Principles of Conservation Biology Set
Fitness
Ability of an individual to produce surviving fertile offspring
Implementation of restoration plan may involve modifying _________ & ________ factors.
Abiotic -Soil, hydrology, etc Biotic -plant and animal communities
Dri water -
Absorbs and releases water in drought areas
George Dorr had his ashes scattered ver this park, for which he was a prime fighter to establish and served as superintendent into his old age.
Acadia National Park
Which of the following is an example of contamination from afar which complicates managing water?
Acid rain
This man did important early research on wolves and and coyotes in the park, was often at odds with the NPS and fought against Mission 66 in Denali
Adolph Murie
What is evolutionary-ecological Land Ethic?
Advocated human uses of natural resources that are compatible with, or even enhance, biodiversity.
Psycho-spiritual Value
Aesthetic beauty, religious awe = intrinsic value
Meffe and Carroll
"A thing is right when it tends to disturb the biotic community only at normal spatial and temporal scales. It is wrong when it tends to do otherwise"
What is the "golden rule" of the Leopold Land Ethic?
"A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise."
Conservation International (CI)
"Biodiversity hotspots"
The Nature Conservancy (TNC)
"Conservation Risk Index"
Worldwide Fund for Wildlife (WWF)
"Global 200 priority areas"
Nuclear Energy
"green energy" - zero emissions, highly efficient, permits nuclear fission with U-235, BUT there could be nuclear waste, accidents, radiation, and decommissioned power plants
Alpha diversity
# of species that coexist in the same ecosystem
bet diversity
# of species unique to regions relative to each other
ESA costs:
$60,000 to list each organism Costs increase w/resistance from govnt $4 B/yr to remove all species from list in US ~1,000 in a pop when listed (100 for plants)
Nature Conservancy elements of conservation interest
(1-5 scale) - number of remaining populations or occurances - number of individuals remaining - extent of area - number of protected sites - degree of threat - innate vulnerability freshwater mussels and crayfish = most imperiled, birds = least
Direct Use Values
(private goods) for products harvested by people
Indirect Use Values
(public goods) benefits provided by biodiversity that do not involve harvest or destroying the resource
Which plus/minus set represents mutualism?
+/+
What plus and minus combination represents predation?
+/-
Which plus/minus relationship represents parasitism?
+/-
Which plus/minus relationship represents commensalism?
+/0
Kuna Yala Indigenous Reserve
- 60,000 ha of tropical forest and coral islands - 50,000 Kuna people in 60 villages - Practice traditional medicine, fishing, agriculture and forestry - Outside scientists conduct management research - Train and hire local people as guides and research assistants - Kuna local government attempts to control the type and rate of economic development
In Situ Agricultural
- A different approach is being used in the arid American SW - Focus is on dryland crops and genetic diversity - Native Seeds/SEARCH collects seeds of 1800 traditional crop cultivars for long-term preservation - Group encourages 4600 farmers and other members to grow traditional crops, provides seeds, and buys unsold production
CBC
- A review of 136 CBC projects - Degree of participation, environmental education and skills-training programs all significantly to win-win outcomes for the people and biodiversity - The most important feature was institutional capacity 1. Improving 2. infrastructure 3. Communication 4. Decision-making - Governments and conservation organizations can assist local conservation initiatives by: 1. Providing access to scientific expertise 2. Training programs 3. Financial assistance to develop infrastructure
What is the difference between rare and endangered?
- An animal can be rare, but not endangered - Rarity may be its natural state - An animal can be endangered, but not rare - Even common animals with strong negative influences from people can go extinct.
Species Introductions
- European colonization - agriculture, horticulture, and aquaculture - accidental - biological control (consume pests/control numbers) - shipping (ballast water)
Compensatory Mitigation
- Particularly true for wetlands - "no net loss policy" has been adopted by many jurisdictions
Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES)
- Pay landowners and local communities that protect critical ecosystems and ecosystem services - This approach pays for good stewardship of the land Becoming more popular - Government, nongovernmental conservation organizations, and businesses develop markets - Villagers and landowners participate by protecting and restoring ecosystems
Florida Panthers
- Population of 100-120 individuals - 31% of its range is on private land - Private lands are more fertile and provide a better prey base - Development continues
Kuna Yala Indigenous Reserve Continued
- Traditional conservation beliefs are eroding because of outside influences - Younger Kuna are questioning the need to rigidly protect the reserve - Kuna find it difficult to establish a stable organization that can manage the reserve and work with external conservation and donor groups - How do you integrate conservation into a changing society?
Military Land
- US Department of Defense - Manages more than 11 million ha - Contains about 420 threatened and endangered species - Military activities may harm or enhance habitat for species (fires, chemical) - US DOD spending on conservation - $73 million in 2012
Ecosystem Management
- a system of large-scale management involving multiple stakeholders, the primary goal of which is preserved ecosystem components and processes for the long term while still satisfying the current needs of society
Invasive characteristics
- absence of predator and parasites - ability to take advantage of disturbed environmental conditions - shown to be invasive other locations
keystone resources
- salt lick and mineral pools - deep pools - hollow tree trunks - rotting wood
Restored Ecosystems
- should be dominated by native species - contain representatives of all key functional groups of species - have a physical environment suitable for native species and ecosystem processes - be secure from detrimental outside disturbances - It may take a very long time to meet these goals
Overexploitation
- species can often recover when stopped - trickled down effects, ex. seed dispersal - threatens 1/3 of endangered species
Ecological Restoration must consider:
- speed of restoration - cost - reliability of results - persistence of target community
Kinds of extinction: ecologically extinct
-"the living dead" no longer fulfill ecological role -eg tiger endangered 2010, 50% decline in habitat 50% population reduction, tiger reserves empty of tigers, role as keystone species is gone
Which plus/minus combination represents competition?
-/-
Amendments
-1978- critical habitat provision, "God squad" cabinet-level committee that can override listing, can exempt an agency action from requirements of the end. spp. act. -1982- no economic considerations in listing- habitat conservation plans -1988- monitoring of candidate and recovered species is required -2004- exempted department of defense, which has its own natural resource plan procedure, it was clear that ESA has much power and that conservation species under ESA could be costly (1975) , wanted to built Telco dam- found fish that was endangered so couldnt build -1979- damn built because God squad had power to exempt also did similar things with NSO
Major Threats to: Rivers and Streams
-70% of largest NA rivers affected by diversion, irrigation, and reservoirs -2.5 million dams in America -->alter flood cycles, block fish migrations, flood out former wetlands
Total allelic diversity
-Alpine ibex, two diff DRB alleles in some pops, only one in others
Decisions in planning Reintroduction
-Choice of individuals to be reintroduced -Number of individuals to be reintroduced -Choice of sites for reintroduction -Transition period or not? -Public relations
Complications for Identifying Areas
-Climate Change -Limited Data
Adapting to Climate Change
-Confront sea level rise -Foster migration of species -Establish protected areas that are RESILIENT
Endangered Species Act of 1973
-US first country to give animals right to exist -instructs federal agencies to conserve species threatened by extinction and conserve the ecosystems in which they thrive in
Uniform
-a result of territoriality -->cutting out pieces of territory for themselves
More bird extinctions on islands than on mainland
-a trend that appears to be changing -extinction rates on islands going up over time, higher on islands than on mainlands -island species have higher rates of extinction than mainland species. freshwater species are more vulnearable to extinction than marine species
Environmental Protection Agency
-agency of federal gov't (created during NIXON) -protect human health and environment through regulation --> clean air and water act -->substantial research and outreach
Inbreeding carries fitness costs
-avoidance mechanisms in genetics, behavior, and ecology- morphological avoidance eg dioecious trees, odor attraction to unrelated mates (MHCs), dispersal -the tendency to mate with unrelated individuals of the same species- outbreeding
Clumping
-clumping around a source, like water -most common type of dispersion
Arguments in favor of de-extinction
-justice- making up for what we caused -re-establishing lost value- value of the extinct animal -creating new value- scientific achievement -a conservation last resort
Why do large islands have more species?
-large islands- more habitat types, larger pop sizes and number of pops, greater likelihood of speciation, smaller likelihood of extinction
Environmentalist vs Timber industry
-loss of jobs because of protecting species -numbers of owl still going down even though areas protected
Another recovery
-mauritius kestral reintroduction program 1987-1990
legal issues
-need to experiment with T&E species, despite legal protection eg collection of the last CA condors for captive breeding -experimental pops given diff status- ecperimental, essential- ridigly protected, opposition by land owners?,experimental, nonessential- research opportunities (BFF)
Random
-occurs when individuals don't have strong aversions or don't have control over their dispersal
Kinds of extinction: extinct in the wild
-persists only in captivity
In What Ways do Conservationists Help New Populations
-supplemental food/water during transition -acclimation areas/pens -careful monitoring -follow-up introductions -head-starting -->raising in captivity during juvenile years then releasing into wild
At low densities: allee effects
-the interaction among pop size, pop density, pop growth rate and behavior -Correlation between population size or density and the mean individual fitness of a population or species. -lower reproductive success at low densities -the social systems and breeding systems of many animals can be disrupted when the pop size or density falls below a certain level -many species that live in widely dispersed pops have difficulty finding mates once the pop density drops below a certain point -counterintuitive, given pop growth equations eg MSY ex dusky seaside sparrow (FL)- last 5 males lakeside daisy (IL)- last 3 same mating type
Urban Human-Wildlife Conflict
-transmission of disease -wildlife damage -lost pets
Bighorn Sheep
-what is the relationship between pop size and probability of extinction? below 50 all go extinct in 50 years, N>50 most survive
Name the three central themes of this class
1. Conserving endangered species 2. Conserving functional and structural aspects of populations 3. Working within political and social realities
Florida Panthers - Two viable possibilities to aid survival
1. Educate and pay landowners 2. Build special road underpasses
What are the five steps of ecological restoration in a plant community?
1. Examine historic and current reference conditions 2. Develop a restoration plan 3. Implement the plan 4. Monitor the outcome 5. Follow through with adaptive management
What is the hierarchical structure of biodiversity?
1. Genetic diversity 2. populations 3. species 4. ecosystems
Name the 3 ways used to describe species rarity
1. Geographic range - local endemics 2. Habitat specificity - only occur in specific habitats and these habitats are rare 3. Local population size - occur at
Evolution is a function of three key elements, what are they?
1. Selection 2. VARIATION 3. Heredity
List all the major wildlife applications of gel electrophoresis and PCR.
1. Species ID && Abundance 2. Taxonomy 3. Hybridization 4. Individual ID 5. Parentage 6. Movement 7. Genetic variation 8. Forensics
Critically endangered have at least one of the following characteristics:
1. Total population size less than 250 individuals or 50 breeders 2. Population has declined by 80% or more over the last 10 years or 3 generations 3. More than 25% decline is expected in numbers during the next 3 years or 1 generations 4. Range less than 100km^2 at a single location
Why is there higher species richness toward the tropics?
1. Tropical communities are more stable than temperate communities 2. Warm temps and high humidity provide favorable conditions for growth and survival 3. Tropical regions receive more solar energy
Steps of Ecosystem Preservation
1. establish individual protected areas 2. create networks of protected areas 3. manage protected areas 4. implement conservation outside of these areas 5. restore communities in degraded habitats
7 Majors Threats to Biodiversity
1. habitat destruction 2. habitat fragmentation 3. habitat degration (pollution) 4. global climate change 5. overexploitation of species for human use 6. invasion of exotic species 7. increased spread of disease
Evidence of Global Warming
1. increase temperature and heat wave incidences (extreme weather events - hurricanes, flooding, snowstorms, drought) 2. melting of glacier and polar ice 3. rising sea levels 4. earlier spring activity 5. shifts in species' range 6. population declines
Rare Species
1. live in narrow geographical range 2. occupy only one or a few specialized habitats 3. found in only small populations
Consequences of Small pops
1. loss of genetic variation- larger pops have greater genetic diversity -threatened species have lower genetic diversity- threatened taxa with small range had 35% lower genetic diversity than a related widespread species 2. loss of evolutionary flexibility- no genetic variation for adaptation to new events
To Reduce Spread of Disease
1. plants, animals, soils, and other biological material need to be inspected before cross boarders 2. reduce the interaction of endangered species with humans, domesticated species, and closely related species 3. monitor endangered species to detect outbreak of disease 4. appropriate living conditions and population densities
Reasons for Overexploitation
1. poverty 2. efficiency in harvesting 3. globalization
Roughly what amount of wetlands have been converted to dry land, symbolizing one of the biggest problems in aquatic habitat loss?
1/2
What percent of the world's seeds are currently housed in seed banks?
10%
Vulnerable
10% or greater probability of extinction within 100 years
Percent of land that is protected
13%
What is the global mean annual surface air temp? How much as the temp increased since 1880?
15 degrees C 0.7 degrees C
How many genetically distinct populations are lost each year?
160 million
Amount of protected areas
160,000 areas, 30 million km2, 2 million km2
megadiversity countries
17 countries which contain >70% of world's biodiversity
US Forest Service
194 Million Acres -National Forests and National Grasslands -Follows Conservationists efforts -->protect wilderness as well as oversee harvest of 1.5 billion trees
Speke Gazelle
1970: 1 male and 3 female. founder pop. one female did most of the breeding- Ne= 2 1982: pop size 29 ( less than our magic 50) pop highly inbreed, high juvenile mortality, start to show signs of inbreeding depression -management strategies- selected females producing higher number of offspring (inbreeding isnt affecting them as negatively), even out effect of founders-make sure everyones contributing evenly not just founding male
Estalbishing new populations- wolf re-introduction
1995- gray wolves from Jasper national park in canada become the first wolves to roam yellowstone since 1920s when the last pack was killed -by end of 1996, 31 wolves were relocated to the park -hunted because attack livestock -elk pop skyrocketed- park overgrazed -beavers able to come back after introduce wolf, landscape could recover -problem- still attacking livestock, protected so cant be hunted
Kyoto Summit -
1997 US didn't sign Kyoto protocol
Define ecosystem resilience. (2 definitions)
2 definitions: Ability of an ecosystem to resist or recover from a disturbance The magnitude of disturbance that can be absorbed or accommodated without causing fundamental change to the ecosystem
What do we now believe to be a manageable increase in temp? And what would we have to limit the CO2 ppm to only have that amount of temp increase?
2 degrees C 550 ppm
Symbiotic Relationship
2 species always found together
What percent of solar radiation is absorbed by the atmosphere? the surface of the Earth? and what percent is reflected back and what reflects it?
20% atmosphere 50 % surface of earth 30% reflected back into space by atmospheric gases, clouds, and surface of earth (majority)
How many protected areas are there globally? What percent of land area of Earth do they cover? What percent of ocean area do they cover? What are the goals?
200,000 15% with a goal of 17% by 2020 3% with a goal of 10% by 2020
Paris Accords -
2015 Each country keeps emissions below levels that would trigger a +2 C global temp rise Pre-industrial
Percent of Earth's land managed for sustainable resource protection
23%
What are the global 200 ecoregions?
233 of the 867 ecoregions are targeted for conservation action based on regional biodiversity and stratified to represent all biomoes
Approximately what percentage of our medicines come from plants?
25%
What are the CO2 levels 100yrs ago, today, and 100yrs from now? What is the temp change from 100yr ago to today and today to 100yrs from now?
280 ppm 400 ppm 720 ppm 0.7 degrees C 2.8 degrees C
What other two lists (aside from IUCN) are maintained that describe species risk of extinction?
3. CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) 2. Nature Serve.
What is the number of ppm CO2 that is considered the maximum without major climate change consequences?
350
Earth formed how many years ago
4.5 bya
Mass Extinction
5 Episodes of natural mass extinction 1. Ordovician 2. Devonian 3. Permian 4. Triassic 5. Cretaceous - dinosaurs Current = Quaternary - due to human acitvity
Critically endangered
50% or greater probability of extinction within 10 years or 3 generations
What percent of land is owned by private, federal government, state and local government, and native american tribes? And what does this mean of conservation?
55% private 35% fed. gov 7% state & local gov 3% native american tribes Shows that we need to include private land owners in conservation
2,000 zoos worldwide with ______
600,000 terrestrial vertebrates. 600,000 fish
Solar Power
600x stronger than all other energy sources but is only during the day
What percent of the world's protected areas were created only in the last 45 years, and usually in short bursts when conditions aligned for it
80%
How much is unprotected land?
80% of world
Approximately how many ecosystems are in the World Wildlife Fund classification system?
825
If we continue with business as usual, models suggest temperatures in South Bend will increase how much by the years 2079-2099?
9-11
Indigenous Communities Own:
97% of Papua New Guinea 22% of the Amazon Basin of Brazil 1/5 of Canada 90 million ha in Australia
Area of Focus: Prairies
98% of prairies modified in US useful for educational value -what type do we restore?
How many species have been driven to extinction since 1600
> 1000
what percent of the world's terrestrial habitat currently lies outside of protected areas?
>80%
Environmentalism
A broad philosophy, ideology, and social movement regarding concerns for environmental protection and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seeks to incorporate the concerns of non-human elements.
What is a flagship species?
A charismatic species that helps raise awareness and/or funding for conservation
What is Hp?
A common measure of genetic variation within a population, aka the mean heterozygosity
A genetically unique and geographically isolated population of rat snake in Peninsular Florida would be called what?
A distinct evolutionary segment.
What is a phylogenetic species?
A group of individuals that are morphologically, physiologically, or biochemically distinct from other groups
What is a biological species?
A group of individuals that potentially breed among themselves and do not breed with individuals from other groups
Define Ecosystem
A group of interacting organisms (a community) and the physical environment they inhabit at a given point in time.
Community Type/ Natural Community/ Ecosystem Type
A group of species that occur together repeatedly in space, in association with a particular set of environmental conditions.
Adaptation
A heritable trait that increase fitness
Concept of utility
A measure of "well-being"
Vestigial Traits
A reduced or incomplete structure with little or no function value
What is the definition of a species according to its genetic structuring?
A species is a collection of populations with a hierarchical genetic structure based on degree of genetic similarity
Keystone species
A species on which other species in an ecosystem largely depend, such that if it were removed the ecosystem would change drastically. Example: bees, beavers,
keystone species
A species that has an unusually large effect on its ecosystem
What is a panmixia?
A species that is a single randomly interbreeding population
What is an umbrella species?
A species whose conservation also benefits a wide range of additional species
Option Value
A species' potential to produce economic benefits to society in the future
What is the IUCN Red List
A standardized list of species risk of extinction world wide
What are reserve systems?
A system of small protected areas, preferably linked by landscape level corridors
Define a reserve system.
A system of such protected areas (protected areas are defined by the IUCN)
What is a demographic bottleneck?
A type of genetic drift
Conservation easements -
A voluntary legal between a landowner and a land trust/government agency that permanently limits uses of land in order to protect its conservation values
What is the example of a likely emission scenario used in a global climate model that was given in the notes? And what are the results of this scenario when imputed into models?
A widely adopted, middle of the road emissions scenario is an increase of CO2 from 287ppm in 2010 to 720 ppm in 2100 The mean temp will increase to 18 degrees C with a range of increase from 1.4 degrees C to 5.8 degrees C, with greater warming at higher latitudes
IUCN Red List Criteria for the Assignment of Conservation Categories
A. observable reduction in number of individuals B. total geographical range occupies C. predicted decline in number of individuals D. number of mature Individuals currently alive E. probability the species will go extinct within a certain number of years
Bicultural Restoration
ACG staff teach basic biology and ecology on-site to 2500 students in 4th - 6th grades from 53 neighboring schools.
Convention of the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals
Bonn Convention, 119 countries, encourages international efforts to conserve bird, bat, and cetacean species
What causes demographic bottlenecks?
Bottleneck occurs when population size is greatly reduced by a catastrophic event, but then recovers
Gene mix -
Bottlenecking Proper robustness available when released?
Howell's capture, publicized in Forest and Stream, led to the rapid formation of regulations protecting wildlife in National Parks and probably saved this species from extinction
Buffalo
Fences -
Build up water Erode slopes
How can inbreeding depression be alleviated?
By out-breeding
The program, created under FDR's New Deal, was crucial for improvements to the national pakrs
CCC
This international agreement focuses on migratory species
CMS
What is the most important antropogenic greenhouse gas? What is the most abundant gas in the atmosphere relative to the other greenhouse gasses?
CO2
This program pays US farmers to set aside cropland for wildlife habitat
CRP
Which of the following is not true in regards to endemic species?
Can be naturally found in more than a single geographical area
Microsite placement -
Can't migrate Must be placed in the proper place
Agriculture also produces greenhouse gases. These two types of farming produce notable amounts of methane.
Cattle, rice
Warfarin, the common rodenticide works by doing what to mammals?
Causing internal bleeding
Increased genetic diversity allows species to adapt to
Changing environments
This biome is generally found on the western side of mid-latitude continents, with rich diversity and periodic fires?
Chaparral
In the case of zoos, the emphasis has tended to be on which groups?
Charismatic megafauna
List all 4 types of pollutants discussed.
Chemical Solid Light Noise
Government efforts:
Clean Air Act National parks Endangered species act
God squad -
Committee that can override ESA under exceptional situations Snail darter
Pedigree Analysis
Conduct this to avoid inbreeding during captive breeding. Find a pair of potential mates with the lowest kinship coefficient.
What is ex-situ conservation?
Conservation in captivity, rather than in the wild
Ex-situ conservation -
Conservation outside the area a species typically occupies Zoos, aquariums, botanical gardens, seed banks, game farms, etc.
Conservation developments -
Controlled-growth land use development that allows limited sustainable development while protecting land
Artificial insemination -
Controls for genes
What are the 3 limitations of ex situ conservation?
Cost (operating expenses of all US zoos totals $1 billion annually, 2008) Focus on individual species Space (to keep individuals in captivity, the larger they are the more space they require Captive animals
Debt-for-nature swaps -
Countries end up paying more in interest than original loan totals
Ex situ conservation
Create a new population in a human-controlled ("off site"), artificial environment -Zoos -Aquariums -Botanical Gardens
Translocation: Introduction
Create a new population outside the species' original range -DANGER!! Potential invasive species -Like assisted migration
Keystone resource
Crucial habitat that is important to many species in a community
The existence of un-described species incorrectly lumped with described species is called?
Cryptic biodiversity
Which pesticide was responsible for the decline of the bald eagle in the early/mid 1900s?
DDT
Which trophic level generally consumes all other trophic levels?
Decomposers
What is out-breeding depression?
Decrease individual fitness associated with gene flow among populations due to genetic swamping of locally adapted genes
What is the inbreeding depression?
