Mixed in a petri dish. • Produces MANY embryos. • Transplanted into a MANY cows. • Scientist can look at the chromosomes of the embryos and select those which are female (XY) for dairy cows…