Chapter 59 Conservation Biology

Overview of Biological Crisis Extinctions of species are high – done by humans by overexploitation and habitat destruction (agriculture, housing and commercial purposes) Endemic species are found in one restricted range and areas with high rates of human population and immigration Hot spots are areas with many endemic species exhibiting high rates of extinction

What is the value of biodiversity? Biodiversity has direct economic values – comes from the products we obtain from different species and ecosystems Indirect economic values of biodiversity comes from ecosystem services they provide such as maintaining water quality, preservation of soils and nutrients, affecting local climates, and recycling nutrients. We need to make ethical decisions to protect esthetic, ecological and economic values of ecosystems

What are the different factors responsible for extinction? Overexploitation and habitat loss by humans are two most important causes of extinction Humans reduce species richness by destroying, polluting, disrupting and fragmenting habitats Overexploitation wipes out species quickly Example: Passenger pigeons in North America Introduced species threatens native species and habitats – Zebra mussels introduced from Europe into North American waters (large and negative changes to a community because there is no history of species interactions) Disruption of ecosystem interactions may cause an extinction cascade from either top-down or bottom up trophic levels

What can be various approaches for preserving endangered species? If the cause of a species endangerment is known, then different recovery plans can be designed Conservation biology is designed to preserve populations and species in danger of decline or extinction Restoration of damaged habitats to natural conditions Restoration by removal of introduced species Severely polluted or damaged habitats must be restored by providing different environmental services Captive breeding of the species Best way to preserve biodiversity is to preserve entire ecosystem than any particular species

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