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SPECIES BIODIVERSITY

SPECIES BIODIVERSITY . Extinction: Lights Out. Extinction occurs when the population cannot adapt to changing environmental conditions. The golden toad of Costa Rica’s Monteverde cloud forest has become extinct because of changes in climate. VOCABULARY:.

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SPECIES BIODIVERSITY

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  1. SPECIES BIODIVERSITY

  2. Extinction: Lights Out Extinction occurs when the population cannot adapt to changing environmental conditions. • The golden toad of Costa Rica’s Monteverde cloud forest has become extinct because of changes in climate.

  3. VOCABULARY: Extinct-Complete disappearance of a species from the earth.Ex: Dinosaurs

  4. SPECIES EXTINCTION • Species can become extinct: • Locally: A species is no longer found in an area it once inhabited but is still found elsewhere in the world. • Ecologically: Occurs when so few members of a species are left they no longer play its ecological role. • Globally (biologically): Species is no longer found on the earth. • Mass: Extinction of many species in a relatively short period of geological time.

  5. History of Extinctions • Extinctions have existed long before humans had an influence However:

  6. The current extinction crisis is the first to be caused by a single species- US! This is happening faster than ever; a few decades versus thousands to millions of years. Humans are eliminating not only the species but, the environment. Ex. Tropical rainforest

  7. HABITAT LOSS, DEGRADATION, AND FRAGMENTATION • Conservation biologists summarize the most important causes of premature extinction as “HIPPCO”: • Habitat destruction, degradation, and fragmentation • Invasive species • Population growth • Pollution • Climate Change • Overexploitation

  8. Endangered- Species with so few survivors that the species could soon become extinct.

  9. Threatened/VulnerableWild species that is still abundant in its naturalrange but is likely to become endangered because of a decline in numbers.

  10. SPECIES EXTINCTION • Some species have characteristics that make them vulnerable to ecological and biological extinction. Figure 11-4

  11. Low Reproductive Rate • Specialized Feeding Habits • Feed at high trophic levels • Large size • Specialized nesting or breeding areas • Found only in one place or region • Fixed migratory patterns • Preys on livestock or people • Behavioral Patterns

  12. Known Species Threatened with Extinction Why do you think plants and fish species top this list?

  13. Four Reasons to Prevent Extinctions • Species provide natural resources and natural services • Insects for pollination • Birds for pest control • Most species contribute economic services • Plants for food, fuel, lumber, medicine • Ecotourism 62% of all cancer drugs were derived from bioprospectors, people who search ecosystems to find plants and animals that scientists can use to make medicinal drugs.

  14. It will take 5-10 million years to regain species biodiversity • Many people believe species have an intrinsic right to exist

  15. Habitat Fragmentation occurs when a large, intact area of habitat such as a forest or natural grassland is divided, typically by roads, logging operations, crop fields, and urban development, into smaller, isolated patches or “habitat islands”

  16. Habitat fragmentation • Large intact habitat divided by roads, crops, urban development • Leaves habitat islands • Blocks migration routes • Divides populations • Inhibits migrations and colonization • Inhibits finding food • National parks and nature reserves are habitat islands

  17. INVASIVE SPECIES • Many nonnative species provide us with food, medicine, and other benefits but a few can wipe out native species, disrupt ecosystems, and cause large economic losses. Kudzu vine was introduced in the southeastern U.S. to control erosion. It has taken over native species habitats.

  18. Deliberately Introduced Species Purple loosestrife European starling African honeybee (“Killer bee”) Nutria Salt cedar (Tamarisk) European wild boar (Feral pig) Marine toad (Giant toad) Water hyacinth Japanese beetle Hydrilla Fig. 9-11a, p. 200

  19. Accidentally Introduced Species Sea lamprey (attached to lake trout) Argentina fire ant Brown tree snake Eurasian ruffe Common pigeon (Rock dove) Formosan termite Zebra mussel Asian long-horned beetle Asian tiger mosquito Gypsy moth larvae Fig. 9-11b, p. 200

  20. Prevention Is the Best Way to Reduce Threats from Invasive Species • Prevent them from becoming established • Learn the characteristics of the species • Set up research programs • Try to find natural ways to control them • International treaties • Public education

