Biodiversity and Conservation

4 ways to measure biodiversity

1. Species diversity

2. Genetic diversity

3. Endemic species (only here)

4. Ecosystem diversity

Benefits of biodiversity

• Intrinsic: They have a right to exists

• Economic: Provide essential ecosystem for the global economy

  • 10% US GDP 300 bill to the world 125 trill

Yuan Longping (Heterosis)

• Crossed native wild rice with conventional rice

• They hybrid rice yeilded almost 30% higher than conventional strains

David Tilman

• Planted a bunch of plants different species of perennial grass

• After a couple of years the soil fertility and plant biomass increased

Ecotourism

Big business in developing countries

Mass extinction

• Late Ordovician (60%)

• Late Devonian (50%)

• Late Permian (70%)

• Late Triassic (50%)

• Late Cretaceous (75%)

end of the Cretaceous period

• 66 million years ago

• 75% of all plants and animals disappeared

• 180 kilometer wider crater (Chicxulub) hit Yucatan

Walter Alvarez

• Found 1-in layer of iridium

• proof of Chicxulub

Conservation Biology goals

• Document biodiversity

• Understand threats

• Develop solutions

Hot spots

• High number of endemic species

• Must contain > 1500 endemic plants species and at least 70% of its original vegetation coverage

5 major threats to biodiversity

1. Over harvesting

2. non-native species

3. pollution

4. habitat loss/fragmentation

5. global climate change

Over harvesting

• Atlantic cod overfishing after the 70s and the population dropped in1992

• Implement catch limits

• Stop fishing cod

• Create refuges

• Stop recreational fishers from killing cod

Non-native species causing ecological and economic harm

• Lampreys kill trout

• Emeral Ash borer kills ash trees in north america

• Wild pigs damage native plants and create stagnant water

• Zebra mussels ….

4 Types of pollution

Air, water, soil, and noise

Habitat fragmentation

• Cut up habitats

• Costa Rica improved of 65 years

island biogeography

Nick Haddad Corridors

• Help connect “islands” formed by habitat fragmentation

• Connected plants pollinated

  • connected

  • isolated (- seed production)

  • isolated winded

• reduced plot area and increased isolation

  • indirect relashionship

Types of conservation

• In-situ: In natural habitat

• Ex-situ : placing them in controlled environments

• In-vitro: Conserving genetic material

Royal Chitwan national Park (Nepal)

• Balances conservation with local communities

• grass harvesting

Success storys

• Ball eagle recovery (Chesapeake Bay)

• Marine protected areas “spillover”

Ongoing challenges

• Amphibian population decline (due to fungus)

• Bleaching of coral (algae leave)