Transcript Biodiversity

• Warm-up: “ Diversity may be the hardest
thing to live with, and perhaps the most
dangerous thing to live without.”
– In terms of biology, why is diversity a
dangerous thing to live without?
• TSSBAT: Explain the importance of
biodiversity, as it pertains to ecosystem
sustainability
Biodiversity
 What does “Bio” mean?
Bio =
Biodiversity
What does “Diversity” mean?
Diversity = Variety
There are 3 components of
biodiversity
 Diversity of genes
Chihuahuas, beagles, and rottweilers are all
dogs—but they're not the same because their
genes are different.
 Diversity of species
For example, monkeys, dragonflies, and
meadow beauties are all different species
Saki Monkey
Golden Skimmer
Meadow Beauty
Variety of ecosystems
Prairies, ponds, and tropical rain forests
are all ecosystems. Each one is different,
with its own set of species living in it.
What do we get from
biodiversity?
Oxygen
Food
Clean Water
Medicine
Aesthetics
Ideas
Should we be concerned
about biodiversity?
What we know:
The Earth is losing species at an alarming rate
 Some scientists estimate that as many as 3
species per hour are going extinct and 20,000
extinctions occur each year.
 when species of plants and animals go extinct,
many other species are affected.
Threats to biodiversity
Habitat destruction
Pollution
Species Introductions
Global Climate Change
Exploitation
Number and variety of species on
Earth(ecosystem)
1.4 million known species
10-100 million actual species
The high the biodiversity the
more stable the ecosystem
(food web)
Corn field vs Rain Forest
If one species is lost there will
be others to step in.
99 % of all species that have ever
lived on earth are extinct
Extinct--- When there are no
individuals of a species left on the
planet
Mass extinction—caused by large
global climate change
Causes of loss of biodiversity
1.) Habitat Destruction
increase human
population—need space to live
and grow crops
2.) Hunting—unregulated hunting
can cause species extinction
ex: passenger pigeons, buffalo
3.) Poaching---illegal hunting—
usually for certain body parts
ex: African Elephant—tusks
River Dolphins--eyes
4.) Exotic Species– a species that is
not native to that region
Can cause:
--- disruption in food chains
--- crowd out native species
--- no natural predator –can
overpopulate
Endangered Species Act (ESA)
US Congress—1973
Designed to protect any plant or
animal species from becoming
extinct
Main Provisions to the ESA
1.) The US Fish and Wildlife Service
must complete a list of all
endangered and threatened species
2.) Endanger and threatened
animal species may not be
caught or killed. Endangered or
threatened plant on federal land
may not be uprooted. No part
of the endangered or
threatened species may be sold
or traded
3.) The federal government may
not carry out any project that
jeopardizes endangered species.
4.) The US Fish and Wildlife
Service must prepare a species
recovery plan for each endangered
and threatened species.
Ways to save biodiversity
1.) Captive breeding programs
ex: zoos, wild animal parks,
trout in a classroom
2.) Botanical Gardens
3.) Germ-Plasm Banks– store samples
of genetic material from endangered
species—plant (seeds) animals
(sperm and eggs)
4.) The Ecosystem Approach
This “saves” whole systems
instead of individual species
because--- too many species to
list and many species we do not even
known about still should be saved.
Also ecosystems are next to each
other---when one goes the others will
follow