Decreased individual fitness associated with increased frequency of homozyous genotypes
What are the two consequence of loss of genetic diversity?
Decreasing individual fitness and population size Decreased rate of evolution -because evolutionary rate is correlated with amount of genetic variability within a population
Kew Gardens -
Dedicates some facilities to seed storage
phylogenetic species concept
Defines a species as a set of organisms with a unique genetic history
What is natural selection?
Differential survival and reproduction of different genotypes in the population and usually decreases genetic diversity
The "ghost deer" of Boulder Junction, WI are an example of?
Differing allele frequencies
Consumptive and productive values fall under which type of use?
Direct
What is the main problems associated with plastics as environmental pollutants?
Direct mortality of sea birds, turtles, marine mammals, and they transfer of toxic compounds to filter-feeding plankton.
What are the three types of natural selection? And what do their graphs look like?
Directional selection Disruptive selection Stabilizing selection (the bottom part of the pic is what was in our notes)
What is the pro for the BII?
Doesn't require population data, uses ecosystem area and land use
Which of the following is not part of a federal cabinet, but is an independent cabinet-level agency?
EPA
Who enforces the Clean Air Act of 1963?
EPA
Hunting:
Earliest regulations Early effort to conserve wildlife for royalty
Why were National Parks created?
Early national parks set aside mainly for dramatic scenery
What is the major method used in making policy decisions?
Economic valuation
What would happen if the Gulf Stream current shut down due to the melting of Greenland?
Europe would get colder
What does nitrogen cause?
Eutrophication and hypoxia
What is Intrinsic Value
Every species has value even independent of its value to other species or within an ecosystem
What are the ethical principles of conservation?
Evolution should continue
Guiding principles of conservation biology
Evolution unites all of biology Ecosystems are complex Humans must be considered
Are rare and endangered the same thing?
False, an animal can be rare but not endangered and vice versa
The actual reproductive rate of a population is the?
Fecundity
Gathering Information
For each target (community type, species) gather data such as LOCATION and VIABILITY
US Endangered species act -
Founded 1969 Included plants 1973 CITES 1975 God squad 1978 Critical habitat focus 1982, 1988 Weaken power of fish, wildlife service 2008
Which measure of diversity deals with species per region?
Gamma
Who is often considered the "savior fo National Park wildlife"?
George Melendez Wright
What are Biosphere Reserves? What are two reserves in Texas?
Globally important ecosystems Includes Big Bend NP and Big Thicket NP
Public Goods
Goods accessible to all (clean air)
98% of this habitat has already been lost in the US mostly due to agriculture
Grassland
The control group is the
Group not exposed to the treatment
HCP -
Habitat conservation plans Reduce power of ESA
Who was the author of Walden?
Henry David Thoreau
C values are ______ in groups with high richness (insects) and _____ in groups with low richness (mammals).
High; low
Why is ocean acidification bad?
Higher acidity interferes with ability of organisms to incorporate calcium carbonate in their shells and leads to coral bleaching
Where has warming been greatest at?
Higher latitudes
Which of the following biomes is not one of those generally considered a biodiversity hotspot?
Hot deserts
Large mammals were driven to extinction by:
Hunting and indirectly by burning/clearing forest
Humans display which survivorship curve type?
I
Impact of Human Population Equation
I = PAT - P = number of people - A = average income - T = level of technology
Insects generally display which curve type?
III
What is intrinsic value?
Inherent - value that something has an end in itself (Biocentric)
What are the two values of biodiversity that conservation biologists try to convey to the rest of society?
Instrumental (utilitarian) Intrinsic (inherent)
What is Instrumental Value
Instrumental value can be the value of an organism in an ecosystem and to surrounding organisms
Bioregional Management
Integrates protection with human use and often focuses on a single large ecosystem
To feed a growing population, agriculture has largely switched from agricultural land expansion to what?
Intensification
Pahrump Goldfish -
Introduced from elsewhere
How has the precipitation changed in the US over the past century?
It has increase 10-15% and even more precipitation is predicted for the future
Why is extinction sometimes considered superkilling?
It kills future generations of the species and eliminates the process of evolution and speciation
Although not realistic because they do not consider the influence of natural selection, Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium is useful because?
It provides a benchmark for comparison
the single largest expansion of protected conservation lands in world history occurred in Alaska under this president, who was burned by locals if effigy amidst staunch opposition to the plans
Jimmy Carter
Which important figure camped with President Roosevelt in Yosemite?
John Muir
Root ball -
Keeps roots and excess soil, etc. Does not control environment
The most common lethal dose rating of chemicals is?
LD50
Debt-for-nature swap steps:
LDC borrows from MDB to stimulate economy Economy not stimulated enough to pay back loan Debt grows NGO buys off loan for 1/6-1/10 value
Name 4 general exceptions to the rule that diversity is greater in the tropics
Lichen, sea birds, sea mammals, beetles
What are the secondary factors that contribute to population change?
Life history characteristics including sex ratio, age structuring, growth rate, time of first reproduction, and fertility.
Transitional features
Link older and younger species
Types of local conservation efforts:
Local Government NGO's Business Consumers Religious Media Scientists Economists Eco-colonialism
Audubon society -
Local conservation for birds
Extirpation usually refers to the situation where a species is made?
Locally extinct
LTERs
Long-Term Ecological Research sites; established by NSF; used to study ecological changes over decades
The number of individuals necessary to ensure the long-term survival of a species is known as the?
MVP
Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES)
Many people who benefit from an ecosystem service may live far from the ecosystem that provides them so PES provides an incentive to landowners to protect these ecosystems
Why do most species conservation efforts involve management of their habitats?
Many species occur together in a given landscape leading naturally to a landscape approach to conservation It is also more cost effective than single species management
This model is commonly used by governments to try to avoid overexploitation. Usually, for fast-reproducing species, it comes out to half of the carrying capacity. It is problematic due to lacking info.
Maximun sustainable yield
Animal social behavior -
May have lost key behaviors/skills Can be hard to release How to migrate, caring for young, reaction to predators Avoid human contact Mix wild w/captive individuals Puzzle solving skills Raise/reintroduce w/foster parents, siblings
What does inbreeding depression results in decreased....?
Metabolic efficiency Growth rate Reproductive output Disease resistance
This gas is nine times more powerful as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide
Methane
"Father of Conservation Biology"
Michael Soule
Other things to protect:
Migratory species Marine species Habitats - wetlands
The area of suitable habitat necessary for maintaining the previous question's group is the?
Minimum Dynamic Area
What is the minimum viable population(MVP)?
Minimum size of isolated population necessary for X% survival for Y years Usually conservationist use 99% probability of surviving for 1000 years
PVA of mexican palm (II)
Model II= low environmental variation, MVP=140
Why must conservation biologists participate in the development of economic models?
Models can provide strong support for the positive impact of biodiversity in local, regional, and national economies
Ecosystems are often most diverse under what schedule of disturbancefrequent, moderately frequent, or infrequent?
Moderately frequent
Adaptive Mangement
Monitor significant components of the ecosystem, gather the needed data, and then use results to adjust management in an adaptive manner
What are the two types of genes?
Monomorphic -allele:exists in single form Polymorphic -alleles:exists in 2 or more forms
Why do islands with large areas have more species than islands with smaller areas?
More habitats and greater geographic isolation/more populations for speciation
What are the common species definitions?
Morphological, biological, evolutionary
The movement of these ranges in the previous question is particularly problematic for species in these systems due to vertical movement.
Mountains
4 main needs for international agreements:
Movement of organisms, resources Movement of ecosystem services Transport of animals Environmental threats
Which long-term, NSF-funded ecological research program does the U of ND manage a site for?
NEON
Which act forces government agencies to do an environmental impact assessment before any action?
NEPA
What makes a species rare?
Narrow geographic range Narrow niche Small population size
NEON
National Ecological Observatory Network; funded by NSF, specifically climate change, land use, and invasive species impacts on biodiversity
The Grand Canyon was originally preserved as a?
National Monument
Which is the only agency which follows the preservationist ethic?
National Parks Service
Endemic
Native or restricted to a certain country or area.
USDA Departments
Natural Resources Conservation Service Wildlife Services US Forest Services
What is Ne and why is it smaller than N?
Ne is effective population size, or the number of breading individuals It is smaller than N, consensus population size, because not all individuals are equally capable or likely to breed
Which of the following is an example of a keystone resource which a manager may need to preserve or enhance for wildlife?
Nest sites, mineral licks, pools
Which famous landmark became over-commercialized prior to interest in Yosemite and Yellowstone, and is commonly referenced as a stark contrast to preservation?
Niagara Falls
Water particularly tends to remove which of these fertilizer macronutrients from the land, dumping it into aquatic systems?
Nitogen
Restoration ecology:
No action Replacement Rehabilitation Restoration Recovery Healing
Stop-gap -
No alternative for in-situ conservation
Are dominant species are usually keystone species
No they are not
Can we easily define where one ecosystem starts and the other ends?
No we cannot
Is sympatric speciation common?
No. Breeding mistakes happen.
NGO's -
Non-governmental organizations
The Yellowstone wolves represent which type of experimental population?
Noncritical
Which of the following is not generally considered an example of overexploitation?
North American hunting
Density-Independent Factors
Not affected by density of a population -weather, wildfires, storms
Experimental-nonessential -
Not as controlled reintroductions
NIMBY -
Not in my backyard Links conservation to physchology Good for you and everyone Yucca Mtn.
Stable ecosystems consisting of invasive and noninvasive species?
Novel ecosystems
Antarctica was largely preserved to prevent the development of what?
Nuclear missile bases
They hypothesis which assumes the control and experimental group will be equal is called?
Null
Effective Population Size
Number of breeding individuals of a population --smaller, often substantially because of population that cannot reproduce --------->lack of mates, sterility, malnutrition, social structure, genetic defect --usually around 11% of a population
functional diversity
Number of different functional types in a given area
The US Forest Service actually attempted to deceive FDR at one point to dissuade him from turning a national park a monument into what national park?
Olympic
How many migrations per generation are needed to sustain genetic diversity?
One
What is gene flows implications for conservation biology? (the rule of thumb)
One migrant per generation is necessary to maintain a rate of gene flow sufficient to minimize loss of heterozosity while allowing for local adaptation within a populations
Homonymy (cryptic species)
One name, many species
European Union Biodiversity Convention
One objective was to restore at least 15% of degraded ecosystems by 2020
Index of Sustainable Economic Welfare (ISEW)
One of the first attempts to estimate national productivity while including resource use and degradation
What is directional selection? When is this common? Does it decrease or maintain genetic variation?
One particular phenotype is favored, so its frequency increases in a population over time Common when the environment is slowly changing Decreased genetic variation
allopatric speciation by vicariance
One population becomes two when a natural barrier is formed physically separating the two
Allopathic speciation by dispersal
One population becomes two when some members move to another geographical area
ESA problems:
Only addresses flagship species Need to use ecosystem approach Metapopulations not protected Guidelines need to be clarified Rarity in areas determines listing Limited public input Stochastic factors Demographics, biological, etc.
A condition of having weakened young because of mating with different species?
Outbreeding depression
This industrial pollutant, particularly a favorite of the paper industry, was banned in 1979 but still persists in many river sediments.
PCBs
A park, which receives no management, but exists in law, is a?
Paper park
Where is the Chicago Botanic Garden? What is it used for?
Part of Bureau of Land Management's Seeds of Success program -Goal is to collect seeds of entire flora of the United States~14,000 species -20 populations from each species (goal of collecting -95% of genetic diversity within each species) -10 yrs of work, costing an est. $500 million.
Compare and contrast a passive vs an active restoration plan.
Passive Restoration: Remove threat or disruptive factor and allow natural processes to occur Active Restoration: Activity manipulate abiotic/biotic factors, may involve both manual and mechanical work
Which of the following is an example of a species which does well in the US urban areas and thus are a focus of urban ecology?
Peregrine Falcon
Conservation banking -
Permanently protected lands that contain natural resource values
Which mass extinction came closest to wiping out all life on Earth?
Permian
Organic food must not use which?
Pesticides
Reducing pressure to collect from wild:
Pets Zoos Medicine Sport/gain Bushmeat Reintroductions
mammal survey
Photographs large traps, nets and snares, vocals
Embryo transfer -
Places eggs of one female into another
Conservation Targets
Planning teams identify the... -Natural Communities (different kinds) -Species (rare and vulnerable) that will be "targeted" for conservation
Setting Goals
Planning teams set goals for each of the targets... -How much? (populations and community types) -Where? (how target is distributed across landscape)
What is the best described group or organisms?
Plants
How do species avoid inbreeding?
Plants: physical or chemical barriers Animals: dispersal of one sex
Species richness can be looked at across four different geographic scales:
Point, Alpha, Gamma, and Beta richness
Ecosystem services used to value nature:
Pollinators
Liberation theology -
Poor are using resources because of immediate needs
Which is not a level of biodiversity?
Population
In order to conserve species, it requires knowledge about the factors that regulate their populations. The two sciences that study that are _________ &________.
Population ecology and demography
Why are populations models used in conservation?
Population models may be used to identify minimum viable population
What are the two types of population models we talked about in the notes?
Population viability analysis Spatially explicit population modules
Ex-situ techniques:
Population-level Individual-level
Name the other 2 levels of diversity we talk about in this course
Populations and Ecosystems
Fire -
Pre-burn Fire removal
The Red Queen Hypothesis refers to the evolutionary arms race spurred by which species interaction type?
Predation
What does the Wilderness Act of 1964 do?
Preserves primitive areas in their natural state Established National Wilderness Preservation System
Green washing -
Pretending to go green May have good intentions May have poor followthrough
Future scenarios for ex-situ:
Probable loss of 1/4-1/2 of all species by end of century Most vertebrates need saving 500-1000 yrs until wildlife #s increase again or stop decreasing Uses cryopreservation methods to reduce restoration time period
Productive Use Value
Products that are harvested and sold in markets
5 steps of CBA
Project definition Classification of impacts Conversion into monetary terms Project assessment Sensitivity analysis
Which of the following is not one of the three goals of conservation biology?
Promote activism within the environmental movement for future generations
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Promoted the spiritual side of nature, and called for its protection (mid 1800s)
Michael Soule
Proposed Conservation Biology as an interdisciplinary approach to preserving and restoring biodiversity.
What central role do protected areas play in conservation?
Protected areas are the foundation of conservation efforts and they prevent habitat loss, most habitat degradation, and exploitation.
Appendix 3 -
Protection in specific country ~73 species
Shariah (laws of Islam)
Protects animals from cruelty, conserves forests, and limits the growth of cities
What does the Endangered Species Act of 1973 do?
Protects engendered and threatened species from being killed, harmed, or harassed This includes protection of necessary habitat
The two major lab breakthroughs in genetics that enable use to conduct conservation genetics are?
Protein electrophoresis and polymerase chain reaction
Which term should you really never use in science?
Prove
Indirect Use Values
Provide economic benefits without being harvested. These do not appear in the GDP but are crucial to other natural products which do influence GDP
Three Gorges Dam Pros:
Provided water Reduced loss to flooding Reduced air pollution Provided electricity
What are the bio & eco effects sediment pollution?
Reduces efficiency of photosynthesis and interferes with feeding and sensory perception in animals
In restoration ecology, goals are often set by comparing ________ sites whose characteristics are considered the target
Reference
Buddhism
Regard all living beings as interconnected companions on the path to nirvana
What are Habitat Conservation Plans? Who makes and approves HCP's?
Regional plans that allow development in designated areas while setting aside protected areas for actually or potentially endangered species It is management at landscape/ecosystem level rather than on species by species basis HCP's are drawn upon by developers, conservation groups, and local governments and approved by FWS.
Soft release for plants -
Removed weeds near plant
Rehabilitation -
Repair ecosystem functions Water filtration, etc. Processes
The Four Rs
Representation Resiliency Redundancy Reality
Soft release -
Require care/effort after animal is released
Herbivory -
Require fences, cages for protection
Hard release -
Requires no additional care/effort given after animal is released
Competition -
Requires removal of competitors
Which of the following is not one of the "four Rs" of reservation design?
Resistance
Which ethic is the basic of sustainable development?
Resource Conservation Ethic
Which ethic is the basis for most government management agencies like the DNR?
Resource Conservation Ethic
Which president signed into law the Endangered Species Act?
Richard Nixon
Gamma richness?
Richness across larger spatial scales
What is point richness?
Richness at a single point in space
What is alpha richness?
Richness withing a single, small area
Enos Mills, often compared to John Muir, fought to have this park established
Rocky Mountain National Park
What is the equation for species-area realationship?
S = CA^z S - number of species A - area of the island C and z are constants depending on the type of islands and species
Species equation relative to area
S=cA^z A= area, c and z constant c= intercept z= slope on log log scale
What are some examples of early protected areas?
Scared groves of Asia and Africa Royal hunting preserves of Europe National Parked But most protected areas were designated withing the last 100 years
Who has to ultimately designate species as endangered under the endangered species act?
Sec of Interior
why do we get so many medicines from plants?
Secondary metabolites
What are the two types of solid waste pollutants?
Sediments and Plastics
ESA usefulness:
Seen as good model Seen as too strong/weak
What is Systematic Conservation planning?
Selecting of protected areas to protect representative sample of regional biodiversity and ecosystem functions
Eco-colonialism effort:
Setting up reserves, but disregarding local cultural uses of land
Terra-forming -
Shaping earth
What are the short-term, mid-term, and long-term conservation goals relative to genetic diversity?
Short-term(days-decades): prevent local extirpation and global extinction Mid-term(decades to millennia): Preserve potential for adoption to changing environmental conditions (evolution by natural selection) Long-term(millennia on): Preserve potential for future speciation
What are some issues to consider concerning ecological restoration?
Should resource be allocated to restoring degraded ecosystems or to conserving healthy ecosystems? Does support of restoration by conservation biologists imply to decision makers that conservation isn't necessary?
John Muir became the first president of this conservation organization, which fights for preserving habitats.
Sierra Club
SLOSS
Single Large Or Several Small
SLOSS Debate
Single Large or Several Small
What are the factors that help the IUCN place protected areas into the 6 different categories?
Size Status of included ecosystems(natural or anthopogenic) Amount of human activity Conservation goals
What influences the magnitude of genetic loss due to genetic drift during the bottleneck?
Size of bottleneck population Growth rate of population after bottleneck
Drought -
Slow-release seeds Dri water
What are the characteristics of Natural Monuments?
Small Ecosystem in natural state No direct resource exploitation allowed Protection of specific natural or cultural feature
Problems w/reintroduction for animals:
Social behavior Amount of post-release care Costs (duration) Negative human attitudes, actions Gene mix Removal of initial pressures Avoid disease carriers Variables that affect success
Species releases where special care and assistance may be required for them to be successful are called?
Soft releases
Supporting services
Soil formation Primary production Nutrient cycling
What is the greenhouse effect and how does it effect the global climate?
Solar radiation is reflected form Earth's surface and absorbed by clouds and greenhouse gases and re-emitted downwards. They essentially get "trapped" in atmosphere.
What is genetic drifts implications on conservation biology?
Some alleles may not be passed to the next generation by chance alone leading to rapid loss of genetic diversity, but this is much more likely in a small population
What makes a species vulnerable?
Specialization Rarity Narrow habitat range Low density Low reproduction rates Co-evolutionary dependencies
What is sympatric speciation?
Speciation that occurs in one large population that mates non-randomly because of behavioral or habitat niche differences
When we study diversity what level of diversity are we usually studying genes or species?
Species
Island Biogeography Model
Species - Area Relationship: S = CA^z - S = number of species on an island - A = area of the island - C and z are constant that depend on type of island and types of species - number of species occurring on an island represents a dynamic equilibrium between extinction rate of species and colonization (and evolution) - equilibrium rates higher for larger islands - more species the greater the likelihood that species will go extinct Also used to predict the number of species that would become extinct if habitats were destroyed - reducing area of natural habitat on island would effectively result in smaller island that support fewer species - asymptotic relationship Assumptions: - based on typical values (across various species) - endemic species are eliminate from the area - areas of habitat are eliminated at random - degree of habitat fragmentation may affect extinction rates
Which math is the language of biology?
Statistics
This leader of the national parks was prone to bouts of depression, which were hidden from the public.
Stephen Mather
What are the IUCN's 6 categorys of protected areas?
Strict nature reserves and wilderness areas National Parks Natural Monuments Habitat/species management areas Protected landscape/seascape Managed resource protected area
Humans & conservation coexisting:
Suburbs - greenway Selective logging Rotation logging Shade coffee Government zones Powerline right of ways
Henry David Thoreau
Suggested that experience with nature was necessary to counteract the impact of civilization on humans in the (mid 1800s)
Judeo-Christian Stewardship Ethic
Suggests that humans are stewards of the creation, intrinsic value of nature by divine decree
Acid mine drainage, particularly coal mines, often contains a high amount of this element, which substantially acidifies streams and soils.
Sulfur
Biodiversity Intactness Index?
Summed abundance of species across all ecosystem types in the presence of impacts divided by the abundance of those same species in a pristine world = the proportion of biodiversity that remains intact
NGO efforts:
TNC Land trusts Audubon society Conservation leasing Conservation easements Conservation banking Conservation developments Are land trusts elitist?
True or False: Juveniles usually disperse further then adults?
TRUE.
Relocation/transplantation -
Taken into captivity long enough to be able to be transplanted elsewhere Bighorn sheep Taken from healthy populations, transplanted where needed Metapopulation dynamics
Which type of scientist do we specifically need more of for identifying species?
Taxonomists
What is the source of nitrogen?
Terrestrial ecosystems, but nitrogen fertilizers has doubled terrestrial input into the nitrogen cycle
What is an example of the ecosystem approach to conservation?
Texas Nature Conservancy - Freshwater conservation strategy protects habitat for wildlife and prevents urban runoff and pollution from entering Edwards Aquifer
What is an example of the source-sink dynamics?
The Louisiana Black Bear The young males dare dispersing from LA to OK, ARK, and East Texas
Define Conservation Biology
The applied science of maintaining the Earth's biological diversity
Ecology
The branch of biology that deals with the relations of organisms to one another and to their physical surroundings.
Islam
The central concept is tawhid, or unity. Believers must therefore maintain the integrity of the Earth, its flora and fauna, its wildlife and environment.
Local & regional extinction
The condition of a species (or other taxon) that ceases to exist in the chosen geographic area of study, though it still exists elsewhere.
What is inbreeding depressions implications to conservation biology?
The consequences of inbreeding are more severe in small, isolated populations because related individuals are more likely to breed
What does a high Beta richness mean?
