Ecology
Bio 149
Lake Tahoe Community College
Instructor: Sue Kloss
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Ch. 22 and Conservation and Extinction
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Biological diversity is incompletely catalogued.
Biological diversity is the diversity of attributes of all living things.
species diversity is one type of diversity, but it is much greater than thatecological diversity - eg different species of plants that can tolerate different environmental characteristicseg. serpentine soils and the plant communities they sustain. Ecological Diversity - species differ in their
adaptations to their environments. Plants have different tolerances for ecological/environmental
characteristics. Animals have adaptations to define their roles in ecosystems
5. Genetic diversity- ability of populations to change in relation to their environments.
6. Endemic component to biodiversity
a. Endemic species- range limited to small areas.
b. Some areas have high levels of endemism, e.g many areas in California, oceanic islands
c. conservation is necessary in areas of high diversity and high endemism
d. habitat destruction, hunting or exotic introductions result in losses of local populations
e. more than half the birds of Hawaii have disappeared since human colonization
Biodiversity Hot Spots - Special conservation consideration.
1. usually correspond to edges of major biogeographic regions, edges of important biomes.
2. must have a high level of endemism
3. remaining natural vegetation in all hotspots identified by this group occupies only 1.4% of the total land
area of earth;
4. regions of high habitat destruction - in these hotspots, 88% of the natural vegetation has disappeared.
5. about 12% of earth’s land mass, but 20% of the worlds population lives in them
6. Sri Lanka, Philippines, southern India, West Indies. Population growth rates are very high in Columbia,
Peru, Ecuador, Madagascar and West Africa.
Values of biodiversity
1. some estimates say we are losing one species/day,
2. Inherent value –
3. Economic benefits
Extinction – natural, but present rate is not
1. Background extinction.
2. Mass extinction –
3. Anthropogenic extinction
Conservation planning must include habitat for self sustaining populations
1. MVP
2. Critical areas for conservation - hotspots, or large number of species
3. Design of Nature preserves
4. Some endangered species have been brought back from the brink of extinction
Review Q/s and lesson objectives
1. How big was the human population in 2000 and how fast is it growing? What impact does this have on extinction
of other species, and why do we have so many impacts?
2. What can humans do to maintain sustainability of their ecosystems?
3. Describe various types of biological diversity and provide examples of how they are important.
4. Why is endemism so important in biological diversity? What factors contribute to endemism and what types of
areas typically have a lot of endemism?
5. Describe the diversity you find in a Biodiversity hot spot, both in terms of what is there, and what was once there.
Where do you find these hot spots geographically? What types of areas lend themselves to being highly diverse
in life forms?
6. Describe 3 ways that humans value biodiversity. describe the values provided to humans by ecosystems that
have traditionally been free.
7. Describe three types of extinction, and 4 aspects of anthropogenic extinction with details and examples.
8. Of what use is the concept of MVP in conservation planning?
9. What are some important considerations in planning conservation reserves?