Transcript The Importance of Biodiversity

The Importance of Biodiversity
Biodiversity: the variety of life in a particular
ecosystem
Species Richness: the number of species in an
area
Extinction

The end of an organism
The moment of extinction refers to the death
of the last individual of a species, even if the
capacity to breed has been lost before this time
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10. Tyrannosaurus Rex
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Extinct ~65 million
years ago
Bipedal carnivore
Fossils have been
found in North
American rock
formations
Probable C.O.E.:

Starvation
9. Quagga: ½ Zebra, ½ Horse
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Last Quagga died on
Aug 12, 1883 at the
Artis Magistra Zoo in
Amsterdam
A subspecies of the
African Zebra
Was the first extinct
animal to have its
DNA studied
Probable COE:

Hunting
8. Thylacine: Tasmanian Tiger
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Native to Austrailia
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Extinct since 1936
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The largest known carnivorous
marsupial in modern times.
Probable COE:

(Still spotted)
Hunting, disease, competition
7. Sea Cow
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~ 8 meters long and weighed 3 tonnes
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Toothless with two flat white bones
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Fossil record indicate that around 1770 Sea
Cow numbers decreased as human populace
increased around the Bering Sea
Probable COE:

Hunting
7. Sea Cow
6. Irish Deer aka Giant Deer
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Largest Deer in
Earth's history
Carbon dating
reveals this animal
became extinct 7 700
years ago
7 feet to the
shoulders
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12 foot Antler span
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Probable COE:

maladaptation
5. Caspian Tiger/Persian Tiger
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Was located in Iran, Iraq, Afganistan, Turkey,
Mongolia and Kazakhstan
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Recently extinct (1970)
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Probable COE:

Destruction of Habitat
4. The Golden Toad
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Discovered in 1966
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Native to Costa Rica
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Last seen in 1989
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Colouration due to
sexual selection
Assumed extinct, but
the search continues
Probable COE:
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Destruction of
habitat
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Erratic weather
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Invasive species
3. Passenger Pigeon
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200 years ago, P. Pigeons
were the most common
bird in North America
Brutally exploited
The last Passenger
Pigeon died alone at the
Cincinnati Zoo at 1 pm,
Sept 1st, 1914
Probable COE:
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Pigeon meat was cheap
to buy

Loss of habitat
2. Woolly Mammoth
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Probably lived in
North America and
Eurasia
Died off around
8000 BCE
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Height: 9.2 feet
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Weight: 8 tonnes
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Probable COE:

Climate change
1. Dodo
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Flightless bird that lived on the island of
Mauritius.
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Related to doves & pigeons
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1 meter tall, 44 lbs
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Nested on the ground
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Probable COE:
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Hunting
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Invasive species