The cumulative number of species increases rapidly as additional areas are censuses along an environmental gradient. Species may also drop out rapidly along this gradient
What is Hypoxia?
The decomposition of excess photosynthetic biomass by bacteria depletes oxygen in the water
Confucianism
The destruction of ones social and environmental context is thus self-destruction
What is the ecosystem approach to conservation?
The ecosystem approach to conservation considers species in their ecological context and seeks to maintain ecosystem structure and function in perpetuity. It addresses conservation actions at large (landscape scale) It includes human presence/activities in conservation planning and includes diverse stakeholders in management decisions.
Environmental Ethics
The ethical value of the natural wordl
sympatric speciation
The formation of new species in populations that live in the same geographic area.
What is gene flow?
The movement of genes from one population to another
TNC -
The nature conservancy Buy land, given to parks services to run, etc.
Species richness
The number of species
species richness
The number of species in a given area
If two communities have the same species richness how can you tell which one is more diverse?
The one that has more species evenness
What is heterozygosity (H) ?
The proportion of gene loci for which an individual is heterozygous This is a common measure of genetic variation within an individual
Fecundity
The reproductivity of a population (measured by females)
What is a dominant species?
The species that predominates in an ecological community, particularly when they are most numerous
Extinction
The state or process of a species, family, or larger group being or becoming extinct.
What was the temp and greenhouse gasses like in the cretaceous period?
The temp is 10 degrees C hotter then and the greenhouse gasses where more abundant during the cretaceous but have declined since then, until now
What do ice cores for past 740,000 years indicate?
The temp is strongly correlated with abundance of greenhouse gasses
Willingness to Accept Compensation
The value of the compensation a person would accept for losses suffered as a result of a conservation action
Willingness to Pay
The value of the satisfaction a person derives from knowing a species/resource exists
What is not a difference between hypotheses and theories?
Theory can no longer be proven
Charles Darwin & Alfred Russell Wallace
Theory of evolution
What is sea level rise attributed to?
Thermal expansion of water and melting of polar ice sheets & glaciers
What are the reserve system designs like now?
They aim to protect threatened species or umbrella species, protect BV hotspots, and protect large and functioning ecosystems and their services
Human technology can replace some services, but:
They are costly Can solve one problem & create new ones
What is environmental variability?
They are relatively common and regular disturbances such as annual flooding.
What are catastrophes?
They are relatively uncommon and irregular disturbances and species are unlikely to be adapted to them
What are the limitations to captive breading animals?
They lose behaviors needed for wild survival Lose genetic variation Undergo morphological or physiological changes that would decrease survival in wild Acquire diseases in captivity
What secondary role do protected areas play in conservation?
They provide ecosystem service for humans, protect indigenous cultures, and provide recreational opportunities
Species considered at risk of becoming endangered are listed under Endangered Species Act as?
Threatened
IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Conservation Categories
Threatened: Critically Endangered (CR) Endangered (EN) Vulnerable (VU)
How are modern economies achieving growth?
Through the non-sustainable consumption of natural resources
Jainism
To free one's soul, one must follow ahisma (non-injury of living things) and asceticism (giving up all forms of physical pleasure)
Appendix 1 -
Trade is banned ~825 plants/animals
What is noise pollution caused by?
Transportation, industry, sonar (pervasive in urban areas and marine ecosystems)
Permafrost and low species diversity are characteristic of this biome.
Tundra
Long-term propagation -
Typically over whole lifespan of individual Extinct in wild Possibility of reintroduction Przewalskis horse
Nuclear power plants primarily use this as fuel
U-235
Which group was initially responsible for protecting Yellowstone?
US Cavalry
Organic Agriculture
US Federal Organic Foods Production Act of 1990, less than 1% of grain land is organic, lower yield and higher costs
What system do we have in the US to standardize ecosystems based on vegetation?
US National Vegetation Classification
There is a general _______ relationship between species richness and water depth in oceans.
Unimodal
What are the characteristics of managed resource protected areas?
Variable size Ecosystems may or may not be modified by humans Managed resource exploitation Protect BV & ecosystem function while allowing sustainable exploitation of natural resources
Option Value
We don't know which species have the benefits; so it is important to preserve them all
What watershed do we live in?
We live in the Texas Gulf watershed....further broken down into the Sabine and Neches river watershed
Diversity
Weighted abundance in a given area
What are some questions and difficulties that conservation biologists face when they are trying to identify or prioritize groups for conservation?
What is the appropriate unit for conservation? What level of genetic uniqueness qualifies a group for conservation action? Even above the species level, not all taxa places at the same taxonomic rank are equivalent in age and genetic diversity and uniqueness
Extinction cascade
When a keystone species is lost and many other species are lost as a result
What is stabilizing selection? Does it decrease or maintain genetic variation?
When intermediate phenotypes are favored over extreme, so the frequency of intermediate phenotypes increases in a population over time Decreases genetic variation
What is source-sink dynamics? What is the source and what is the sink?
When populations occur in habitats patches of differing quality it may lead to different reproductive success The source is a high quality habitat with high reproductive output, higher birth rate than mortality rate, and excess individuals The sink is a low quality habitat with low reproductive output, higher mortality than birth rate, and the population only survives because of constant immigration from source
What is market failure?
When the market fails to benefit society as a whole
What is disruptive selection? Does it decrease or maintain genetic variation?
When two extreme phenotypes are favored over intermediate phyenotypes, so the frequency of the two extremes both increase in a population over time Maintains genetic variation May lead to speciation
Admixture
When two previously isolated populations begin to interbreed
Florida panthers -
Work with landowners to protect species on land
State preference (hypothetical market)
Would you pay a specified price for a specified increase in environmental quality cons: how to take into accoun different incomes hypotheical
Where is the Antiquities Act null and void because of a park dispute?
Wyoming
Colter's Hell is another name for?
Yellowstone
Which was the first national park?
Yellowstone
Novel Ecosystems
a system that contains a mixture of native and nonnative species coexisting in a community unlike the original or reference site.
Define perpetuity.
a thing that lasts forever or for an indefinite period, in particular.
postzygotic isolation
a type of reproductive isolation that occurs after fertilization Offspring either don't survive or are sterile
Resistance
ability to maintain the same state even with ongoing disturbances
habitat/species management areas
aim to protect particular species or habitats and management reflects its priority; may need frequent intervention
ecocentric
all aspects of the environemtn livng and non living have inherent value
Seedlings, juveniles and adults ____
all have different ideal environments.
Species are Interdependent
all part of nature should be protected, It is in the long-term survival interest for humans to protect biodiversity, species extinction can have an effect on other species
Genetic Variation Purpose
allow species to adapt to environmental change - heterozygotes have grater fitness, growth, survival, and reproductive rates
How much rainfall do tropical forest get
almost 50%
Debt-for-Nature Swaps
another country swaps debt in exchange for nations agreement to perform conservation activity
Human dominion over the creation
anthropocentrism
20,000 of 22,000 varieties of plants _____
are used as food sources.
Complete Restoration
area is completely restored to its original species composition and structure by an active program of site modification and reintroduction of original species
minimum dynamic area
area of suitable habitat necessary for maintaining the MVP
Marginal Human Habitat
areas will remain uninhabited because of climate (deserts, tundra) or political or cultural reasons (Korean DMZ)
indicator species
associated with an endangered biological community or set of unique ecosystem processes
Partial Restoration
at least some of ecosystem is functional and some original, dominant species are restored -replacing degraded forest with tree plantation
Mather's mission throughout much of his tenure was to do what?
attract more park visitors
Experimental, Non-essential
authority to remove problem animals, reducing conflict
The introduction of this to the national parks is sometimes viewed as a "devil's bargain"?
automobiles
Which of the following does not describe science? a. A way of knowing b. an infallible method c. A quest for knowledge d. A process of inquiry
b. an infallible method
How was the Bald Eagle translocated? Why did they become endangered?
became endangered largely because of *pesticide DDT*, now off the endangered species list, natural recovery supplemented by translocation. Young birds reared in hacking boxes.
novel ecosystems
benefit, mixture of nonnative and native species is best suited to NEW conditions of an environment
Mutualistic Relationship
both species benefit, reach higher densities when they occur together
The decline of wildlife populations due to food hunting is called the?
bushmeat crisis
Adaptive Restoration
changing plan of ecological restoration based on goals achieved
No Action
choose to keep land as it is and don't touch it and see it if improves -passive restoration, let nature take care of itself
What is a gyre?
circulating pattern where the surface water move in a clock and counter clockwise motion
Which of the following biomes is represented by Antarctica?
cold desert
Seed Banks
collection of seeds from wild and cultivation -~10% of plant species in seed banks
What are seed banks?
collection of seeds, usual stored in cold, dry conditions (seeds of many species can remain dormant for long periods)
seed banks
collections of seeds from the wild and cultivation; 10% of plant species in seed banks now; reserve a variety of seeds from various geographical sources also important in preserving plant genetic diversity
John muir
communion with nature bring people closer to god, this use of nature is morally superior to exploitation - Preservation ethics
ecosystem management
cooperation to provide for human needs and maintain the health of wild species and ecosystems
Limitations of Ex-Situ Conservation
cost population size and genetic variability adaptation-->overly familiar with captivity concentration-->too many rare species in zoo ethical?
What bacteria is responsible for accumulation of atmospheric oxygen
cyanobacteria
wetlands
damaged or filled in, unappreciated, 50% wetlands gone, some of hardest systems to fix
Reconciliation Ecology
developing urban places where people and biodiversity can coexist
botanical gardens
easier to raise plants in captivity; base of food chain; serve as source of seed banks for rare species
Beavers are examples of?
ecosystem engineers
Parasites which live on the outside of the host are?
ectoparasites
What is the short term goal of ex situ conservation?
establish viable, genetically diverse captive breeding populations (esp. for threatened and endangered species)
Clean Water Act of 1972
established regulatory system for navigable waters on public and private land -meant to stop pollutant discharge
biofuel
ethanol and biodiesel
Environmental Ethics
ethical value of the natural world
Extinction Debt
eventual loss of species following habitat destruction and fragmentation
ethanol
fermentation of sugars -> ethanol + CO2
provisioning services
food, fresh water, wood, fuel; things that provide basics for life
Hydrologic cycle
forests regulate 33% of planets watershed. 5 billion people rely upon.
Endemic Species
found in a particular location and no where else
Endemic
found naturally only in a single geographic location
gasohol
gas + ethanol
Biophilia
genetic disposition to like biodiversity
Gene Flow
genetic transfer between populations (due to member of one population mating with member of different population)
Without the natural greenhouse effect, what would the global mean annual surface air temp be?
global mean annual surface air temp would be 33 degrees C lower that it is, or -18 degrees C
Survivorship Curve
graphical representation of life table data
survivorship curve
graphical representation of life table data (proportion of cohort that are still alive over time)
Several Small Cons
habitat fragmentation (edge effects, small population size, small densities, unable to support larger species, unable to support multiple habitats per preserve)
Minimum Dynamic Area
habitat needed to sustain minimum viable population
which of the following can be used dramatically reduce wildlife vehicle-collison mortalities and reduce habitat fragmentation impacts?
habitats corridors
Islands have...
high endemism
Type 3 survivorship curve
high reproductive rates but few make it to adulthood (ex: insects)
artificial incubation
human care of eggs when mother unable or under pressure
Ecosystem Approach
idea is to protect species, you must first protect the ecosystem they inhabit
Nature reserves aimed at saving a single species were first created...
in Poland in 1564 (wild cattle)
What are two examples of loss of genetic variability (loss of genetic diversity)?
inbreeding and loss of local adaptations
inbreeding depression
individual receives an identical defective copy of an allele from each parent; fewer, weak, sterile offspring with a higher mortality
biocentric ethic
individualistics: intrinsic value in every living thing
Species take precedence over
individuals
Extinct in the Wild
individuals of the species remain alive only in captivity or in human controlled situations
Invasive species often _____
inhibits return of native species.
Carbon monoxide kills animals by doing what to the blood?
interfering with hemoglobin's ability to bind with oxygen
UNESCO Biosphere Reserves Program
international agreement to protect biosphere
What is risk spreading?
isolated enough to buffer against single catastrophic events and to prevent the spread of disease and invasive species
Islands
isolation leads to diversification endemic species are common on islands
Qualitative data differs from quantitative data in that
it is descriptions, not numbers
reference sites
its characteristics are considered the target; act as controls for restoration experiments; can use old photos or historical accounts
Why is systematic conservation planning difficult?
knowledge of regional BV is rarely complete, so planning for comprehensiveness and representativeness often requires use of surrogate for total biodiversity.
Challenges in Park Management
lack of resources, management in a rapidly changing environment,
Aldo Leopold
land ethic - nature has intrinsic value, regardless of value to people
Paper Preserves
laws that lack funding, regulation, and protection for environmental problems
passive restoration
let nature take care of itself (ex: abandoned farm fields)
What is adequacy?
lg. enough to protect biodiversity and ecosystem functions over the long term and allow for continued evolution
The life table, an age-specific summary of survival patterns, was originally first developed by?
life-insurance companies
Habitat Corridors
link isolated patches using strips of protected land DOWNSIDE: highway for invasive species? Link for hunting? Some animals are weary of using them
Adaptive radiation
local adaptation and subsequent speciation
Habitat Destruction
main cause of loss of biodiversity result of: - agriculture - commercial developements - water projects - outdoor recreation - livestock grazing - pollution - infrastructure and roads - fire ecology - logging - desertification
Large Reserve Pros
maintain large, wide-ranging species, minimize amount of edge effects, encompass more species & have greater habitat diversity, more likely to preserve entire ecosystem processes, lower extinction rates
Keystone species
makes up a small proportion of a community's biomass, but has a huge impact on community richness, structure, and survival
Which group of animals tends to be dominant in tundra systems?
mammals
Fish surveys
may be seasonal -nets and traps electrofishing
genetic variation and metapopulations
measure genetic variation within a sub pop, within each sub pop diff defree of heterozygosity Ht= Hp + Hpt Hp= H1+H2+H3/3, average Hpt= average among variations between sub-pops, high Hpt siggests these two pops are similar, need to protect more areas protect all sub pops
Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
measures economic activity within a country without accounting for all costs, particularly environmental ones
sustainable development
meets present and future human needs without damaging the environment and biodiversity
Cretaceous period ended how
meteor Iridium concentration spike in soil
clumping dispersion
most common; ex: cities around routes and water
tidal power
movement of water from tides (moon's gravity)
prairies
native species can grow without fertilizer, easy to incorporate volunteer labor
Ecological Resilience
natural ability to recover
Humans intensify ____
natural disturbances, create novel ones.
Common property resource (public goods)
natural resources that are owned by society
preservationist ethic
nature has spiritual values that are generally superior to tangible material gain obtained by their exploitation
Active Management
need human monitoring and intervention to survive, can be because of global effects
What area is most diverse
neotropics )afrotopics and indo-Malaya
Acid Rain
nitrogen and sulfer oxides into the air decline in ecosystem productivity and fertility, increase in mortality
Locally Extinct/ Extruoated
no longer found in a specific area the species once inhabited but can be found elsewhere
Paper Parks
no management; gradually lose species; abused because of lack of protection
density independent factors
not affected by current density (ex: tornadoes, forest fires, floods)
experimental, non-essential
not considered critical to species survival
effective population size
number of breeding individuals in a population - focus on females
Minimum Viable Population
number of individuals necessary to ensure the long term survival of a species --uses long term population data and habitat assessment
minimum viable population
number of individuals to ensure the long-term survival of a species
Density
number of individuals within a unit of area/volume -increased by immigration -decreased by emigration
density
number of individuals within a unit of area/volume; increased by birth and immigration, decreased by deaths and emigration
random dispersion
occurs because individuals don't have strong aversions or control over their dispersal
Genetic Bottleneck
occurs when a population is greatly reduced in size and loses its rare alleles --florida panther
Inbreeding Depression
occurs when individuals receive 2 identical copies of a defective allele from each of its parents result = higher mortality of offspring, fewer offspring, or offspring that are weak or sterile and have low mating success
Semelparity
one massive reproductive effort (conserve a lot of energy to create one huge event)--create a lot and weak ones will die out
semelparity
one massive reproductive event
Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES)
one of the most important (179 countries), restrict trade and halt destructive overexploitation of endangered species
The prospect of future value in terms of benefits to society is called?
option value
Antiquities Act of 1906
originated from concerns of Indian Artifact Robbery -allows president to set aside federal land as park or conservation land
Unprotected areas
over 80% terrestrial habitat
Gamma diversity
overal diversity for all ecosystems withing a large area
the issue with marine protected areas is that many of them are
paper preserves
dispersion
pattern of spacing among individuals within the boundaries of the population
Conservation Reserve Program (USDA)
pays farmers to set aside some land as wildlife habitat, reduce soil erosion, and improve water quality
Conservation Reserve Program in US
pays farmers to set some crop land aside as wildlife habitat, reduce soil erosion, improve water quality
bioagumentation
people have to physically add the organisms
Biomagnification
pesticides become concentrated as they ascend the food chain - can also happen with water pollution
Draw the population regulation chart that includes density dependent and density independent regulations.
pg 25 of notes That picture is not the chart, but it tells what density dependent and independent factors are, but you do not need to know it because it is not in the notes
Roadless Area Conservation Rule (2001)
placed 1/3 of National Forests off-limits to road-building, logging, and development
Dingell-Johnson Act of 1950
places excise tax on fishing equipment, boats, and motorboat fuel --DOI distributes to state
Sink Population
population where poor habitat leads to high mortality rates and immigrants are needed to sustain numbers -->high disease, low resources, high predation, high exploitation etc.
Source Population
population which produces stable numbers and number of individuals migrate out
What did James Mason Hutchings not do for the conservation and national park idea?
prevented the logging of Yosemite forests and grazing of meadow
Type III Curve
produce a lot of young but they die quickly (insects)
Type I Curve
produce a small amount of young, but survive a long time (human)
Lacey Act of 1900
prohibits and regulates trade in wildlife, fish, and plants -regulates introduction of birds and other animals where they have never been before
Reconciliation energy
promote biodiversity in human-dominated landscapes - create habitat in urban settings - try to create situations where unprotected areas complement protected areas
Hotspot Approach
protect areas of high species richness
World Heritage Convention
protect cultural/natural areas of international importance
What is comprehensiveness?
protect examples of all species, pop, ecosys features, etc. in a region
Natural Monuments
protect specific natural monuments, which can be landforms, sea mounts, caverns, or even living features; generally small with high visitor value
protected landscapes/seascapes
protected areas where the interaction of people and nature have produced an area of distinct character with significant ecological, biological, cultural, and scenic value; safeguard interactions
Hotspot Approach
protecting areas that have great areas of biodiversity -megadiversity countries
The Species Approach: Umbrella Species
protecting based on species -broken up into indicator and flagship species
Species Approach
protection of umbrella species protects habitat for several other species
Natural Resources Conservation Service
provides technical service and advice to farmers, private landowners, and managers -->particularly soil surveys, habitat restorations, and water quality
flagship sp
public interest in conservation
What is the Global Crop Diversity Trust? Who manages it and where is it?
public, private partnership for preservation of genetic variation of crop plants for eternity -manages the Svalbard global seed vault (located within a mountain near Longyearbyen, Norway, holds over 500,000 samples)
Vulnerability
rare species (narrow range, specialized habitat, small populations) * declining population size * hunted or harvested (economic value to humans) - species that need large home range - large bodies species - not effective dispersers (can't cross roads, etc.) - seasonal migrants - little genetic variability - niche requirements - stable, pristine environment species - aggregation species - no prior human constant - species with relatives recently exteinct
Beta Diversity
rate of change of species composition along an environmental or geographical gradient (if you are comparing 3 mountains) - calculated: gamma diversity/alpha diversity
discount rate
rate which the capital could return if invested in some other way
Holistic
recoginizes species or aggregates of living things, but species are not living, so one could argue that a holistic approach isn't possible
developing urban places where people and biodiversity can coexist is called?
reconciliation ecology
Biota
region's flora and fauna
Clean Air Act of 1970
regulates air emissions from area, stationary, or mobile sources -meant to protect atmospheric resource
Theory of Island Biogeography
reserves often treated as habitat islands; basis for many design strategies
reinforcement program
restock or augment individuals existing populations to increase size and gene pool
Reinforcement Program
restock or augment individuals existing populations to increase size and gene pool --hatchery releases
uniform dispersion
result of territoriality
Metapopulation
series of population exhibiting this pattern of extinction and recolonization
Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (1980)
single largest preservation act (Carter) -placed 157M acres as parks, wildlife refuges, monuments, etc.
Populations in a metapopulation which are dependent on immigrants to sustain them are called?
sinks
Novel Ecosystems
sites with a mixture of native and nonnative species
Feeding and sheltering animals in the wild until they lean to survive, sometimes in pens, is known as?
soft release
nonegalitarion
some living thanings have greater value than others
plant surveys
speciemans must be fertile (flowering or with seeds) multiple visit required to complete inventory
Representative Sites
species and environmental conditions characteristic to that ecosystem
Objections of survey
species management - pattern spcies richness biodiversity hotspot - create protected areas
Invasive Species
spread and increase in abundance rapidly, sometimes at the expense of native species through competition for resources, prey, alter habitat - when invasive species dominate a community, diversity and native plant specie abundance declines - islands, lakes, and streams more vulnerable (no predator defenses)
Department of Natural Resources
states have own form of protecting wildlife --in midwest this is common
Extant
still living
demographics
study of the vital statistics and how they change over time
biosphere reserves (UNESCO)
surround a core of restricted habitat area surrounded with a buffer of limited human use, then transition zone of sustainable use
Type 2 survivorship curve
susceptible to disease equally throughout lifespan
Several Small Pros
target multiple species/ecosystems (more species for your buck), more socially acceptable, more financially feasible, easier to manage entire habitats, avoid "all eggs in one basket" by treating them as metapopulations
This is the biome of Notre Dame
temperate deciduous forest
More effort spent on pets ____
than ex-situ conservation worldwide. 50 million cats/dogs as pets
Sentience
the ability to experience pleasure and pain
Preservation
the action of preserving something
Minimum Dynamic Area (MDA)
the area of suitable habitat necessary for maintaining the minimum viable population
Environmental ethics
the discipline in philosophy that studies the moral relationship of human beings to and also the value and moral status of, the environment and its nonhuman contest.