  21. What Can You Do? Controlling Invasive Species Fig. 9-14, p. 203

  22. Pollution • Each year pesticides: • Kill about 1/5th of the U.S. honeybee colonies. • 67 million birds. • 6 -14 million fish. • Threaten 1/5th of the U.S.’s endangered and threatened species. Example of biomagnification of DDT in an aquatic food chain. Figure 11-15

  23. DDT in fish-eating birds (ospreys) 25 ppm DDT in large fish (needle fish) 2 ppm DDT in small fish (minnows) 0.5 ppm DDT in zooplankton 0.04 ppm DDT in water 0.000003 ppm, or 3 ppt Stepped Art Fig. 9-15, p. 203

  24. OVEREXPLOITATION • Some protected species are killed for their valuable parts or are sold live to collectors. • Killing predators and pests that bother us or cause economic losses threatens some species with premature extinction. • Legal and illegal trade in wildlife species used as pets or for decorative purposes threatens some species with extinction.

  25. OVEREXPLOITATION • Rhinoceros are often killed for their horns and sold illegally on the black market for decorative and medicinal purposes. Figure 11-16

  26. Case Study: Rising Demand for Bushmeat in Africa • Bushmeat hunting has caused the local extinction of many animals in West Africa. • Indigenous people are sustained by bush meat • Can spread disease such as HIV/AIDS and ebola virus. Figure 11-17

  27. How Can We Protect Wild Species from Premature Extinction? We can reduce the rising rate of species extinction and help to protect overall biodiversity by : establishing and enforcing national environmental laws and international treaties, creating a variety of protected wildlife sanctuaries, and taking precautionary measures to prevent such harm.

  28. CITIES Treaty (1975) • Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora • Bans the hunting, capturing, and selling of threatened or endangered species.

  29. CITIES Treaty cont. • Signed by 175 countries and lists more than 900 species that cannot be commercially traded as live specimens or wildlife products because they are in danger of extinction and 29,000 other species whose international trade is monitored because they are at risk of becoming threatened.

  30. Endangered Species Act (ESA) • Designed to identify and protect endangered species in the United States and abroad. • The National Marine Fisheries Service is responsible for identifying and listing endangered and threatened ocean species. • The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is responsible for identifying and listing all other endangered and threatened species.

  31. ESA continued • The ESA forbids federal agencies (Except for DoD) to carry out, fund or authorize projects that would jeopardize any endangered species or destroy or modify its habitat. • The ESA also makes it illegal for Americans to sell or buy any product made from an endangered or threatened species or to hunt, kill, collect, or injure such species in the United States. • They also require that all commercial shipments of wildlife and wildlife products enter or the leave the country through one of nine designated ports.

  32. More ESA • Since 1982, the ESA has amended to give private landowners economic incentives to help save endangered species on their land. • For example – A developer, landowner, or logger may be allowed to destroy critical habitat for an endangered species by paying to relocate the species to another favorable habitat.

  33. Methods used to help Endangered Species: Conservation Biology-Multidisciplinary science that deals with the crisis of diversity and how to maintain the earth’s ecosystems.

  34. In Situ: In situ vs. ex situ: • Leaving the animal where it lives but protecting it. • Ex. Elephants; make laws that prevent poaching and have people to enforce it. • Ex. Marine turtles are protected- escape nets must be used on all fishing nets so the turtles can get out and not drown.

  35. Ex Situ: • Taking the animal out of its habitat & protecting it. • Ex. Zoo’s • 2 types: • egg pulling -collecting wild eggs laid by critically endangered bird species and then hatching them in zoos or research centers • captive breeding, wild individuals of a critically endangered species are captured for breeding in captivity, with the aim of reintroducing the offspring into the wild.

  36. More Methods • Establish wildlife refuges • Most are wetland sanctuaries • More needed for endangered plants • Could abandoned military lands be used for wildlife habitats? • Gene or seed banks • Preserve genetic material of endangered plants • Botanical gardens and arboreta • Living plants • Farms to raise organisms for commercial sale

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