Alpha Diversity
the number of SPECIES in a certain community or designated area (if you could only save 1 mountain)
Gamma Diversity
the number of species in a large region or continent (if you could only save 1 mountain range)
Genetic Drift
the random process of allele frequency change that causes a loss in genetic variation due to which individuals survive to sexual maturity, mate, and reproduce
Define biodiversity as per The Wildlife Society
the richness, abundance and variability of plant and animal species and communities and the ECOLOGICAL PROCESSES THAT LINK THEM WITH ONE ANOTHER AN WITH SOIL, AIR, & WATER
Restoration Ecology
the science of ecological restoration
Restoration Ecology
the science of restoration; the research and scientific study of restored populations, communities, and ecosystems
phenology
the study of the relationship between climate and periodic (usually annual) biological phenomena ex- bird migration and plant flowering.
Demographics
the study of vital statistics of populations and how they change over time
what is genetic variation?
three levels 1. individual or heterozygosity 2. within population 3. between populations
this form of hydroelectric power uses the gravitational pull of the moon instead of the flow of rivers
tidal power
Leopold said the main goal of conservation should be....
to maintain the health of ecological processes
Revealed preference
travel cost method, how much do individuals pay to get here
Soil stores 1.8 times the carbon and 18time the nitrogen plants can use.
tru
National Environmental Funds
trust funds for supporting conservation in developing countries
National Environmental Funds
trust funds for supporting conservation in developing countries -money comes from world bank and conservation organizations like World Wildlife Fund
Wind Energy
turn wind turbine, water pumps, grain grinders, ship movement, <1% of all electricity but can be hazardous to birds and not aesthetically pleasing
Types of Dispersion
uniform, clumping, random
Biocontrol
use one type of organism to manage another
Theory of Island Biology
used to anticipate and assess reserve designs
Artificial Insemination
used to promote genetic diversity, sometimes animals lose interest in mating when in captivity
Aquaria have a prominent role in conservation of what species?
whale conservation (personnel often respond to whale strandings, etc. (2008)
Founder Effect
when a few individuals leave a population and colonize a new one, but there is not a ton of genetic variability --Isle Royale wolves, founded in 1940s by 1F and 2M
Phyletic Evolution
when a population has undergone so much genetic change that it is no longer able to interbreed
Kyoto Protocol -
Agreed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions below 1990 levels Very popular/important
Border controls:
Agricultural inspections Diseases
Coral bleaching, an expected consequence of climate change, is largely caused by disrupting symbiotic relationships between corals and what group?
Algae
Hinduism
All beings are a manifestation of the one being (Brahman). To harm other beings is to harm oneself
Australia, which has really been hit hard by invasives, is dealing with?
All of the above
Wildlife parks in Africa -
Allowing trophy hunting in conservation areas Population monitoring
Put these in order of greatest to least genetic difference among populations Mammals, Amphibians, Birds, Insects
Amphibians, Mammals, Insects, Birds
monophyletic group
An ancestral population and all its descendants
Indicator species
An indicator species is an organism whose presence, absence or abundance reflects a specific environmental condition. Example: Salmon are an indicator species for wetland ecosystems
What is a keystone species?
An organism that plays a unique and crucial role in the way an ecosystem functions
Where is the "hole" in the ozone layer?
Antarctica
Which law grants the US President the power to preserve any piece of government land as a National Monument?
Antiquities Act
Which of the following allows the president to create National Monuments without the authority of Congress?
Antiquities Act
What is an ecotone?
Area of transition between two ecosystems
Classification of Communities
Areas with similar physical limiting factors often support similar communities.
What are the trends in atmospheric CO2 concentration? (know numbers*)
Atmospheric CO2 has increased from 280 ppm in 1750 to 400 ppm today****** Emissions have increased from 2 billion tons annually in 1850 to 35 billion tons annually in 2009 Adding about 2 ppm per year
Trout -
Augmented in Lake Mead Artificial augmentation Population decline due to water quality
Precautionary Principle
Avoid practices that could lead to irrevocable harm
What are the four primary factors that contribute to population change? Tell weather each factor cause an increase or a decrease in population size.
BIDE: Birth & Immigration: cause increase in population Death and Emigration: cause decrease in population
Transplanting:
Bare root Root ball
morphospecies concept
Based on size shape and morphology
Why is the global 200 ecoregions a better representation of all biomes than biodiversity hot-spots?
Because biodiversity hot-spot approach does not represent low biodiversity regions
Why are plastics pollutants? About how many are there? And where do most of them come from?
Because discarded plastic objects photo-degrade into small pellets and those pellets accumulate in subtropical gyres Estimated 5 trillion pieces of plastic Most from fishing nets and buoys
Why is the ocean acidifying?
Because the ocean absorbs about half of human created CO2 and that CO2 reacts with water to make carbonic acid
Why can ecological restoration be a scientific opportunity?
Because you can study more simple ecosystems and then introduce more and more components and see how it effects the ecosystem
Problems w/zoos:
Behaviors may be altered in zoos Increased risks of disease/infection Highly concentrated #s of species
Conservation Virtues
Behaviors that advance conservation in everyday life, which are based on conservation values
Land Undesirable to Humans
- Border areas (North and South Korea - Mountain areas -Desert and Tundra
Extractive Reserves Example
- Brazil - medical plants, edible seeds, rubber, resins, and Brazil nuts are collected from reserves - 300 million ha - Guarantee local people's way of life - Protect against cattle ranching and farming - Yet, populations of large wild animals are sometimes reduced by subsistence hunting - Densities of Brazil nut seedlings reduced
Baboon Sanctuary
- Conservation biologists provide: 1. Training to local nature guides 2. Scientific information about local wildlife 3. Funds for a local museum of natural history 4. Business training for the village leaders
Integrated Conservation Development Projects (ICDPs)
- Conservation projects where the economic needs of local people are included in conservation management plans to the benefit of both people and reserve - Attempt to reduce poverty, create jobs, improve health, and ensure food security
In Situ Agricultural Continued
- Countries like Israel and India have established reserves to conserve areas containing wild relatives and ancient landraces of commercial crops - Plants include wild relatives of wheat, oats and barley as well as citrus
IUCN Redlist
- Extinct - Extinct in Wild - captivity (some reintroduced) - Critically Endangered - 'extremely high risk' - Black Rhino - Endangered - 'very high risk' - Whooping Crane - Vulnerable - 'high risk' - orangutan - Near Threatened - focus of conservation programs to ensure they do not reach CE, E, or V status - Least Concern - Widespread and abundant - Data Deficient - Not Evaluated
PES Concepts
- Forest owners may receive direct payments from a city government for the ecosystem services provided by the forest 1. Drinking water 2. Flood control 3. Etc. - Landowners and farmers paid for allowing large predators on their land; additional payments for damage - Rural people can be drawn into newly developing international markets for ecosystem services (carbon credits)
Community-based initiatives
- In many areas, local people already protect natural areas and resources - This is called community conserved areas, or community-based conservation (CBC) - Enforced by village elders because of the benefits to local people - Benefits include maintaining natural resources (food and water) - Maintain land for religious and traditional practices - A goal of a CBC is to align ecological, economic, and social goals
Multiple-use Habitat
- Large parcels of government land that are managed to provide a variety of goods and services - Conflicts can arise as to how lands should be used - Especially important in areas like Nevada where 83% of the land is owned by the government
Private Land
- Large tracts may be subjected to low impact and maintain much diversity (European Estates) - Also important on small properties; even yards - Back
Community-Based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) programs in Africa
- Local landowners and communal groups are given the authority to manage and profit from the wildlife on their property
In Situ Agricultural Conservation
- Long-term health of modern agriculture depends on the preservation of the genetic variability maintained in local varieties of crops cultivated by traditional farmers - Idea - subsidize villages as in situ (in-place) custodians of traditional varieties of crop species - This is being done with rice in China
Evaluating Conservation Initiatives That Involve Traditional Societies
- Many ICPDs end abruptly if funding ends. - Many projects that appear successful are not monitored and evaluated properly. - These types of project are often very difficult and even impossible.
Unprotected Waters
- Most marine diversity exists outside of protected areas - Aquatic species appear to have higher abundances inside protected areas
Unprotected Grasslands
- Mowed edges of roadsides - provides an open grassland community that is critical for species such a butterflies - Mowed power lines may provide corridors; 2 million ha in the US - Remnant prairies
Tukano Indians of NW Brazil
- Strong religious and cultural prohibitions against cutting the forest along the Upper Rio Negro - They recognize this as important to the maintenance of fish populations
Extractive Reserves
- Traditional people have historically extracted products - Use, barter and sell are a major part of people's livelihood - Extractive reserves - protected areas where local people can still extract resources in a way that minimizes damage
Biosphere Reserves
- United Nations Education Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO) World Network of Biosphere Reserves allows traditional people to use resources from a designated buffer area around protected core areas - 621 Biosphere Reserves in 117 countries - Ex. Kuna Yala indigenous Reserve on the northeast coast of Panama
Biodiversity Crisis
- caused by increased human population, widespread poverty, and unequal consumption of resources
Variation in reproductive output
- disproportionate representation of individuals in gene pool in next generation - reduces Ne - greater variation in output = more effective population size is lowered
Ethical Principles of Conservation Biology
- diversity of species and ecosystems should be preserved - ultimate extinctions of populations and species should be prevented - ecological complexity should be maintained - evolution should continue - biodiversity has intrinsic value
Evidence of extinction vortices
- for 10 monitored pop extinction events: 4 out of the 10 increases in abundance were never observed after N<50, 2 out of 10 icreases in abundance were observed even with fewer than 10 individuals but increases wer short-lived -final census counts were N=2 to 26 before extinction -as populations near extinction, stochastic events become more impt: greater variability in pop size - the pull of the vortex: smaller pops are more likely to decline, more likely to go extinct
Species Diversity
- greatest in tropics (rain forest, coral reefs, tropical lakes, deep sea, and shrublands) - increase with decreased elevation and increased solar radiation and precipitation (hot, rainy, lowlands) - larger areas = large range of habitat for species to evolve and live (niche specialization) - increase towards the equator
Global Climate Change
- happening very quickly, species will not be able to adjust - climate regions in the northern and southern temperate zones will be shifted towards their poles - small changes can have large effects - habitat fragmentation could prevent animals from migrating to better suitable environments - some plants will adapt to use more CO2 - massive flooding of coastal cities - only fast-growing species will be able to survive (coral reefs) - increase temperature, decrease pH, increased sea levels
why does destruction of nature continue
- information failures -market failures -perverse subsidies
Loss of Genetic Variation
- limit species ability to respond to new condition and long-term changes in the environment - limit environmental flexibility - rate of evolutionary change in a population is directly related to the genetic variation in the population
Increase in Genetic Variation
- mutation (v. low) - migration (gene flow)
Extinction
- occurring 100 times faster than the natural rate of extinction, natural process
Co-management
- partnership of traditional people, government agencies, and conservation organizations working together - involves sharing management decisions and their consequences; avoid ecocolonialism
population fluctuation/bottlenecks
- population size is between lowest and highest numbers of breeding individuals Ne = t / (1/N1 + 1/N2 + 1/N3 ... + 1/Nt) - calculated over a period of years - most determined by the years in which population size was the smallest - bottleneck = reduces size and loses rare alleles - type of bottleneck = founder effect = leave one population to establish another, new population has less genetic variability - result = reduced genetic variability, high levels of sperm abnormalities, reduced reproductive rates, increased cub mortality and higher rates of infection - rapid expansion can restore - random fluctuation in birth and death rates, disruption of social behavior follow decreased population density, and environmental stochasticity all contribute to instability in population size leading to local extinction
ICDP Strategies
- range from wildlife management to ecotourism - may or may not include protected land - attempt to combine protection of biodiversity and the customs of traditional societies with aspects of economic development
Arguments for Conservation Biolody
- religious - god's creation - ethical - economical - enlightened self-interest - human well-being - intrinsic value of species - moral responsibility - future generations - quality of life - environmental justice (respect for all life) - deep ecology (equal rights)
Unprotected Forests
- selective harvest can be compatible with conservation - Most ecosystem services can be maintained
Blackfooted ferret history
-1970s: decling in wild, small captive pop- closely related (genetic probs) and infected with canine distemper virus (CDV), result: few offspring, died out -1979: species presumed extinct -1981: new pop discovered but declining- CDV and sylvatic plague in wild pop -> 50% decline in 4 years (env. stochasticity), new captive pop but no successful repro until added older males (demographic stochasticity) -1986091: captive pop increasing, from 7 genetic founders, 4500 juveniles to date
Conservaion Effort, a timeline
-1975, declared threatened in oregon -1989 congress established the interagency scientific committee to develop a scientifically defensible conservation strategy for WA, OR, CA -1990 was declared threatened under ESA -1990 ISC recommended the establishment of an extensive network of large reserves -1992, FWS designated 6.9 million acres of critical habitat in CA, OR, WA
Reintroduction program
-1991-2001: 1200 captives released into several wild pops -preconditioning- enclosures on release area, dig praire dog burrows, train young to avoid predators -successful? maybe- some pops stable or increasing, others not
50/500 Rule
-50 individuals to reduce inbreeding depression (based on studies of domestic animals) -500 individuals to produce mutations that compensate for losses due to genetic drift -though nifty the 50/500 rule is considered outdated, not viable over many generations -revision: should really be the 500/5000 rule
context for current extinction rates: Historic extinctions
-6 mass extinctions- 1. Ordovician: 50% of animal families including many trilobites 2. Devonian: 30% of animal families 3. Permian: 50% of all animal families including over 90% of marine species; many trees, amphibians etc 4. Triassic: 35% of animal families including many reptiles and marine mollusks 5. Cretaceous: reptiles (dinosaurs): many marine species, due to astroid 6. Current: many groups. extinctions largely the result of human activities -relatively number of groups increases over time
Edge Effects
-Changes in population or community structure that occur at the boundary of two habitats. -As edge effects increase, the boundary habitat allows for greater biodiversity. -out perimeter of fragmented piece of land is negatively affected by land surrounding the fragments. animals at edge could get killed by outside of the park, spp outside might migrate in that arent good for fragment environment, vegetation cant grow -perimeter/area- small park will have larger ratio of edge to area, effects of this are stronger in small parks
Cloning vs Deep de-extincition
-Cloning used to bring species back that have recently gone extinct -deep de-extinctions purpose is bring species back that have been extinct for decades, centuries, or even millennia. -In de-extinction the scientist tries to reconstruct a close approximation of the extinct species using - genome information found in preserved DNA (e.g. DNA found in fossil) - genetic information from close living relatives - interspecies somatic cell nuclear transfer (cloning)
Species Migration
-Consequence of warmer climate -As climate shifts, areas best suited to each species will also shift -Species migrate POLEWARD and UPSLOPE -Less mobile species may not be able to migrate quickly enough
CMS or Bonn Convention
-Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals -signed by 119 countries -encourages international efforts to conserve bird, bat, and cetacean species
Limitations of Ex situ Conservation
-Cost -Continuity -Population Size -Adaption (more docile) -Learning Skills -Genetic Variation
Captive Breeding Techniques
-Double-clutching and cross-fostering -Artificial incubation -Artificial insemination -Embryo transfer
Scales of Conservation Planning
-Global -Regional -Local
What species are vulnerable to extinction?
-Highly specialized -One/few populations -Small population size -Highly over-exploited -Declining populations
Consequences of Predator Control
-Huge increases in large grazing animals -Destruction of vegetation by grazers -Deer overpopulation and starvation
Assembling Portfolios
-Info analyzed by teams using computer modeling -Teams design an efficient network of conservation areas ("portfolio") -If the portfolio is protected in its entirety, preservation of biodiversity within the ecoregion will be assured.
What gives a protected area "resilience" to climate change?
-Landscape Diversity (heterogeneity) -Landscape Permeability
Mediterranean Action Plan (MAP)
-Large human population, heavy oil tanker traffic, weak tides - Pollution from cities, agriculture, and industry threaten the ecosystem, tourist industry, and fishing industries
Value of Ex situ conservation?
-May be only way to perpetuate some species -Allows biologists to work closely with an organism and develop technology -Organisms can be used for public education -Can limit disease and predation -Can control breeding: "Captive breeding"
Planning at Regional Scales
-More effective than at the global level -More easily executed -Appropriate unit: ECOREGION
Non-matrix communities
-Occur as patches within or adjacent to matrix forest -Contains unique species and groups of species
Introduction Diffficulties
-Outbreeding/Inbreeding (eliminate hybrids) -often expensive and difficult -high emotionality -risk of dependency on people
What do matrix forests do?
-Provide habitat and corridors for large, free-roaming vertebrates -Surround natural communities that occur as small patches, buffering them -Buffer rivers and floodplains
Management of Vulnerable Species
-Set and enforce regulations -Establish new populations -Increase population size
Assessing Viability
-Team assesses health of each occurrence of each conservation target -Goal is to ensure persistence by choosing the best and most healthy examples of each target
Spotted Owl Management ISC proposal
-acknowleged biological and non-biological data -addressed two source of threats: pressure from human activity, stochastic phenomena -developed to assure 100 year of owl's persistance -did not considered genetic -based on spatial data 1. current and historical distribution NSO 2. current and historical distribution of habitat 3. survery/census of populations 4. land ownership -based on hypothesis testing (using maps) H1: growth, NSO is increasing H2: habitat specialization, NSO doesnt differentiate between habitat H3: habitat loss, no habitat has occurred in habitat selected by NSO -hypothesis all rejected
Life tables
-age specific summaries of survival tactics of a species (developed by life insurance companies) -often follow fate of a cohort (or generation)
Old Growth Forest- 1950
-almost all has been harvested in private lands in WA, OR, CA -remaining 10-15% was found almost exclusively in public lands as well
Population viability Analysis (PVA)
-an estimate of the ability of a pop to persist in the future -using existing pop demography and environmental data to predict future pop sizes -can add in various other factors (eg management strategies) to see how they would influence pop size ex Mexican palm -the effects of demographic variation, low environmnetal variation and moderate environmental variation affect the probablilyt of extinction of a pop of mexican palm species -MVP defined as the pop size at which there is less than 5% chance of the pops going extinct within 100 years, number of indivs needed to give the pop a 95% prob of persisting for 100 years
IUCN Red List criteria
-based on the developing methodds of pop viability analysis -criteria focus on pop trends and habitat condition -provides a standard method of classification -detailed lists o endangered species by group and country
Major Threats to: Boreal Forest
-being heavily logged at an alarming rate -old growth at risk
Inbreeding can be positive
-by crossing individuals possessing deleterious alleles. it might be possible to derive some offspring that dont have these deleterious alleles (assuming allele is not fixed) -inbreeding can be used to fix desirable alleles/traits eg short legs, resistance to pathogen etc
Islands have endemic species
-by default more rare and vulerable -endemics: specialized to a naroow range of habitats, susceptible to novel predators and diseases
what does it mean to be rare
-can be sparsley distributed throughout its range like american chestnut or spottym relict pops like tea mangrove
Step 3: recovery?
-canine distemper and plague, genetic bottleneck, poor prey base (prairie dogs hibernate) -but 59% exponential growth of pop since 2005 -225 animals alive in wild in 2006 -early survival and recruitment are key stages
Mitigation
-create new habitats or pops elsewhere as compensation for others damaged or destroyed -low success rate -artificial habitats not as good as functional not as diverse -top priority = protect exisiting pops and habitats
sixth extinction
-currently going through 6th extinction -when any species goes extinct whole genetic library of tht species is lost
biological consequences of fragmentation
-decreased genetic diversity, local extinction, reduced accesss to resources, trophic level effect, reduced gene flow/biodiversity, dec in immigration rate- even lower colonization, barriers, crowding, edge effect, change in climate-microclimate
Uncertainty in human-caused extinction rates
-difficult to conclusively document absence -competing theories of exteinction drivers esp. for prehistoric extinctions, eg hunting -documentation only for conspicuous species eg birds and mammals -EXTINCTION DEBT- habitat loss will result in extinctions in the future not yet realized -similarly, species thought to be extant may be really be extinct
Major Threats to: Temperate Deciduous Forests
-extensive settlement, logging, and conversion to agriculture
Kinds of extinction: Locally extinct
-extinction of a population, the species survives elsewhere -eg American Burying Beetle: previously widespread now an "island" species
Bottlenecks
-extreme reductions in pop size -loss of individuals with rare alleles -loss of gen. variation (unequal representation of surviving genotypes)
Extinction Votices
-feedback that pull small pops toward extinction: 1. loss of genetic variability- inbreeding depression and genetic drift 2. demographic fluctuations from random variation in birth and death rates 3. environmental fluctuations and natural catastrophes
Founder effects
-few colonizing individuals have a non-random incomplete set of genes as compared to the larger pop -applications to conservation biology: captive breeding, disease epidemics, re-introductions, invasive species
Major Threats to: Savannas and Thorn Forest
-fires set by humans maintain savannas but kill saplings and seedlings -cattle ranching and overhunting have reduced large mammal numbers
captive population and avoidance of inbreeding
-founder effect in zoos- only few individuals begin the new captive population: result: immediate loss in allelic diversity -management strategies: know pedigree of animals and track who breeds with who
Edge effect: Fragments- parks
-fragment forest, does size of fragment have affect on species diversity? -higher dec in biomass in patches closer to edges
why should we care to lose genetic variation?
-genetic variation allows for adaptations and respond to changes in the environment eg respond to climate chane 1. natural selection and evolution- the rate evolutionary change in a pop is proportional to the amount of genetic diversity available 2. heterozygosity- high genetic variation within individuals or pops is often related to fitness
Endangered Species Act
-goal: to provide a means whereby ecosystems upon which threatened and endangered species depend are conserved, to provide a program for the conservation and recovery of species -endangered- likely to become extinct due to human activities or natural causes in most of all of its range -threatened- likely to become endangered in the near future
IUCN- International Union for Conservation of Nature
-has establihed conservation categories to mark status of rare and endangered species -uses quantitative info including area occupied by the species and the number of mature individuals presently alive, to assign species to categories
Major Threats to: Chaparral
-heavily settled and turned into agriculture and urban settings -humans exacerbate fire frequency
Successful program traits
-identify original causes for decline -careful site selection crucial -use many sites -use many, older individuals- keep sex ratios balanced, add adults, add >100 individuals) -repeat several times- keep adding indivs for many years -soft release -monitor pops and threats for success- evidence of survival, breeding, pop inc?, what prevents recovery?, informs management, suggests changes (=adaptive management) -address genetic issues (Ne, etc) -involve local community- incentives not penalties, educational and employment opportunities
Maintenance of genetic diversity: Migration
-immigrants buffer loss -in a pop of Ne=120, 1 migrant is plenty to maintain genetic diversity
Free-ranging cats
-impact on islands: have contributed to species extinction in islands. -impact on mainlands: also an effect on species on mainland but measuring impact on species mortality has been difficult -problem of Trap-Neutor-Return programs- Cats that are neutered are release to the wild, and they will continue killing birds and small mammals. It slows down population growth of free ranging cats only
Meta-population dynamics
-in some cases, meta-population dynamics are needed to understand pop viability -meta-population- subpops spatially isolated, connected through migration -loss of one pop can negatively affect other pops
Outbreeding depression
-incompatible mating of 2 (sub)species or populations -condition that results in weakness, sterility or lack of adaptability to environment eg horses + donkeys= sterile mules
Whooping Crane
-intensively managed under ESA -1942: 16 birds -2014: >500 birds, 400 in the wild -what makes crane vulnerable- hunted for meat and feathers, live in wetlands which are lostm migratory species- need to stop at various wetlands -challenges- legal protection..enough?, development of international agreement, this species migrates between canada and usa, create and manage protected areas, research, captive programs -captive program- birds lay two eggs, one os left with wild pair, one is moved to MD, eggs incubated by whooping cranes and sandhill cranes and/or incubators, training: wore whooping crane costume, after hatching learn with a puppet to eat, young cranes imprint on ultralight aircraft to show them how to migrate, rarely reproduce successfully- probably because of a lack of interactions with any actual parents so were unable to teach their own, live in wetlands which are constantly degrading, also reproduce slow
Major Threats to: Aquatic and Wetlands
-invasive species -climate change -trawling -over-fishing -filling -water pollutants
Species area relationship
-islands with larger areas have more species than islands with smaller areas- inc likelihood of speciation and dec the probability of local extinction S=CA^Z -explains half of observed variation -S= number species, A= area, C,Z= constants, depend on type of island and taxonomic group -number of species occuring on an island represents a dynamic equilibrium between the colonization of new species and the extinction rate of existing species -larger islands will have higher establishment rates becuase larger target for dispersing animals to find and more likely to have suitable habitat for colonization. -the extinction rates will be lower on larger islands because of greater habitat diversity and greater numbers of pops -rates of immigration higher for islands near mainland since dispersing is easier
Local conservation methods
-land trusts- private, non-profit groups that purchase or accept donations of land for conservation -conservation easements- a legal restriction placed on a property and its resources the sale of rights to subdivide or develop -sustainble development- development that satisfies needs of the present and future eg conservation development
What is the purpose of protected area shape? What shape is ideal?
-large and with low perimeter to area ratio to *minimize edge effects and to minimize costs of maintaining boundaries* -roughly circular areas are ideal
island size can predict species richness
-larger area-> more species fond
National conservation measures beyond the end spp act
-laws- in addition to the end spp act, regulate: harvest levels, natural resource extraction, trade -environmental impact statements- disclosure of type and amount of env. damage caused by a particular project (required by NEPA) and alternatives -ecological risk assessments- process that evaluates the likelihood of ecological harm from a stressor eg pesticide or chemical exposure -designation of protected areas
Major Threats to: Deserts
-long distance travel allows human settlement -irrigated agriculture & urbanization reduced natural biodiversity
Why do small populations go extinct abruptly?
-loss of genetic variability -environmental fluctuations, such as floods, storms, disease, natural disasters -demographic fluctuations, random variations in birth and death rates
Where is species diversity the greatest?
-low altitude (or shallow water) tend to have more - larger land masses have more species. - areas with medium disturbance levels have more species. - areas with more structure complexity - areas with higher alpha richness tend to be more stable --> small changes less catastrophic. less susceptible to invasion
Population Size
-minimum viable population (MVP)= smallest number of individuals having very high (99%) chance of surviving for the foreseeable future (1000yrs) -similar to flood control, plan for the "50 yr flood" (not avg water level) -probably 500-5000 individuals needed to minimize genetic and demographic problems -requires detailed demographic and environmental info -problem- many species have pop sizes smaller than these recommended minimums
Is ESA effective?
-most species listed when already at low numbers -60 candidate species (biologically warrant listing)- this number has declined greatly (from almost 300) under the current administration -151 species with outstanding petition for listing -difficult to recover sufficiently to remove from list -current total: 1585 listings- 62 delisted, 33 recovered, 10 extinct, 50% still declining, 50% stable, 20% of listed species= data deficient -more effective with: greater funding, longer time of listing, critical habitat and recovery plan, buy-in from private property owners -longer protection usually means better chance of improving status
Kinds of extinction: Globally extinct
-no longer exists anywhere -ex. Dodo -widespread decline and extinction of Australian mammals- 273 endemic terrestrial mammals, going extinct at 0.05% per year for 200 years or 1 species per decade total of 11% are extinctand 21% of extant spp assessed as threatened, taxonomically unique: monotremes, marsupials
Habitat
-old growth forest -often in forest dominated by Douglas fir -nesting and foraging in old growth -some nesting second growth forest (70-140 year old forest) -distribution- 3 subspecies
put it together: extinction vortex
-once a pop becomes small it is even more likely to decrease further environmental,demogrpahic and genetic variation interact and increase vulnerability -hard to get out of this feedback loop (vortex) -will require highly favorable conditions at all 3 levels to recover -extinction vortices progressively lower pop size, leading to local extinctions of species
why would your observed number of species in parks be different than the expected using the equation?
-perhaps a park is very isolated and therefore migrants cant reach is from surrounding parks and it will have fewer than the expected number of species than that predicted -if a park is irregularly shaped, edge effects may predominate and it may contain the number of species predicted for a much smaller area park -given park may be affected by certain esoteric features, threats or events, for ex if polluted -also park is diff than island and eq is for islands
Major Threats to: Coral Reegs
-physical damage from fishing practices -coral bleaching from climate change (changes acidification)
Why is it so difficult to recover species?
-political, administrative, financial considerations -USFWS uses $350 million/year for land acquistion and legal expenses -estimated needs= $4 billion to delist all spp, species listed faster than money earned -govt must compensate private landowners for lack of economic development when land protected for T&E spp
How to asses at-risk status?
-pop size- # of individuals -subpops- # of distinct pops -condition- viability of pops -range- extent of occurrence and area of occupancy -trends- change in #indivs, # pops, # areas -threats- known, suspectedm likely threats -fragility- biological traits -protected occurrences- # protected pops
Local extinctions= loss of genetic diversity
-population loss is roughly equivalent to habitat loss eg 90% of area lost= 90% of pops lost -ultimately can threaten a species' existence
Some life history traits
-predator- feed at night, mainly wood rats, mouse and squirrels -pairs mate for life -begin breeding 2-3 yr ago, produce 2-3 eggs -young disperse as far as 60-125 miles -territorial need large areas for hunting/nesting
Species-area relationship on a linear scale
-predict loss of species with loss of area -IBT can be used to predict how many species will go extinct due to habitat loss. can be used to predict how many species will remain in protected areas of different sizes -loss of 50% area= loss of 10% species -loss of 90% area= 50% species gone
"Take"
-prevents harming or taking of listed species, including by indirect means (eg habitat loss of alteration) -may limit private landowners on personal property- 10% listed species only on private land
Specialized habitat
-problem: global (climate) change and habitat loss, cant survive elsewhere -solution: protect and manage habitat ex: salt marsh plants, serpentine soils
small population sizes
-problems: loss of genetic diversity important, stochastic events -solutions: reduce fragmentation, maintain connections between subpops, promote interchanges gene flow, protect many pops ex- florida panther -greater vulnerability to demographic and environmental variation
Wildlife Services
-provides leadership skills to solve human-wildlife conflict and wildlife damage management -provides technical support for groups interested in science based research into wildlife problems
Why do some species go extinct and not others?
-rarity: some species normally at low abundance or few pops (keep them here) -vulnerability: different species have different sensitivies to environmental factors- may be associate with biology or with threats, different problems require diff solutions
Background Extinction Rate
-rate at which species go extinct without human influence- look at extinction over time through fossils -species live 1 to 10 million years -in any year, chances are 1 in 1 million to 1 in 10 million that a given species will go extinct -given about 10 million species alive -> 1 to 10 species will naturally go extinct each year -calc the background extinction rate: 1 to 10/10,000,000= .000001 to .0000001= 0.0001% to 0.00001% per year -current rate of extinction: empirical: 0.01% to 0.1% per year- extinction rates are 100x the background rate
Maintenance of genetic diversity: Mutation
-realistically mutation rate wont be high enough to maintain genetic diversity -realistic mut rate is 0.0001 to 0.001, need mut rate of 0.1
Habitat Conservation Plans
-regional plan, allows development in designated areas but protect patches with T&E spp. developers pay into conservation fund -goal: to enhance the propagation or survival of the affected species and to the maximum extent practical, minimize and mitigate' the impacts of actions prohibited under the Act
Vulnerability- major factors
-restricted geographic range- oceanic islands, lake spp, mtn tops -specialized habitat -small pop size- FL panther -declining pop- the #1 predictor of extinction likelihood, ex many amphibians -few # pos- FL panther -hunter species- sea turtles -large home range- tigers, jaguars -large body size- whales -poor dispersers- unionid mussels -migrants- monarch butterflies -low genetic variation- cheetah -specialized niche requirements- hellbenders -intolerant of disturbance- old growth species -aggregating species- bats
Legal Process
-secretary of the interior (terrestial and aquatic) or commerce/(marine) can list and delist species - >1500 US species listed since 1973, majority plants -all govt agencies must consult prior to activities: will activities harm T&E species or their habitats? many on federal lands -also prevents "take" on private property (controversial)
Island size and distance
-size- smaller areas lose species faster, gain species slower -distance- more isolated areas lose species faster, gain species slower
Leadbeater's possum
-small nocturnal, endangered -surveys of meta-population, sub-populations, individual colonies in den trees -pops expected to decline by 90% in 20-30 yrs due to timber and paper forestry and fire -management implications: large reserves, corridors within timber areas, retain habitat on logged sites
Behavioral Considerations
-social animals learn from others- group hunting, migration, mating rituals (whooping cranes) -captivity does not encourage learning, exploration or experimentation -train captives to dangers of life in the wild - first captive bred CA condor chicks imprinted to their human caretakers so had to use puppet
Types of release (animals)
-soft (continued food, help) -Hard (sink or swim) -initial CA condor realeases: ate antifreese, electrocuted by power lines, had to learn to avoid human obstacles, eventually overcame once power line taken down- success story)
Conclusions
-sometimes only a single founder can lead to perfectly healthy population -when inbreeding follows a founder event, deleterious alleles are often expressed- the correct strategy: to maximize growth of the pop, select for inbred with higher reproductive effect, equalize founder effect
Major Threats to: Tundra
-sparsely settled, but being exploited for mineral and oil
Narrow Geographic range
-stochastic- random and unpredictable events important -problem: problematic to move to increase pop number or habitat area -solution: protect and manage carefully its small range ex golden toad -especially vulnerable to to global climate change
Some species more likely to recover
-survery of bird and mammal reintroductions -actual success rate= 16/145 (11%)- fish 26%, reptiles (0%) very low -game species (86%)> T&E (44%) -high (84%) > low (38%) quality habitat -core of historic range (78%) >elsewhere (38%) -wild caught (75%) > captive reared (38%)
Extinction in geographic realms
-terrestrial: endemics, islands -marine: fewer extinctions (detected) major pop reductions in many species- more marine species being listed -freshwater: mainland, water conflict
Demographic Variation
-the variation in birth and death rates among individuals and accross years within a given pop -affects at the level of individuals -pops fluctuate normally -when at low numbers (N<50) more susceptible to future demographic flux -species with highly variable birth and death rates and those with low birth rates are most susceptible to demographic stochasticity -random flux in death rates can -> flux in pop size (and sec ratio), most impt when small pops
Diversity has increased over time
-trend of increasing number of species diversity over time
Major Threats to: Temperate Grasslands
-turned into agriculture -overgrazing leads to desert
Arguments against de-extinction
-unnatural -animal welfare concerns-can cause animals to suffer -ecological and heath concerns-could be a threat -hubris-"playing god" -luxury- doesnt address any pressing social or ecological problems
Environmental stochasticity
-unpredictable changes in competitors, predators, prey abundance -catastrophic changes in environment (eg storms, floods, drought) -can also cause changes in pop size even in stable pops -often affects whole population -more impt than demographic variation in terms of extinction- pop can go extinct even when increasing
Island Biogeography model
-used to est future extinction rates -relationship between number of species and area, number of species depend on 2 opposite forces, immigration and extinction rate -dynamic equilibrium- point where immigration and extinction rates are equal, immigration rate goes down as number of species increases -immigration rate- number of new species over time, so colonization rate goes down as species diversity increases because the more species there are the lower chance that a species arriving is new. -extinction rate- number of species going extinct in a certain time period bc inc competition for resources, extinction rates go up as species diversity increases because as species increase competition for resources increases too
Northern Spotted Owl
-west coast species -IUCN- near threatened, ESA- recognized as threatened -controversial case- The god squad- 1991 charged for series of event against endangered law, stopped logging in owl habitats, lost many jobs
Habitat fragmentation
-when large continuous blocks of habitat are turned into several smaller patches of habitat that have very different dynamics -Increased edge effects
Inbreeding Depression
-when offspring receive identical defective alleles from both parents 1. highr mortality of offspring 2. fewer weaker or sterile offspring 3. recessive homozygotes expressed -vicious cycle -often a problem of captive or small pops
Implications
-when pops are already small, they become increasingly difficult to recover -so many conservation efforts are aimed at species already on the brink (including ESA listing) -however, conservation efforts are more effective for larger pops
What are some locations in witch ex-situ conservation happens?
-zoos and game farms -aquaria -botanical gardens and arboretum -seed banks
How might we mismeasure biodiversity using species richness and evenness?
...
In environmental science, which p-value is generally the highest we will accept as being significant difference?
0.05
Failures of Traditional Management
1) Focus is on resource extraction, usually of a single resource.
TNC's Approach to Ecoregional Planning
1) Identifying Conservation Targets 2) Gathering Information 3) Setting Goals 4) Assessing Viability 5) Assembling Portfolios
How do we buffer biodiversity from climate change?
1) Mitigation (prevent climate from changing) 2) Adaptation (Change occurs, deal with it)
4 million plants in ______
1,775 botanical gardens worldwide.
A species lasts about _____ before going extinct or evolving into a new species.
1-10 my
How many species would be lost per year as a result of non-human extinction?
1-10 species
Genetic diversity functions at three levels
1. Among populations 2. Within populations 3. Within individuals
Examples of ICDPs
1. Biosphere Reserves 2. In Situ Agricultural Conservation 3. Extractive Reserves 4. Community-based initiatives 5. Payments for Ecosystem Services
Benefits of forming a conservancy
1. Can form joint ventures with tour operators; 5 - 10% of gross earnings paid to conservancy (guards, wildlife management) 2. Funds provide for campsites for tour groups, direct revenue, and employment 3. Can apply for a trophy-hunting quota; some animals may bring over $11,000; meat is distributed to group members 4. Four species (gemsbok, springbok, kudu, and warthog) can be hunted for subsistence. Hunting often done by PH's; meat distributed
What are the 7 biological impacts of climate change?
1. Changes in phenology 2. Changes in geographical distribution 3. Extirpation & extinction 4. Changes in species composition 5. Changes in ecosystem function 6. Increased vulnerability to forest fires 7. Changes in current patterns of agricultural productivity
Name other general economic uses of biodiversity
1. Clothing 2. Shelter 3. Tools 4. Fuel 5. Recreation
What are the 9 principles of systematic conservation planning?
1. Comprehensiveness 2. Representativeness 3. Adequacy 4. Efficiency 5. Flexibility 6. Rick Spreading 7. Irreplaceability 8. Connectivity 9. Protected area shape pg 43 in notes
What are the 6 characteristics of Conservation Biology?
1. Crisis discipline 2. Multidisciplinary 3. An inexact science 4. A value-laden science. Mission-oriented. 5. Evolutionary time scale 6. Eternal vigilance
What are the 6 steps in adaptive management?
1. Define conservation objectives 2. Develop management plan 3. Develop monitoring plan 4. Implement management plan 5. Monitor outcomes 6. Refine management plan
What are the five important US National Laws concerning conservation?
1. Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act of 1937 2. Clean Air Act of 1963 and amendments 3. Wilderness Act of 1964 4. Clean Water Act of 1972 and amendments 5. Endangered Species Act of 1973
What are the 3 ways that we miss organisms/do not identify them?
1. Geographic isolation 2. Usefulness/need 3. Cryptic species
Why has evolutionary-ecological land ethic been embraced by modern conservation biology?
1. Humans have been an integral part of most ecosystems 2. Excluding humans from natural areas is unlikely
What are the four guiding principles for conservation of ecosystems?
1. Include entire ecosystem ( ex: watershed) 2. Include all ecosystems that are functionally linked ( ex :river & surrounding upland areas) 3. Include all ecosystems that are effected by common threats (ex: Rivers and upland areas both are effected by acid rain) 4. Include enough area that populations can maintain themselves in spite of normal environmental variability
List 3 ways we sustain genetic diversity.
1. Manage the "matrix" 2. Establish movement corridors 3. Translocation (assisted migration
What are the three international treaties important for conservation biology?
1. Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 2. International Convention for Regulation of Whaling of 1946 3. Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of 1975
Four Approaches to Restoration
1. No Action 2. Rehabilitation 3. Partial Restoration 4. Complete Restoration
Four main approaches that define the outcomes when considering the restoration of biological communities and ecosystems
1. No action 2. Rehabilitation 3. Partial Restoration 4. Complete Restoration
What are the advantages of conserving intact communities/ecosystems?
1. Potentially more efficient and precautionary than saving individual species 2. Also provides benefits to humans, by preserving ecosystem services
Trophic Levels
1. Primary Producers - photosynthetic species 2. Primary Consumers - herbivores 3. Secondary Consumers - carnivores or predators - primary carnivores and secondary carnivores 4. Decomposer and detritivores - eat dead plant and animal tissue and waste 5. Disease Casing Organisms
Why do ecologists use diversity indices?
1. Provide an excellent measure of difference between communities 2. Allow us to separate the effects of richness and evenness on overall diversity
Conservation biologists often simply use richness, because:
1. Rare species are often of primary interest 2. In many cases richness is the only data available
Introduction Types
1. Reintroduction programs- create new pop in original environment, serious long term commitments, expensive, difficult -not appropriate for all species but may be best hope ex wolves in yellowstone -problem- may go back to other location 2. Introduction programs- new pop in new envirnment, beyond historic range -scimitor horn oryx- extinct in wild, early effort to reintroduce, trying to introduce to chad 3. Augmentation program- increase exisiting pops with new individuals (new indivs, original environment) -ex lynx- reintroduced in colorado many died and didnt reproduce, breed lynx for years, add these individuals
What are the two main points of the resource conservation ethic?
1. Resources should be fairly distributed among present consumers, and between present and future consumers 2. Resources should be used efficiently.
What are the 6 geophysical effects of increasing global mean annual surface air temp?
1. Rising sea level 2. Melting of glaciers & ice sheets on land -especially in Greenland and Antarctica 3. Melting of floating sea ice -especially in Arctic and Antarctica 4. Warming and thawing of permafrost -especially in Arctic 5. Changes in precipitation patterns 6. Changes in ocean chemistry
Stating that resources should be used efficiently suggests that:
1. Some uses might be more valued than others 2. Resources might have multiple uses 3. Aesthetic and intellectual uses of resources can compete with material uses
3 Levels of Biodiversity
1. Species Diversity - evolutionary and ecological adaptations of species in environments 2. Genetic Diversity - reproductive vitality, disease resistance, ability to adapt 3. Ecosystem Diversity - collective response of species to different environmental conditions
Name 3 disadvantages of species translocation.
1. Spread of disease 2. Disrupts behavior and social structure 3. Outbreeding depression
What are the 4 methods of speciation?
1. Sympatric speciation 2. Allopathic speciation 3. Peripartric speciation 4. Parapatric speciation
What are the two main goals of conservation biology?
1. To investigate human impacts on species, communities, and ecosystems 2. To develop practical approaches to prevent the extinction of species, communities, and ecosystems and potentially restore them to their natural, functioning state
Important Principles
1. Use best science to develop a coordinated plan for the area that is sustainable; biological, economic, and social components; shared by government, business, conservation organizations, and private citizens. 2.Ensure viable populations of all species, representative examples of all biological communities and successional stages, and healthy ecosystem functions
What are ecocentrism's main points?
1. Values and rights apply to communities, not individuals 2. The intrinsic value of a species should be based on its contribution to ecological stability and integrity 3. The intrinsic value implies a "right to exist" of all organisms that contribute to this stability and integrity
A species pool of genetic diversity exists at three main levels, what are they?
1. Within a population 2. Among a population 3. Within individual variation
Applications of IBT to conservation biologists
1. anthropogenic islands: many previously widespread species now live in patches of habitat 2. parks- habitat islands in a sea of development, make them big, make them near- connect them to other parks
main reasons why small populations can rapidly approach distinction
1. environmental fluctuations 2. demographic fluctuations 3. loss of genetic variability
Extinction Vortex
1. environmental variation 2. demographic variation 3. loss of genetic variability - decline in population size caused by 1 of these factors will increase vulnerability of population to the other 2 - accelerates to drive the extinction
Vulnerability to Disease
1. high rate of contact between host and parasite encourages spread 2. indirect effects of habitat destruction increases susceptibility to disease (more space = move away from own infections and diseases) 3. conservation program species may contract diseases from related species (even humans)
Loss of genetic variation
1. inbreeding= mating among close relative- more likely in small pops 2. genetic drift= loss of alleles due to random chance- smaller pops lose alleles faster 3. demographic bottleneck 4. founder effect
Few notes about inbreeding
1. increase in the degree of inbreeding deltaF -the increase in inbreeding per generation is dependent on the Ne, deltaF=1/2Ne, in a pop with Ne=20, the increase in each generation is delta F=2.5% 2. inbreeding is not always bad- many plants self pollinate, many pops survive long periods at low numbers eg elephant seals numbers >170,000 individuals after reduction to 20, also might not always show inbreeding depression eg bison- not suffering but may be breeding with cows as well so that might be why- get genes from cows 3. loss of genetic diversity among pop- need to conserve between pops
Soil provides 6 major services
1. moderating hydrologic cycle 2. Physical support of plants 3. Retention and delivery of nutrients to plants 4. Disposal of wastes and dead organic matter 5. renewal of soil fertility 6. regulation of major element cycles
Species
1. morphological definition: morphologically, physiologically, or biochemically distinct groups 2. biological definition: potentially breed among themselves in wild and do not breed with other groups 3. evolutionary definition: DNA similarities and thus evolutionary past similarities
Three dimensions of rarity
1. narrow geographic range- may be locally abundant 2. specialized habitats- may be locally abundant 3. small pop sizes- may have broad range or general habitats
Approximately what portion of the Earth's surface do the 25 biodiversity 'hotspots' cover?
1.4%
How many species have been described?
1.5 Million
How many species have we identified?
1.7 million
How many species have been described?
1.75 million
Do mutations decrease or increase genetic diversity? Does genetic drift decrease or increase genetic diversity? Does gene flow decrease or increase genetic diversity? Does natural selection decrease or increase genetic diversity?
1.Increase 2.Decrease 3.Decrease 4.It increase genetic diversity within a population, but decreases genetic diversity among population
Area of Focus: Wetlands
1/2 of wetlands gone most difficult to restore often damaged or filled in
In North America, roughly how many fish species are currently listed as endangered?
1/3
How many of the world's species have been described by taxonomists?
10-30%
The success of introductions usually increases with more individuals up to _____, and then plateaus?
100
Precipitation in some regions of the US has already shifted by as much as ___ % or more
15
Rio de Janiero Earth Summit -
1992 Agenda 21 First publicized climate convention Introduced many international conventions Convention on biological diversity Each country must be responsible for their own biodiversity and its products US didn't sign Polluters Pay convention
Endangered
20% or greater probability of extinction within 20 years or 5 generations
On average a species consists of how many distinct populations?
200
Bureau of Land Management
264 mil acres of public land (1/8 of US) -->mostly in 12 western states Deals with grazing, mining, recreation, and Timber -->oversees National Conservation Areas, and National Trails
In the last few decades, temperature in the US have shifted as much as?
3.5
How many species are estimated to exist?
3.6 - 11.7 million
What are the three main contributors to the greenhouse effect? How much do they contribute?
50% due to atmospheric vapor 25% due to CO2 an other greenhouse gases 25% due to clouds
Hypothesis for Why Tropics have Greater Diversity
7% of Earth's Land but contain most of earth's species 1. more solar energy and rainfall - higher rate of productivity and more resources 2. Longer period of stability - more time for evolution and speciation to occur 3. Warm and humid - favorable conditions for growth and survival 4. Predictable environment - more intense species interaction, niche specialization due to intense competition (no dominance) 5. large area - greater rates of speciation
What are mutations implication of conservation biology?
Accumulation of deleterious alleles can lower fitness and increase probability of extinction, the increased fitness can decrease population, that decrease can cause a fixation, and so on until you get a mutational meltdown
When we conserve do we aim to conserve structure or function?
Aim for structure, hope for function
Replacement -
Aiming for something other than original Reclamation Revegetation Reallocation
Who rejected the resource conservation ethic because he felt that it viewed nature as simply a collection of individual goods?
Aldo Leopold (mid-1900s)
Name 3 leaders in early history of conservation in North America
Aldo Leopold, Teddy Roosevelt, Gifford Pinchot
Differentiate between alpha, beta, and gamma diversity.
Alpha diversity is just the diversity of each site (local species pool). Beta diversity represents the differences in species composition among sites. Gamma diversity is the diversity of the entire landscape (regional species pool).
What does the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act of 1937 do?
Also known as the Pitman-Rovertson act Taxes firearms and ammunition The funds distributed to states for habitat purchases and wildlife management
Fertilizer -
Alters the system to favor species that like high levels of nutrients Can inhibit restoration process
Ecotourism is also known as?
Amenity value
What is a National Wilderness Preserve? What is the state with the largest amount of wilderness areas?
An area greater than 5,000 acres within a national part, forest, or a wildlife refuge that does not allow extractive activities and is only accessible by foot 54% in Alaska
What is the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's definition of a protected areas?
An area of land and/or sea especially dedicated to protection and maintenance of biological diversity, and of natural and associated cultural resources, and managed though legal or other effective means
Pros/cons of boundaries, fences:
Animals don't know where buffer zone is Move freely in and out Protected species may move in/out of zones Alters population dynamics Boundaries change (Climate)
Which of the following was famous for his landscape photography of the national parks and Japanese camps?
Ansel Adams
Which of the following is a widely used agricultural pesticide and amphibian endocrine disruptor causing hermaphroditism in frogs?
Atrazine
Contingent Valuation
Attempt to determine the value of non-market goods by creating a "shadow market"
Restoration sensu stricto -
Attempting to revert back to original, undisturbed past Unrealistic
What is the least described group of organisms
Bacteria
What is Thermus aquaticus?
Bacteria from hotsprings of Yellowstone with naturally occurring complex of proteins whose function is to copy a cell's DNA before it divides in two
Disease
Bacteria, viruses, fungi, and protists greater species diversity reduces disease (dilutes number of hosts) climate change (warmer) allows pest and disease-carrying insects to spread further north - human activity increases the incidence of disease in wild species
Zebra mussels, a major aquatic invasive from Russia, probably invaded US waters via?
Ballast tank water
Zoo research:
Behavior Breeding Soft vs hard release
Large vertebrate bias:
Better if they are umbrella species
Traditional societies:
Better stewards? Local involvement essential Have connection to nature Limits behavior/resource use
Intraspecies competition represents competition...?
Between members of same species
BII
Biodiversity Intactness Index: land-cover measure that relies on satellite imagery, species richness, and expert opinion.
World Heritage Sites -
Biological and cultural value ~981 sites in 119 countries
Primary production
Biomass produced via photosynthesis which seeved as the basis of the food chain
Using organisms to absorb, remove, or neutralize a pollutant is called?
Bioremediation
UNESCO has been pioneering a zoning approach to preserving protected areas known as?
Biosphere reserves
Lancelot Jones was a key figure in the creation of this national park, even donating his family home
Biscayne National Park
What is captive breeding?
Bringing animals into captivity (zoos) and breeding enough excess that others can be released into the wild.
This African-American military group protected western national parks outside Yellowstone
Buffalo soldiers
Swaths of natural vegetation along creeks/ditches/streams in agricultural fields, which reduce runoff into streams, as referred to as?
Buffer strips
This single agency administers about 1/8 of the land in the US although most of it is restricted to 12 western states. It is in charge of much of the remaining grasslands.
Bureau of Land Management
What are the main sources of CO2?
Burning fossil fuels for industry, cars, and heating
If businesses included the degradation of ecological resources into their cost of doing business then what would happen?
Businesses would find a way to minimize their degradation
Consumer efforts:
Buy green
Land trusts -
Buy land, then set up restrictions for it
How do you estimate consumptive use value?
By determining how much people would have to pay to buy equivalent products
How is Genetic Diversity in a population estimated?
By the number of polymorphic genes and number of alleles in each polymorphic gene
The capture of nontarget species in commercial fishing is called?
Bycatch
Which of the following is the only greenhouse gas that is declining in atmospheric concentration?
CFC
What are the categories that the Convention on International in Endangered Species uses?
CITES Appendix 1 -species globally endangered by trade CITES Appendix 2 -Species which will become globally engendered if trade is unregulated -Species that are look alikes to Appendix 1 CITES Appendix 3 -Species regulated within one nation, but international cooperation is necessary to control trade (Walrus)
This is one of the most important pieces of international conservation legislation, signed by 179 countries. It restricts trade and halts destructive overexploitation of endangered specied
CITIES
What are the 4 anthropogenic greenhouse gasses?
CO2 Methane(CH4) Nitrous oxide Halocarbons
What is fostering?
Captive offspring are placed with wild parent
"Sevin dust," common household garden pesticide, is which type of pesticide?
Carbamate
What 6 pollutants does the Clean Air Act over?
Carbon Monoxide, Sulfur Oxides, Nitrogen Oxides, Particulates, Ozone, and Hydrocarbons
The use of plants to uptake CO2 and store the carbon in long-lasting materials is called?
Carbon sequestration
This man was famous for his paintings of the National Parks
Chiura Obata
The perpetuation of antibodies and other drugs on aquatic organisms is an example of which exposure?
Chronic
Who was the first female National Park ranger?
Clare Hodges
This feature of tropical evergreen forest biomes makes it particularly difficult to recover them after slash-and-burn agriculture.
Clay soils
The ranges of suitable climatic conditions for a species are called?
Climate envelopes
Regulating services
Climate regulation Water and air purification Disturbance regulation
Which of the following is the most common form of dispersion?
Clumped
dominant species
Common species which have large impacts on the community
Which of the following represents the kingdom of ecology which focuses on interspecific interactions?
Community ecology
Concept of substitutability of goods
Compensation for loss of one good with another of equal or lesser value
What are global climate models?
Complex computer programs that model atmospheric processes coupled with models of ocean circulation, land surface, and sea ice
what is biodiversity survey
Conducted to measure species or populations. over time it is called monitoring
Leopold proposed that environmental ethics constitutes "A limitation on freedom and action"
Constraining self-serving behavior in deference to some other good
Matrix Communities
Continuous, spatially extensive community types within which are embedded natural communities that occur as patches
CITES -
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species ~180 countries have signed
Why keep lending to LDCs:
Corrupt politicians taking $ Bank gets credit for making loans Local governments gets economic, social relief
Restoration concerns:
Cost Time Species Additives Fertilizer Environment Dynamics
Translocation
Creating a new population in the wild. Two types: Reintroduction and Introduction
What is a cryptic species?
Cryptic speciation: A biological process that results in a group of species (which, by definition, cannot interbreed) that contain individuals that are morpholigically identical to each other but belong to different species.
Which of the following is responsible for the algal blooms which kill fish?
Cyanobacteria
Recovery unlikely:
Damaging agent still present Too many species lost Weedy species become more likely Damage too severe
What are some examples of how human technology can replace an ecosystem service but create new problems?
Dams: flood control but affects fisheries Farming: increased food production but pollution
TFCA is an example of a ________, which the US has used to conserve tropical forests in other countries.
Debt-for-nature swap
Landscape Permeability
Degree to which landscape allows movement of organisms and natural flow of ecological processes such as wildfire
Which federal department houses the US Forest Service?
Department of Agriculture
What are the departments of the US government that hold lands for conservation? What are the branches of those departments?
Department of Interior -Bureau of land management -US fish and wildlife surface -National park service Department of Agriculture -US forest service
Which department owns 1/5 of all US land?
Dept of Interior
Under which department is the National Park Service located?
Dept. of the Interior
James Fenimore Cooper (early 1800s)
Described the moral, spiritual and aesthetic value of wilderness and deplored its thoughtless destruction, setting the stage for the American conservation movement
What is phylogenography?
Description of genetic/evolutionary structuring in geographic context
Conventional electric generation for solar power is mostly used in these environments
Desert
Three Gorges Dam Cons:
Destabilized soil Altered aquatic environment - shifts fish dynamics Displaced ~1M people China lost ~40% of crop production Lost 2/3 of fisheries
Self-congratulatory thinking -
Destroys areas outside preserved area once goals are reached
Kinship Coefficient
Determine this to avoid inbreeding during captive breeding. The probability that two genes, sampled at random from each individual, are identical
What is an evolutionary significant unit?
Distinct Evolutionary Segments (ESU) - Reproductively isolated 'long enough' to have evolved significant genetic or ecological divergence
What is outbreeding depression due to?
Due to genetic swamping of locally adapted genes Due to breakdown of physiological or biochemical compatibles between genes that have evolved within a particular population (co- adapted gene complexes)
Dominant species
Ecological dominance is the degree to which a taxon is more numerous than its competitors in an ecological community, or makes up more of the biomass. Most ecological communities are defined by their dominant species. Example:
Humans have historically used both ______ and _______ values in their decision-making process.
Economic and ethical
valuing nature
Ecosystem services implicit value marginal value
Roles of zoos:
Educational value Research Entertainment Conservation biology Ethical introduction Funding for conservation biology Promotions
The amount of a toxin that causes effects other than death with exposure is the?
Effective concentration
Biosphere reserves -
Effort to link conservation and sustainable development Similar to WHS - both are international recognitions ~620 reserves in 117 countries Tries to link with cultural values too
Artificial incubation -
Eggs incubated by an individual of another species or an incubator Keeps eggs safer Results in higher numbers of hatchlings
What is light pollution caused by? What are the bio and eco effects?
Electric lights(esp pervasive in urban areas) Causes wildlife to alter daily activity patterns
ESA categories:
Endangered Threatened Candidate Non-candidate Species of concern
Snail darter -
Endangered species Prevented TN dam from being built
Species which are found in one location and nowhere else are called?
Endemic
Agenda 21 -
Environmental and social problems were linked internationally
What is not often included in neoclassical economics?
Environmental costs
What is the source of sediment pollution?
Erosion associated with agriculture, infrastructure, development, and mining
Ecosystem Service
Essential goods and services that natural ecosystems deliver to people
What does the Clean Air Act of 1963 do?
Established regulatory standards to reduce air pollution such as -Emission standards for automobiles -Emission standards for new industry -Ambient air quality standards for urban areas
This fuel is mixed with gasoline to form gasohol
Ethanol
Cryopreservation concerns:
Ethical issue De-extinction Practicality? Distraction from saving existing species?
Define Eutrophication
Eutrophication is when increased nitrogen leads to increase biomass of photosynthetic producers
Genetic links
Example: pollination nectarivores and see dispersing frugivores, carry genetic material from individual plant to another
The Department of the Interior and Department of Agriculture are part of which branch of government?
Executive
What is the worst aspect of all environmental degradation?
Extinction
Extirpations
Extirpate implies extinction of a race, family, species, or sometimes an idea
Double-clutching -
First clutch of eggs is given to another bird to raise so a second clutch of eggs is laid Bald Eagle
Heterozygosity is often strongly correlated with _______.
Fitness
In the absence of mutation or gene flow, genetic drift in a small population will lead to?
Fixation of one allele and elimination of other alleles
Large, well-known species which can be used for promoting conservation of large habitats are called?
Flagship species
Solutions may lie in compromises:
Florida panthers New forestry Monitoring/adaptive management/ecosystem and bioregional manamgent Ecosystem approach Wildlife parks in Africa Sun vs. Shade coffee and other agricultural settings Reserves as catalysts for landscape change Rights-of-ways railroads, powerlines, etc. Urban settings Parks, road edges, pipelines, etc. Military lands
Resource conservation ethic
Focused on efficient use of resources and multiple-use of land
Conservation Strategy: Single-species management
Focuses on species that may not persist without assistance from humans
What are the bio and eco effects of noise pollution?
Forces birds at higher frequency, and louder. This takes more energy Interrupts low-frequency communication of whales, etc.
Which is not generally a focus of restoration ecology?
Forests
Reasons to sign CITES:
Form of peer pressure Easier to see results when participation is voluntary vs. obligated Most successful agreements are non-binding
Reserves as catalysts for landscape change -
Fortress conservation Top-down approach w/hard edges New reserves lack sharp edges More "blurry" transition Trigger entire landscape renovation
Individual-level techniques:
Fostering/cross fostering Artificial incubation Artificial insemination Embryo transfer Cryopreservation Induced hibernation
James Hutton
Found earth was much older than what was thought by looking at how fast rock layers formed
When a few individuals leave one population and establish another?
Founder effect
This interior secretary under President Wilson was involved with Hetch Hetchy and also tried at one point to allow sheep grazing in Yosemite valley
Franklin Lane
For which of the following crops may organic be the most feasible as it produces roughly the same amount of food per acre?
Fruits
How do we make predications about climate?
GCM (global climate models)
What is Gaia Theory?
Gaia Theory is a compelling way of thinking about life on our planet. The theory asserts that living organisms and their inorganic surroundings have evolved together as a single living system that greatly effects the chemistry and conditions of the earths surface.
Variables that affect success:
Game species > threatened > endangered species Good habitat > bad habitat Core > peripheral habitat Has buffer zone available Herbivores > carnivores Wild caught > captive bred
Rapid assessment program, what is it and why might you do it
Gathers relevant scientific information quickly enough to aid in protecting places from irreversible damage that can occur in a short time. Politicians dont like to wait. published within a year
The Florida panther is a good example of this phenomenon of population dips, which has led to several detrimental traits being common within the population
Genetic bottleneck
Which two major factors can decrease genetic variation?
Genetic drift and natural selection
What are the 4 major factors influencing genetic variation
Genetic drift, mutations, natural selection, and gene flow
Population diversity
Genetic variation within a species
What is the gene pool?
Genetic variation within populations is the sum of all alleles in all individual
The Audubon Society was founded by this editor of Forest and Stream magazine. This man also served as a mentor to Theodore Roosevelt
George Grinell
this Park Service Director killed the Yosemite firefall and stopped the bear-feeding at Yellowstone, while also instigating new policies for using scientific research as the basis for management decisions
George Hartzog
As of 2014, only four countries protected <1% of their land. Which of the following is not one of them?
Germany
Bare root -
Gets ride of any soil, fertilizer, etc. Controls environment
It was a long battle to get the National Park Service created as an agency, including lobbying by this man to have the power given to another agency?
Gifford Pinchot
Which of the following figures is often seen as the foil to John Muir?
Gifford Pinchot
Who devised the resource conservation ethic?
Gifford Pinchot
Who was the first head of the US Forest Service?
Gifford Pinchot
Why has global warming effected species compositions of communities? Give an example.
Global warming favors warm adapted species over cold adapted species ------ex: warming ocean temp off coast of California associated with replacement of northern fish by southern fish in kelp forests
What are the climate change effects on geographic distribution? and what do these effects cause?
Global warming has lead to northward shifts of ranges of may species in the past 50 yrs or less They disrupt ecosystems, reduce habit for wildlife, and alter water supply and other ecosystem services for humans ----example: skipper butterfly in Cali and 15 cases of biome shifts since 18th century
What are Ramsar Wetlands? Who recognizes these wetlands?
Globally important wetland ecosystems Recognized under convention of Wetlands of International Importance
What are World Heritage Sites? Who recognizes the World Heritage Sites?
Globally significant natural or cultural sites/features Recognized under Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and natural Heritage
Business efforts:
Going green Interactions w/laws Investing green
What are the two species that went extinct directly due to climate change? And what caused them?
Golden Toad and Harlequin Frog Due to drier conditions in cloud forests ----Side note: even though these are the only two extinctions directly from climate change, there have been many population declines attributed to climate change
Private Goods
Goods bought and sold (maple syrup)
Market Goods
Goods exchanged in an economic market using currency
Consumptive Use Value
Goods that are consumed locally; do not appear in GDP because they are neither bought nor sold
"Leave it as it is. The ages have been at work on it and man can only mar it" was Roosevelt's public request for which location?
Grand Canyon
Rockafeller fought to donate Jackson Hole to this National Park despite local protests
Grand Tetons National Park
How are we going to stop over exploitation of resources?
Greatly increase the intrinsic and ethical values placed on the natural environment by humans
Unfortunately, of the 30 million km of land protected in world, a large portion is just in one contiguous chunk here
Greenland
Shade coffee -
Grown in the shade of trees Increases biodiversity
Low-intensity fires -
Grows grass Maintains grazing
Heterozygosity Porpotion
H = 1-1/[2Ne] after t generations (Ht) = H^t - significant loses of genetic variability can occur in isolated small population - lower effective population size = more rapid loss of alleles
Heterozygosity (H)
H= % heterozygous genotypes for a particular locus or the probability that a given individual randomly selected from the pop will be heterozygous at a given locus H estimated= % heterozygous loci/ total loci examined more heterozygosity higher fitness
Proportion of original heterozygosity retained
H=1-(1/2Ne) Ht=H^t -over t generations, H decreases
How much inbreeding is tolerable?
H=1-(1/2Ne) -research on domestic farm animals indicate natural selection for performance can balance inbreeding if the loss of H is no more than 0.99 per generation H=0.99 is a tolerable level of genetic loss
ESA compromises:
HCPs Usefulness Problems Improvements
Species richness is positively correlated with ______.
Habitat complexity
What is the number one immediate threat to biodiversity?
Habitat loss/destruction
National Park Service
Handles all US national parks (59) and most national monuments, seashores, lakeshores, reserves, preserves -responsible for 84.4 million acres -->no commercial altering
What are the three possible approaches to ecosystem management and what do they in-tell? And what approach did we use in the past? the present? the future?
Hands off approach (Past) -No management, allow ecosystem to change as they will in response to habitat loss and climate change Traditional conservation (Current) -Management to maintain ecosystem in historically/contemporary state in spite of habitat loss and climate change Artificial ecology (Future) -To create novel, artificial ecosystems that are better adapted -This assumes that we have good understanding of community/ecosystem assembly rules
Who was the self-described "old curmudgeon", an important Dept of Interior secretary who was ruthless but very effective?
Harold Ickes
Cross fostering -
Having a different species birth and/or care for individual of another species
What is cross-fostering?
Having a mother of a common species raise young of a rare one
Why is heterozygosity often strongly correlated with fitness?
Having two different forms of an enzyme may provide greater flexibility because the effects of deleterious alleles are masked by the other allele
Which of the following was destroyed by the government despite being in a National Park, and became a rallying cry for preventing such actions?
Hetch Hetchy Valley
If F(st) is close to zero what does that mean?
High level of gene flow and relatively high genetic diversity
At a given gene locus, diploid individuals can be __________ or ________.
Homologous: 2 copies of same allele Hetrozygous: 2 copy of 2 different alleles
In diploid organisms - 1 allele at each locus from each parent If those alleles are the same then this locus said to be...........?
Homozygous
Species evenness
How evenly distributed species are, in terms of abundance, productivity, or size
Existence value
How much is knowing that something exists worth to you?
Divergence among populations may be expressed as:
Ht=Hp+Dpt Ht=total genetic variation Hp=average divergence within populations Dpt= average divergence among populations
Taoism
Human activities can either flow with tao, or against it. All natural processes occur in an orderly and harmonious fashion.
What are the two main factors responsible for the decline in the Earth's biodiversity?
Human population growth and human consumption rates
Neighborhood Ethic
Humans must be careful not to damage the natural environment, because it harms other humans as well
Hope for outside areas:
Humans not everywhere Humans and conservation can coexist
Ecosystem productivity
Humans rely on products that depend on surrounding ecosystems
Local conservation efforts:
Hunting Zoning Border controls Building permits Restrictions on access Extractive reserves Reservoirs NIMBY Taxes Collections
This international organization serves the same basic functions as the Endangered Species Act, creating a "Red List" of critically endangered species.
IUCN
Criteria for success for all -
Ideally get self maintaining system Allowed to develop through successional processes
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 mandates the Fish & Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service to....?
Identify threatened and endangered species and develop species recovery plans for them These recovery plans include: -natural history of species -cause for decline -steps to recovery
Where does nitrogen accumulate?
In aquatic and marine ecosystems via runoff from terrestrial ecosystems
Where are hypoxic zones especially prevalent?
In coastal marine ecosystems in sub tropic & tropic zones, including the Gulf of Mexico
What was the reserve system design of the past? and why was it bad?
In the past, protected areas within a reserve system have often been selected based on suitability of land for other uses, availability of land, scenic beauty of lands, and recreational value of land. This lead to low BV in many protected areas and reserve systems that weren't representative of the regional BV.
A condition where an individual receives an identical, defective copy of an allele from each parent?
Inbreeding depression
What is hybrid vigor?
Increased fitness of out-breed
What is captive raising?
Individuals are placed with captive parents of another species (surrogates)
Darwin's criteria for evolution
Individuals must vary in a population Some trait differences are heritable Survival/reproductive success is highly variable Survivors are not a random sample of a population
What is the Tragedy of the Commons
Individuals obtain benefits from resources, while the cost is spread throughout society
Debt grows:
Interest too high Poverty increases Resource abuse rises
Hybrids?
Intermediate forms that result from matings between related but distinct species.
What does IUCN stand for
International Union for Conservation of Nature
What does IUCN stand for?
International Union for Conservation of Nature
Why are conservation efforts often prioritized in biodiversity hot-spots?
International conservation organizations attempt to maximize their efforts to preserve biodiversity by prioritizing conservation actions in different regions based on regional biodiversity and degree of anthropogentic threat Side notes: Most of the hot-spots are in the tropical forest biomes Conservation International recognized 34 BV hot-spots
The emerald ash borer, the Asian long-horned beetle, and the zebra mussel are examples of invasive species which could have been prevented by regulating what?
International trade practices
What is the difference between intrinsic and instrumental value?
Intrinsic value: In the strictest sense, every species has value even independent of its value to other species or within an ecosystem Instrumental value: Can be the value of an organism in an ecosystem and to surrounding organisms
What are the three categories of translocation? What are each of these?
Introduction -release at site with no record of previous occupation Reintroduction -release and reestablish at a previously occupied site Restocking -Increasing numbers of an existing population
Which group originally had the "Seven Generations" concept?
Iroquois
What are evolutionary significant units? (ESU's) Give an example.
Is a population that is characterized by substantial reproductive isolation from another population or substantial evolutionary isolation from other populations ----ex: an ESU is a more or less isolated population on its own evolutionary trajectory
Media efforts:
Is it effective for conservation?
Extinction rates are particularly high in which habitat?
Island
Svalbard -
Island near Norway Stores seeds under ice
Which of the following habitats is particularly vulnerable to invasive species because species often evolve in absence of predators and diseases?
Islands
What areas have a high percentage of endemic species?
Isolated areas
What does the 1982 amendment to the Endangered Species Act do?
It authorized Habitat Conservation Plans
What did the 1990's amendment to the Clean Air Act do?
It established a cap and trade program for sulfur oxides and mandated phase-out of ozone depleting chemicals
Why are permeable areas more resilient?
It facilitates local movements and range shifts. Function of connectedness and human land use.
Why is sediment a pollutant?
It increases turbidity in aquatic ecosystems
What happens when GDP doesn't account for environmental costs?
It inflates actual economic growth
What is adaptive management?
It is a management approach that changes with the environmental variability.
Species are considered rare if all but which of the following are true?
It is dependent on long-distance dispersal methods
What do hybrids make conservation efforts challenging?
It is difficult to write laws and manage species that are not known clearly
How does conservation biology differ from traditional applied disciplines?
It's primary consideration is the long-term preservation of the entire biological community, with economic factors secondary
Species which disproportionately affect ecosystems given their numbers?
Keystone
What determines community composition
Keystone species Soils Climate Plant-animal interaction Disturbance Time
Taxonomic Classifications
Kingdom > Phylum > Class > Order > Family > Genus > Species
This US act helps regulate the import of invasive species
Lacey
This act was created to protect rare waterbirds from poaching, which was rampant due to the fashion craze of feathered hats.
Lacey Act
This act was restricted poaching and trafficking of animal parts. It was originally made in response to the fashion of feathers in women's hats.
Lacey Act
Sunscald -
Lack proper shade from original habitat
Restoration examples:
Lake Erie Mid-West Prairies Tropical dry forest in Costa Rica Grand Canyon Floods
What are the characteristics of a National Park?
Large Ecosystem in natural state No direct resource exportation allowed For protection of BV & ecosystem functioning
What are the characteristics of a protected landscape/seascapes?
Large Ecosystem modified by humans Some resource exploitation allowed Protect biological interactions between humans and nature
Problems with only conserving protected areas:
Large animals need more room to roam outside boundaries Outside pressures along sharp boundaries Attitudes: save one area, can utilize the rest Self-congratulatory thinking Destruction of areas surrounding protected area threatens reserves Susbsequent loss of corridors, stepping stones
What are the characteristics of a strict nature reserve and wilderness area?
Large area Ecosystems in natural state No human use allowed For protections of BV & ecosystem functioning
The sixth mass extinction probably started with humans removing 80% of this species group from Australia, N. America, and S. America.
Large mammals
Military lands -
Large patches of protected land Intensive use on only one portion of land
Ecoregion
Large unit of land or water containing a geographically distinct assemblage of species, natural communities, and environmental conditions.
This heavy metal has been banned for duck hunting shot since 1991 because it poisons birds which use it as crop grit
Lead
__________ looked at nature from a broader perspective of interrelated processes (ecology).
Leopold
ESA improvements:
Lessen political involvement Lower cost, time spent Increase funding Lower interagency conflicts List before rarity increases Incentivise private land owners Get business support Payments for ecosystem services
Religious institutions efforts:
Liberation theology Investments
Conservation Biology (Goals)
Long-term preservation of entire ecosystems, combine basic and applied research 1. to document full range of biodiversity on earth 2. to investigate human impact on species, genetic variation, and ecosystems 3. to develop practical approaches to prevent the extinction of species, maintain genetic diversity within species, and protect and restore biological communities and their associated ecosystem functions
Population level techniques:
Long-term propagation Short-term propagation Relocation, transplantation Habitat modification, restoration Seed banks, germ plasm banks Zoos, arboreta, gardens, aquaria, aquaculture
What is the currency of conservation biology?
Long-term viability of ecosystems and preservation of biodiversity in perpetuity
polymorphic species
Look different but are the same species
cryptic species
Look the same but are different species
Retrogression -
Loss of ecosystem function over time
Which of the following is not one of the three main reasons small populations can take rapid walks toward extinction?
Loss of ecosystem variability
What are general causes of extinction?
Loss of genetic diversity Demographic variability Environmental variability Catastrophes
Islands tend to have _______ than comparable mainland communities. Why?
Lower species richness 1. low colonization rates 2. high extinction rates 3. lack of critical resources
Minimum dynamic Area (MDA)
MDA= amount of habitat necessary to maintain MVP -based on home range or individuals and colonies
Debt-for-nature swaps Pros:
MDB collects some money Land protected LDC gets employment, ecotourism NGO gets brownie points
Problems w/agreements:
MDCs have more money Cost to implement Corruption Funding in poor countries
The vast majority of oil production comes from?
Machine and vehicle seepage
Supplement wild populations:
Maintains genetic diversity Maintains numbers
US Fish and Wildlife Service
Management of fish, wildlife, plants and natural habitats -Oversees Endangered Species Program and National Wildlife Refuge System -Enforces wildlife laws, conserves and restores habitat, manages migratory birds and fishes
The divine assignment Americans felt they had to expand and conquer the country from east to west was called?
Manifest destiny
Restoration -
Manipulation of area to desired end point Goals are to set successional steps w/little to no intervention
What are two sources of plastic pollutants?
Most washed to sea from mainland, some dumped from ships -est. 5trillion pièces of plastic (270,000 tons Jan. 2015) -most from fishing nets and buoys.
MDBs -
Multilateral development banks World Bank Send money to LDCs to support conservation issues Has supported environmentally damaging projects
Removal of initial pressures -
Must get rid of problems to be successful Getting rid of rats in New Zealand to conserve flightless bird populations
How to reintroduce:
Must remove problems before introductions/augmenting Reintroduce Augment Introduce
What are the factors that affect genetic variation within populations? What are these factors effected by?
Mutation Genetic drift Gene flow Natural selection the effects of all four factors are influenced by effective population size
Debt-for-nature swaps
NGOs buy up a nation's debt in exchange for that nation performing a conservation activity; nation forgives another's debt in exchange for conservation efforts
Which species are most vulnerable?
Narrow geographic range Narrow niche Small population size One or few populations Declining population Low population density Large home range Large body size Long-lived species Species depending on keystones Ineffective dispersion Seasonal migrants Low genetic variability Found in stable/pristine environment Live in groups Evolved in isolation from humans Harvested by humans
What is the resource conservation ethic?
Natural resources should be used to benefit humans, in such a way that the greatest good of the greatest number of people could be maintained for the longest period of time.
4 key evolutionary processes
Natural selection Genetic drift Gene flow Mutation
What are some educational and scientific values of nature?
Nature has educational value through schools, television, books, etc. Scientific knowledge gained from biodiversity has value Anticancer chemicals
Romantic transcendental conservation ethic
Nature is believed to be a place of healing and spirituality
Gifford Pinchot
Nature= natural resources should provide greatest good for greatest number of people for the longest time - resource conservation ethic
Unequal sex ratio
Ne = [4 (Nf x Nm)] / (Nf + Nm) - as breeding ratio becomes unequal, Ne becomes further away from N - Nf = breeding females - Nm = breeding males
Ne affected by demographic factors
Ne is affected by 3 demographic factors: 1. unequal sex ratio- not all indivs equally represented in next generation 2. variation in #offspring produced- among indivs, results in unequal contributions to next generation 3. pop bottlenecks over time- not all indivs equally represented in the genetic composition of the next generation
Unequal Sex ratio
Ne= 4(Nm)(Nf)/(Nm+Nf) -the more unequal the sex ratio, the lower the Ne -causes= chance, social behaviors, harvest of only one gender -Ne declines when sex ratio skewed -if ratio of Nm is same as Nf then Ne = Nc -if different than Ne will be less than Nc -the more unequal the sex ratio, the lower the Ne
Variation #offspring produced
Ne= 4Nc(sigma^2 +2) -where sigma^2 is equal to the variance in family size among females
Effective population size
Ne= effective pop size number of individuals actually reproducing -not the children under maturity etc -larger Ne less chance of losing genetic variation Nc= census population, the actualy number of individuals, usually more than Ne
Population fluctuations
Ne= t/(1/N1+ 1/N2 + 1/N3+..+1/N4) -small numbers influence Ne more than big numbers (most genes lost at low numbers) -one single pop crash can produce a large reduction in Ne
Habitat modification, restoration -
Need proper habitat for successful relocation/transplantation
What are the positive and negative effects of behavioral interactions?
Negative effects: territoriality Positive effects: coloniality
The competitive exclusion principle states that two species cannot coexist forever with identical?
Niches
One of the benefits of nuclear power is it produces a lot of electricity with virtually no greenhouse gases. Which of the following is an issue with nuclear energy?
Nuclear waste storage, radiation, and decommissioning of old plants
What is phenology? What are its biological effects?
Phenology is the study of the relationships between climate and periodic biological phenomena Global warming disrupts ecological interactions among species if their life cycles are no longer synchronized
What are the two ways to define a species?
Phylogenetic species and Biological species
When should conservation strategies consider phylogenetics? And what are some possible strategies?
Phylogenetics should be considered when prioritizing taxa for conservation Possible strategies include: -conserving basal taxa -conserving unique taxa -conserving specious taxa -conserving taxa to maximize phylogenetic diversity
What is the meta-population dynamics and how does it differ from source-sink dynamics?
Population in different patches appear and disappear, but entire metapopulation persists due to rescue effects It differs from source-sink dynamics because all patches are equal quality and no patches exist permanently. Side note: CB seek to identify critical linking patches/populations
Zoos, aquaria -
Provides educational aspect ~600 M visitors yearly
What are the four types of ecosystem services?
Provisioning, cultural, regulating, and supporting
What are some general goals of ex situ conservation?
Public ed. Raising funds for in situ conservation Research on basic biology of species
Invasive species are often difficult to fully eradicate due to their high reproductive capability and public resistance to reducing pretty or charismatic species. A good example of this is wetlands is?
Purple loosestrife
Short-term propagation -
Purpose of reintroducing species as soon as possible Perigrine falcon, wolves in Yellowstone, cheetahs, pupfish, etc. Nene - Hawaiian goose
This author of Silent Spring was also an avid aquatic ecologist?
Rachel Carson
This industry was vital for promoting national parks to both congress and the public in the early 1900s
Railroad
This habitat has >50% of the world's species, but is being lost at 0.4-1.2% per year
Rainforest
This man, who would later become a senator for Arizona, fought making the Grand Canyon a national park even arguing it was illegal to make a national monument.
Ralph Cameron
Mather considered the flooding of Hetch Hetchy a great tragedy...this put him in direct conflict often with this man, who first butting heads with them over Grand Canyon National Park
Ralph Henry Cameron
Conventions:
Ramsay Convnetion Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit Kyoto Summit The Hague Johannesburg, S. Africa Montreal Bali, Indonesia Copenhagen Mexico City Rio Paris
What is demographic variability?
Random changes in birth rate, mortality rate, sex rate, and age structure that cause random fluctuation in population size
What is genetic drift?
Random fluctuation of gene frequencies over time due to chance alone
Populations within species may exhibit genetic diversity due to? Tell wither the factors are random or non-random.
Random: -Genetic drift -Population bottlenecks -Founder effects Non-Random: -Natural selection
Small populations
Rapid decline and numbers and local extinctions: 1. Loss of genetic variability and related problems of inbreeding depression and genetic drift 2. demographic fluctuation due to random variation in birth and death rates 3. environmental fluctuations due to variation in predation, competition, disease, and food supply due to natural catastrophes that occur at irregular intervals (fire, storms, flood, droughts).
Beta richness?
Rate of change in species across habitats
What is the long-term goal of exsitu conservation?
Re-establish wild populations when sufficient captive-bred individuals and sufficient habitat is available
Reintroductions -
Re-establishing new populations or augmenting old ones Building up established populations To establish healthy populations
Ecological-evolutionary land ethic
Recognizes the complexity of ecosystems and the interactions of species within. recognizes evolution is an on going process affected by the environment
What does the Clean Water Act of 1972 do? Is it effective?
Regulated surface water quality It established water quality standards such as -required reduction of pollution from industries and cities Effective at reducing pollution from point sources but not non point sources
What does the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of 1975 do? Who administers it? Give an example of notable success.
Regulates trade of endangered species that are endangered in part or entirely because of trade Administered by IUCN Ratified by 172 nations Notable Success: -Ivory is banned to protect elephants
What does the International Convention for Regulation of Whaling of 1946 do?
Regulates whaling for commercial, scientific, and traditional purposes to maintain suitable levels 59 signatory nations All commercial whaling has been banned since the 1980's
Tamarin wolves -
Reintroduced into Yellowstone Successful reintroduction Cascading effects Key top predator (deer pop, etc.) Prey upon livestock Mixed opinions about releases
Anthropocene
Relating to/denoting the current geological age viewed as the period diringg which human activitiy has been the dominant influence on climate and the environment
Translocation: Reintroduction
Releasing captive-bred or wild-collected individuals into an ecologically suitable site within the species' historic range but where the species no longer occurs
Seed banks, germ plasm banks:
Rely on small fraction of available sources in seed banks Adaptation of food sources to changing climates Svalbard
Debt-for-nature swaps Cons:
Small fraction of debt actually paid off LDC locks up resources that may have had monetary value Still have resource abuse Doesn't address corruption, salary, maintaining infrastructure and saved land
The Florida Everglades NP was particularly important because it was the first National Park to be?
Solely for wildlife preservation
Ecosystem stability can be disrupted by what?
Species additions and subtractions
Biological Species Concept (BSC)
Species are natural populations that are reproductively isolated from one another
Why are two reasons why most conservation regulations and activities aimed at species level?
Species are the fundamental unit of evolution Species arouse public recognition and interest
What are the three levels of biodiversity?
Species diversity, genetic diversity, and community/ecosystem diversity
Complementary
Species occupy a similar position along one niche dimension but differ along along another
What happens as human populations increase?
Species richness declines
What is the order of importance for ecological organizations?
Species<<<ecosystems<<<evolution
Zoning:
Specific Can be conservation oriented
Cultural services
Spiritual/religious inspiration Aesthetic Education Heritage Recreation
Who was the first director of the National Park service?
Stephen Mather
Limitations/problems with ex-situ cons:
Stop-gap Counterproductive? Idea that 1 stable pop is enough Continuous effort needed Often involves political issues Reintroductions not in foreseeable future Cost and space needs Genetic diversity issues Which species are chosen for zoos, etc. Behavior changes Species vs. ecosystem Localization makes for vulnerability Large vertebrate bias Cost and technology
Arrested/reversed trajectories -
Stops succession
Problems w/reintroduction for plants:
Sunscald Herbivory Fire Competition Drought Microsite placement Transplating
Opportunities/importance/possibilities of ex-situ cons:
Supplement wild populations Research opportunities Reduce pressure to collect from wild Education about rarity Permit future possibilities of future reintroduction
What is F(st)?
The inbreeding coefficient and fixation index.
What is Ecological Restoration?
The process of intentionally altering a site to establish a defined, indigenous, and historic ecosystem.
What is the potential flaw in standard economic methods that value products?
The products are sold more than once
Conservation biology
The scientific study of the nature and status of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction and the erosion of biotic interactions.
What is the main difference between the population viability analysis and spatially explicit population models?
The spatially explicit population model explicitly incorporates spacial configuration of landscape
Define demography.
The study of factors that contribute to changes in population size
Define ecology.
The study of the pattern of distribution and abundance of organisms
Packing
The tendency for coexisting species to fill available "space" along important niche dimension
Appendix 2 -
Trade is regulated ~32,000 species Mostly plants
What are some examples of consumptive use?
Traditional medicines, protein from wild game, fuelwood, and animal dung for energy
What does the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 do? Who is it between?
Treaty between US, Canada, and Mexico Protects essentially all native birds and helped to end commercial hunting/trade of birds, feathers, and eggs
Threatened Habitats
Tropical Rainforest ** Tropical Deciduous forest (farmland and cattle) grasslands (framland and cattle) wetlands and aquatic habitats (channels, dams, pollution) mangroves (wetland communities) coral reefs (overfishing and over harvesting species, pollution, algae)
This biome has some of the best soils for agriculture in the tropics
Tropical deciduous forest
Which biome exhibits the highest terrestrial biodiversity?
Tropical evergreen forests
Where is most biodiversity?
Tropical rain forest Coral reefs Deep sea Large tropical lakes
At what general geographic location on the globe is biodiversity the greatest?
Tropics
USDOI
U.S. Department of Interior -507 million acres of surface land (1/5 of U.S.) -->biggest single US natural habitat owner -->national parks, monuments, wildlife refugees, grazing lands, etc.
All species are:
Unique solutions to evolutionary problems Living representations of history Have their own distinct beauty
Cross Fostering
Use a closely-related species to raise a rare species offspring -Golden retriever with African wild dog pups
What are spatially explicit population models? What components does it include? Why is it better than population viability analysis?
Use to model different future scenarios Landscape map and population dynamics model Recognizes that source-sink and metapopulation dynamics can influence population regulation
Jon Muir
Used Emerson and Thoreau's writings to preserve natural areas (late 1800s-early 1900s) Initiated the preservationist ethic.
Ex-situ research opportunities -
Used to determine benefits of each focus More knowledge about an organism betters changes of success
cost benefit analysis (CBA)
Used to determine weight cost vs. benefits and changes in utility
What are population viability analysis used for? How does it model population regulation? Does it include landscape configuration?
Used to predict risk of extinction or outcome of reintroduction effort Models population regulation as a hierarchical process Doesn't explicitly include spatial configuration of landscape
What is gap analysis? What is its use for conservation?
Uses GIS databases to compare species distributions to land use Goal is the identify gaps in protection of BV and to prioritize designation of future protected areas
Environmental Impact Assessment
Uses cost-benefit analysis to estimate the present and future effects of projects on the environment
Restoration sensu lato -
Using various methods to maintain sites
What is instrumental value?
Utilitarian - value that something has a means to another's ends (Anthropocentric)
Name the key elements of Biophilia
Utilitarian, Naturalistic, Ecological-Scientific, Aesthetic, Symbolic, Humanistic, Moralistic, Negativistic, Doministic
Global climate models and climate predictions, how are they validated? What do we use global climate models for?
Validate global climate models by using them to predict current climate Use global climate models to predict future climate change assuming different concentrations of greenhouse gases in future and different scenarios of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions
Use value
Value obtained from ued
Option value
Value of expected future use
Hedonic approach
Value of good is based on structural and environmental characteristics. how much would you pay
Existence value
Value of knowing something is preserved
Existence Value
Value people are willing to pay to keep a special community/ecosystem from going extinct
What are the characteristics of Habitat/species management areas?
Variable size Ecosystem in natural state No direct resource exploitation Protection of BV, often requiring active management
Experimental-essential -
Very controlled reintroductins
Who actually published first on evolution by natural selection?
Wallace
Criteria for success for restoration -
Want to get original functions and species
Future Generations Ethic
We have a responsibility to preserve living things for future generations (instrumental value)
What are the three examples of translocation of wild animals given in the notes?
Wild Turkey, Bald Eagle, and Black-footed ferret
When is ex situ conservation necessary?
Wild population not large enough to be viable Wild population declining despite in-situ conservation efforts Wild population is outside of protected areas
This is generally an aspect of American conservation, but not European conservation.
Wilderness
The UK equivalent of the Endangered Species Act is a
Wildlife and Countryside Act
Avoiding disease carriers -
Will affect the health of remaining population
Youthful system -
Will recover quicker than older systems
Green energy:
Wind turbines Kill birds, bats Solar panels Use up land Cost of construction Hydro power Nuclear power Economic, environmental cost
What are the three levels of genetic variation?
Within individuals -gene level Among individuals in a population Among populations within species
What was the first national park?
Yelowstone 1872
Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY)
Ymax = rK/4 - the greatest amount of resources that can be harvested each year and replaced through population growth without detriment to the population
What was the first protected area? (protected in 1864)
Yosemite It was added to the National Park System in 1916
In regard to genetic structuring within a species, conservation biologist should seek to preserve.....?
a genetically diverse subset of populations
Land Sharing
a strategy where low-intensity human activities coexist with some elements of biodiversity
Special botanical gardens focused on tree preservation are called?
aboretums
Central Eutrophication
accumulation of excess nutrients in the water caused by human activity
Reference Sites
act as comparison sites, providing explicit restoration goals and allowing for quantitive measures of success
fecundity
actual reproductive rate of a population (ignore males, focus on females)
keystone species
affect the organization of the community to a far greater degree, reduction by low numbers affects the population in a large way, result in trophic cascade or extinction cascade determine ability of other species to persist in an ecosystem
Density-Dependent Factors
affected by current density of a population -disease
density dependent factors
affected by current density of population (ex: food)
life tables
age-specific summaries of the survival pattern of a population; often follow fate of a cohort (generation)
Conservation Easements
agreements not to develop land
Desertification is the conversion of _______ land to desert due to improper use.
arid land
More focus on animals used ____
as food sources than in zoos. ~1 B cows, 1 B sheep
What is the result of phenological shifts in response to climate change?
because some species experience phenological shifts in response to climate change, while others don't. Climate change may disrupt ecological interaction among species if their life cycles are no longer synchronous. (predator, prey, or plant and pollinator. )
Resilience
being able to return to original state quickly after disturbance has occured
Humans produce this fuel by chemically-modifying animal or plant oils, such as waste deep fryer grease?
biodiesel
Ecosystem
biological community together with its associated physical and chemical environment
arboretum
botanical garden focused on trees and other woody plants
Natural rate of extinction
can be calculated using the fossil record
How do we supplement animal populations? (sources of captive animals in translocations)
captive breeding, captive raising, fostering
Greenhouse Gases
carbon dioxide, methane, etc. higher planet surface temperature result of burning of fossil fuels
invertebrate survery
careful data management in field -huge diversity of trapping method -ID in lab time consuming
The maximum density a habitat can sustain is the?
carrying capacity
Habitat Degradation and Pollution
caused by pesticides, herbicides, sewage, fertilizers from agriculture fields, industrial chemicals and wastes, emissions from factories and cars, and sediment deposits for eroded hillsides
Edge Effects
change in light, humidity, temperature, and wind = result in less favorable habitat for many species - high-energy and nutrient disturbed environment, pest species of plants and animals can increase in number and disperse into the fragment - use habitat edges as invasion points
bio impacts of climate change
changes in phenology, geographical distribution, species composition and communities, ecosystem function, current patterns of Ag. productivity, increase vulnerability of forest fires, extirpation and extinction.
biodiesel
chemically modified animal or plant oils
market price
choose money or something else.
Cost-benefit analysis
compares the values gained versus the cost of any product
Biodiversity
complete range of species and biological communities, genetic variation within species and ecosystem processes
What is connectivity? How is it maintained?
connected enough to allow dispersal of wide-ranging species and metapopulations, to avoid inbreeding, and to allow shifts in distributions in response to climate change -maintained by providing corridors between protected areas
Protected areas with sustainable use of natural resources
conserved ecosystems and habitats together with associated cultural values and traditional natural resource management systems; generally large with most areas in natural condition but some harvest
The St. Helena ebony is an example of a species that is?
considered the "living dead"
Lacey Act
controls illegal importation, prevent spread and establishment of invasives and overabundants
limitations of ex situ conservation
cost, population size, adaptation, learning skills, genetic variability, continuity, concentration, surplus animals
Wilderness of 1964
created legal definition of wilderness and protected land that fits it -created Wilderness Preservation System --->wildernesses in NPS, BLM, USFS, USFWS
experimented, essential populations
critical to the species surviving and are rigidly protected as if naturally occurring
Area of Focus: Lakes
cultural eutrophication-excess nutrients in water -->leads to algal bloom, which leads to low O2
zoos
current goal: establish long-term, captive breeding populations of rare and endangered animals; now incorporating ecological themes and information
Air Pollution
damages and weakens many tree species, make them more susceptible to attack by insects, fungi, and disease
Area of Focus: Rivers
damming has had severe impact -experimental flooding and dam removal
Which if the following is not one of the ten indicators of a warming world?
decreasing water vapor
If-then logic is representative of what type of thinking?
deductive
Rehabilitation
degraded ecosystem is replaced with a different but productive ecosystem
What is a population defined by?
density and dispersion
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which oversees air and water research, is in which department?
department of commerce
reconciliation ecology
develop urban places where people and biodiversity can coexist
Removal of Invasive Species
difficult prevention, detection and early intervention, long-term management
50x more expensive to ____
do ex-situ than in-situ conservation.
captive breeding
done in zoos; prefer natural reproduction if possible
Traditional ecological knowledge
e
Which indirect use is the most commonly used and recognized when defending conservation efforts?
ecotourism
The number of breeding individuals, which is always smaller than the total population is the _________
effective population size
Even in the 1700s...
environmental laws were beginning to be enforced and preserves were created in many European colonies
egalitarian
equal value to all living things
eutrophication
excess nutrients in water caused by human activity; leads to algal blooms which leads to fish declines and oxygen depletion
What is the U.S. Department of Interior
executive department responsible for managing most federal land and natural resources -includes NPS, USFWS, BLM, etc. Also oversees Native American Land (Bureau of Indian Affairs)
Herp surveys
experince and local knowledge important to survey pitfalls calls
Iteroparity
few each over time (only few but they will be strong)
founder effect
few individuals create a new population but are limited in genetic diversity because there are only a few (less diverse than original population)
What is flexibility?
flexible enough to allow protection of any valuable land that becomes available.
Environmental Stochasticity
fluctuation in abundance of food plants, predators, physical environment, weather conditions - random variation in biological and physical environment - affects ALL individuals of a population - can dramatic affect a stable population - more important in increasing probability of extinction - result = lower growth rates, population sizes, and higher probability of extinction - MVP to about 380 from 50
Type 1 survivorship curve
focus more energy on producing young, live long lives
Resource Needs
food availability, water availability, temperature, space
Wetlands Reserve Program (USDA)
helps farmers who wish to protect wetlands
Wetlands Reserve Program in US
helps support farmers who wish to protect/restore farm wetlands
What are externalities?
hidden costs and benefits within economic systems which affect those outside of the system
Artificial Incubation
human care of eggs when mother unable or under pressure
Traditional people often do not degrade the environment as long as...
human population density remains low and there are abundant land and resources
What is the Biophilia Hypothesis?
humans possess an innate tendency to seek connections with nature and other forms of life
Which subset of ecotourism, which is also a major funding source for government conservation efforts, is a $100 billion per year industry?
hunting and fishing
Genetic Swamping
hybridization of invasion species with native species that are similar (close relatives)
Fuel cells use this gas, which reacts with a platinum catalyst to release free electrons. The waste product is water vapor
hydrogen
International Union for Conservation of Nature
identifies species most vulnerable to extinction and categorizes according to vulnerability -habitat conditions and trends
The Red List
identifies species that are "critically endangered"
What is irreplaceability?
identify and protect areas essential for comprehensiveness and representativeness, while recognizing that other areas are sustainable
Rivers
impacted by dams, experimental floods and or dam removals
Allee effect
interaction among population size, density growth rate, and behavior - social systems and breeding systems of many animals can be disrupted if the population size or density fall below a certain level * reproductive behavior - dispersed population = trouble finding mates - positive feedback - birthrate will decline, population density will become even lower, unequal sex ratio will worsen, birthrates drop more
Reintroduction Program
involves releasing captive-bred or wild-collected individuals into an ecologically suitable site within the historical range from which they have been extirpated from --create a new population in original environment
Low-intensity agriculture co-existing with biodiversity is a conservation strategy referred to as?
land-sharing
Habitat Fragmentation
large continuous area is reduced in area and divided into fragments - edge effects* 1. fragments have greater amount of edge per area 2. center of each habitat is closer to an edge 3. large population divided into small population - limits dispersal and colonization (barriers to normal movement) - restricted access to food and mates (loss of reproductive potential) - smaller populations more vulnerable to inbreeding depression, genetic drift, etc. - fires more likely - interspecies interaction (invasion by exotic and native species) - potential for disease (wild species closer to domestic)
National Parks
large natural or near-natural areas set aside to protect large-scale ecological processes, along with the complement of species of the area; also provide a foundation for environmental and cultural recreation and education
Eutrophication
large release of nitrates and phosphates into aquatic system results in thick algae changes biological community harmful to coral species specifically (need crystal-clear water)
wilderness areas
large unmodified or slightly modified areas retaining their natural character and influence (protected to preserve this natural condition)
charismatic megafauna
larger animals, used to help attract public (lions, tigers, bears)
To sum up.. larger populations
larger populations: -less of an effect of genetic drift -inbreeding depression unlikely -gene pool for mutation opportunities -genetic variation remains for adaptation to fluctuations in demography and environment
Characteristics of countries that have more than 1 protected areas
larger, healthy economies, many ecosystems, rich biotas
habitat corridors
link isolated patches using strips of protected land
How was the Wild Turkey translocated?
live in forested habitats esp. in U.S., extirpated from much of the East due to loss of habitat and hunting. Eastern populations re-established by translocation of individuals from further west (Kansas and Tennessee)
How was the Black-footed Ferret translocted?
live in prairie dog Colonies on Great Plains of U.S. Nearly extinct in the wild due to loss of habitat, decline of parries dogs, and disease. Remaining individuals (18) brought into captivity in 1980s, (prairie dogs declined also because they feed on them), Reintroduced at several sites throughout the west, wild population currently about 600. Good success in breeding in captivity.
Outbreeding Depression
loss of alleles or reproduction due to mating with different species --red wolf and coyote problem
outbreeding depression
loss of alleles or reproduction due to mating with different species (diluted species gene pool)
what is the problem with small pops?
loss of genetic variation -many species are found in small pops- eg all rhino species occur in small pops -habitat degradation generates many small pops -leads to loss of genetic variation -how can be lost? genetic drift, inbreeding, demographic bottleneck, founder effect
Type II Curve
lots of young but nature takes them out (squirrels)
land-sharing
low-intensity agriculture co-existing with biodiversity
Land Sharing
low-intensity agriculture coexisting with biodiversity -->orchards
An experiment where the experimenter facilitates the treatment is called?
manipulative
Synonymy
many names, one species (rotifers)
spiritual ecological knowledge
many shrines are home to rare species, not officially protected tibetan buddhists protect snow leopards
Extinction rates are particularly low in which habitat?
marine
What is efficiency?
maximize comprehensiveness, and representativeness while minimizing total area under protection by focusing on biodiversity hot spots.
carrying capacity
maximum density a habit can naturally sustain
Carrying Capacity
maximum density a habitat can sustain
biogas
methane/oxygen mix created by anaerobic decomposition of we/green biomass, animal waste or landfill waste
What can be important habitats for species?
military bases, private estates, and powerline strips
Single Large
minimize edge effects, lower extinction rates, can maintain large range of species DOWNSIDE: expensive, difficult to acquire, may not cover full scope of biodiversity,
Solar-Generated Electricity
mirror focuses light and steams water to spin turbine
PVA of mexian palm: modeling 3 options (I)
model I= demographic variation only, how would you represent demographic variation in pop model? birth and death rates, male and female ratio, immigration etc -MVP=48 individuals
PVA of Mexican Palm (III)
model III= moderate environmental variation -MVP=380 -a seven times larger pop needs to be protected
Most conservation efforts focus on species why?
more characteristic policy focus on animals easier to set goals for a single species than entire ecosystem
Several Small
more likely to target multiple species in ecosystem, socially acceptable, financially feasible, easier to manage, 'eggs in one basket' -habitat fragmentation
How long does carbon dioxide remain stable in the atmosphere?
more than 100 years
EPA Superfund
most contaminated sites targeted for cleanup based on pollution/toxins
land ethic
most important goal of conservation is to maintain the health of natural ecosystems and ecological processes
introduction program
move captive-bred/wild-caught individuals to areas suitable for the species but outside their historic range
World Bank
multilateral development bank promoting international trade and economic activity
Transactions are based on
mutual benefit
Extinct
no member of the species if found alive anywhere
Existence value is considered a?
non-use value
polyploids
nondisjunction in reproduction, result = offspring with extra chromosomes
Pollinators such as honey bees are often killed by pesticides. This is an example of a ______ species
nontarget
Metapopulations
not all populations are equal: -identify source pops= reproducing, increasing, where immigrants come from, usually stable -identify sinks= exist because of immigration,pop that recieve migrants -protect source pops, minimize sinks How? -identify boundaries of pops -quantify abundance in each pop -identify pop trends (increasing decreasing stable) -quantify amount and frequency of dispersal between pops (mark-recapture, pop genetics)
US Federal Organic Foods Production Act of 1990
organic farms and handlers must be certified by a 3rd party, increase fertility though sustainable techniques, can't use synthetic pesticide and fertilizer
Bioremediation
organisms absorb, remove, or neutralize the pollutant
Pittman-Roberts Act of 1937
places excise tax on firearms, ammunition, and equipment (11%) --which DOI uses to fund conservation efforts, research, and education efforts
carbon sequestration
plant uptake of carbon dioxide in long-lasting biomaterials
Which of the following groups do we probably have the majority of species defined?
plants
keystone
plays crucial role in ecosystem
Large Reserve Cons
point of diminishing returns with species diversity, expensive to manage, difficult to acquire, may not cover full scope of habitats/diversity of country
ecosystem services
pollination nitrogent fixation erosion control carbon sequestration climate regulation pollution buffering moderate weather extremes protect us from uv rays
This phenomenon is classically represented by lynx and snowshoe hares in intro ecology courses
population cycles
genetic bottleneck
population is greatly reduced in size and loses its rare alleles if no individuals possessing them survive
Experimental, Essential
populations critical to species survival
Ecocolonialism
practice of disregarding traditional rights and practices of local people in order to establish new conservation areas
Ecological restoration
practice of restoring the species and ecosystems that inhabited damaged, degraded, or destroyed site
Ecological Restoration
practice of restoring the species and ecosystems that occupied a site at some point in the past but were damaged or destroyed
ecological restoration
practice of restoring the species and ecosystems that occupied a site at some point in the past that were degraded, damaged, or destroyed
Which is a density-dependent factor?
predation
ex situ conservation
preservation of an existing species outside nature (ex: zoos)
in situ conservation
preservation of communities and populations in the wild
Conservation
preservation, protection, or restoration of the natural environment, natural ecosystems, vegetation, and wildlife.
Protection of forests was necessary to...
prevent erosion, maintain wood supplies, prevent famine, and ensure adequate rainfall
prezygotic isolation
prevent mating or fertilization between species
Mission 66 in particular did what for the national parks?
rebuild roads and create new infrastructure
Rewilding
reintroduction of top carnivores to regulate the system from the top down
Anthropocene
relating to or denoting the current geological age, viewed as the period during which human activity has been been the dominant influence on climate and the environment.
reintroduction program
release captive-bred or wild-collected individuals into an ecologically suitable site within the historical range where they have been extirpated
Introduction Program
releasing captive-bred or wild-caught individuals outside of their historic range -acceptable if original site is destroyed
What is the con for BII?
relies on expert opinion; assumes protected areas are truly protected; does not allow for migration of species from one are to the next
K-selection
reproduce and colonize slowly but they are dominant -->climax species, trees
k-selected species
reproduce and colonize slowly but will become dominant if the habitat is undisturbed (characteristic of climax species)
r-selected species
reproduce fast and a lot of individuals but are week competitors (pioneer species)
r-selection
reproduce fast and prolific, but are weak competitors -->pioneer species, weeds
iteroparity
reproduces few each over time
Sink
reproduction does not replace dealths
Source
reproduction exceeds deaths
US Department of Agriculture
responsible for developing and executing federal policy on agriculture, farming, forestry and food -originated to regulate the economic driver of early agrarian US
Diversity indices take _____ and _____ into account.
richness and evenness
Paradox of enrichment
richness increases with increasing primary productivity at low productivity levels, reaches a plateau at moderate productivity levels, and then declines at high levels.
Legal Title
right of ownership of traditional land
Osmotic stress on organisms is particularly cause by this type of pollution
salt pollution
Guild
same trophic level species who use the same environmental resourcews
Ecosystem Approach
saving the ecosystems saves the species; push to preserve last "wilderness"
restoration ecology
science of restoration, the research and scientific study of restored population, communities, and ecosystems
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
scientific agency focused on conditions, use, and preservation of oceans and atmosphere -->monitors ocean and weather condition
Zoning
separate conflicting demands - set aside areas within parks for certain things (ex: bird nesting and ATVs); requires extensive advertisement and public education
Strict nature reserves
set aside to protect biodiversity, human use strictly limited and controlled
metapopulation
several populations linked by individual sharing
Synapomorphy
shared derived trait unique to a monophyletic group
Induced hibernation is_____
short term.
The Antarctic Treaty of 1959
signed by 12 nations, that designates Antarctica as a natural reserve
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES)
signed by 179 countries members restrict trade and halt destructive exploitation of endangered species
Ramsar Convention on Wetlands
signees protect at least one land on international significance
Ramsar Convention on Wetlands
signees protect at least one wetland of international significance
Name a service provided by biodiversity to agriculture?
soil microbes and pollinators
Photovoltaics
solar panels - semiconductors turn light directly to energy
Land-sparing
some lands used for high intensity agriculture, while others are completely spared for natural habitat -->buffalo strips and WRP
land-sparing
some lands used for high-intensity agriculture, while others are completely spared as natural habitat
.How do you measure genetic diversity?
some measurement of genetic diversity within population: heterozygosity at a given locus, total allelic diversity number or of alleles at a given locus
artificial insemination
sometimes species lose interest in mating when in captivity; may be necessary to have humans transfer gametes artificially; sometimes used to promote genetic diversity
source-sink populations
source: population which produces excess individuals sink: population which has a debt of individuals (excessive predation, disease, humans, etc.)
ecologically extinct
species persists at such reduced numbers that its effect on the other species in its community are negligable
When measuring biodiversity there are two key components
species richness and species evenness
flagship species
species that are good for tourism and capture public attention
Indicator Species
species that are unique to an ecosystem or endangered
indicator species
species that by their presence demonstrate a distinctive aspect of environmental quality
ecosystem engineers
species that dramatically alter their environment and whose presence was r absence change communities
Endemic
species that live in a single geographical area and no other place
Morphospecies
species that look vary similar but may be a variation or sibling of each other
Biological Community
species that occupy a particular locality and the interaction among those species
Exotic Species
species that occur outside their natural ranges because of human activity
flagship species
species which capture public attention and have ecotourism value, driving conservation; often one of the large charistmatic megafauna
What are genes?
specific region of DNA that codes for protein, codes for RNA, or regulates expression of other genes
What is the preservationist ethic?
suggested that certain natural areas had great emotional and spiritual value, and that these values were greater than those obtained by exploiting such areas Nature has intrinsic value
The worst of the worst polluted sites under EPA jurisdiction are the?
superfund sites
Rate of Extinction
surpasses the known rate of evolution - natural extinction rate of 0.0001 - 0.00001 % per year - current rate = 0.01% per year - 99% extinction caused by human activity - islands are particularly more vulnerable (not predisposed to disease, predators, endemic species (1 location only)) - population loss is proportionate to habitat loss - tropical rainforest (lost @ 1% per year) - population losses result in species extinction
novel ecosystems
systems with mixtures of native and nonnative species
The intrinsic value of each species suggests...
that we have a moral responsibility to actively protect species from going extinct because of human activities
Passive Restoration
the ecosystem recovers on its own. Typical for old agricultural fields in eastern North America
Species Richness
the number of different species in a place
Minimum Viable Population (MVP)
the number of individuals necessary to ensure long-term survival smallest population size with a high chance of persisting small populations are most likely to decline and go extinct
Dispersion
the patterns of spacing of individuals within the boundaries of a population
Ex-Situ Conservation
the preservation of an existing species outside of nature—around but no longer in natural habitat -include zoos, aquaria, sanctuaries, game farms, private breeders, botanical gardens, arboretums, and seed banks
Effective Population Size (Ne)
the size of a population as estimated by the number of its breeding individuals - will be much smaller than actual population size (N) because of many individuals are not reproducing, sex ratios, variation in reproductive output and large annual changes in population size - important part of keeping a large population (if this is low even if population is big will not help population survive)
resource conservation ethic
the world consists of essentially of two components, humans and natural resources. proper use of natural resources is what will help greatest number of people for greatest amount of time
Why do conservation biologist use populations models?
to predict the fate of populations under different future scenarios such as different management regimes and different patterns of climate change
Which of the following is one of the greatest threats to agriculture and ecosystems, and is in part what has created the Mississippi Delta dead zone?
topsoil loss
Embryo Transfer
transferring fertilized embryos of endangered species to common species
embryo transfer
transferring of fertilized embryos of endangered species to common species
Reconciliation Ecology
urban places where great biodiversity and people can exist
cross-fostering
use a closely-related species to raise a rare species offspring
Hydroelectric Power
use flow of water to turn turbines with no atmospheric pollutants BUT can change landscape
Biocontrol
use invasive plant's natural enemies to reduce its population
Bioremediation
use of an organism to clean up pollutants
Net present value
value of land in a given use, taken into account discount rate.
Demographic Stochasticity
variation in birth and death rates among individuals and across years within a given population - below 50 individuals = cause huge fluctuations - higher probability of going extinct - variation among individuals
Subspecies
variations of a species that live in different geographic areas and rarely interbreed
Integrated Pest Management
variety of methods: disrupting reproduction, promote/introduce beneficial insects, select naturally resistant crops, remove nesting/feeding sites for overwintering pests
bird survey
vocal mist net
outbreeding depression
when a species is rare or its habitat is damages, mating between individuals of different population occurs result = weakness, sterility, or lack of adaptability to the environment - loss of identity
Adaptive Restoration
when further intervention is required. Native species may have to be reintroduced if they have not survived and invasive species may have to be removed.
Ecologically Functional
when population of a species is sufficiently large to have an impact on the other species in an ecosystem
Conservation has no...
widely-accepted measure of progress
seeds collected from wild
wild and domestic species effort made to include genetic variation within species
Species extinction was first recognized via
wild cattle (1627) and the dodo (1680s)
In medieval Europe...
wilderness was perceived as useless land inhabited by monsters
One of the main environmental concerns of this form of renewable energy is loss of bird life
wind
psycho spiritual
worship of nature and ancstors
burden of proof goes to developers
yea
How Much of the World is Protected?
~13%