3/27What group of organisms makes up the largest group on earth?

Today:Start conservation biology / biodiversity

An AP Environmental Medley

CH 11Biodiversity and Conservation Biology

Some groups contain more species than othersSpecies are not evenly

distributed among taxonomic groups

Insects predominate over all other life-forms40% of all insects are beetlesGod must have had “an inordinate fondness for beetles”

Brit biologist JB Haldaine

Groups accumulate species by:

Adaptive radiationAllopatric speciationLow rates of extinction

Measuring biodiversity is not easy

Out of the estimated 3 - 100 million species on Earth, only 1.7 - 2 million species have been successfully catalogued

Very difficult to identify speciesMany remote spots on Earth remain unexploredSmall organisms are easily overlookedMany species look identical until thoroughly examined

Entomologist Terry Erwin found 163 beetle species specialized on one tree species

Insects outnumber all other species

Biodiversity is unevenly distributed

Living things are distributed unevenly across Earth

Latitudinal gradient = species richness increases towards the equator

Canada has 30 - 100 species of breeding birds, while Costa Rica has more than 600 species

Latitudinal gradient has many causes

Climate stability, high plant productivity, and no glaciation

Tropical biomes support more species and show more species evenness

Diverse habitats increase species diversity

Human disturbance can increase habitat diversityBut only at the local level

Latitudinal gradient has many causes

3/28 aTBWhat is extirpation?

Today:Continue with extinctionTurn in your labs

Biodiversity losses and species extinction

Extinction = occurs when the last member of a species dies and the species ceases to exist

Extirpation = the disappearance of a particular population from a given area, but not the entire species globallyCan lead to extinction

Extinction is a natural process

What % of species all ever to live are extinct?

Paleontologists estimate 99%Background rate of extinction =

natural extinctions for a variety of reasons

1 extinction per 1 to 10 million species for mammals and marine species1 species out of 1,000 mammal and marine species would go extinct every 1,000 to 10,000 years

Earth has experienced five mass extinctions

In the past 440 million years, mass extinctions have eliminated at least 50% of all species

After every mass extinction the biodiversity returned to or exceeded its original state

Asteroid?End of dinosaurs

3/29 ATBWhat is the background rate of extinction?

Today:Discuss biodiversity lossFinish the mini-chapterMini-chapter quiz -- Monday

Current extinction rates are higher than normal

The Red List = an updated list of species facing high risks of extinctions

23% of mammal species 12% of bird species31 - 86% of all other species

http://www.iucnredlist.org/

Since 1970, 58 fish species, 9 bird species, and 1 mammal species has gone extinct

In the U.S., in the last 500 years, 236 animal and 17 plant species are confirmed extinctActual numbers are undoubtedly higher

Species Listings

Episode: Frogs: The Thin Green

LineNature

It is the greatest mass extinction since the dinosaurs. Population by population, species by species, amphibians are vanishing off the face of the Earth. Scientists are taking desperate measures to try to save those frogs they can, even bathing frogs in Clorox solutions and keeping them in Tupperware boxes under carefully controlled conditions to prevent the spread of a deadly fungus.

http://video.pbs.org/video/1117923308/

People have hunted species to extinction for millennia

Extinctions followed human arrival on islands and continents

Biodiversity loss has many causesReasons for biodiversity losses are multifaceted,

complex, and hard to determineFactors may interact synergistically

Synergy is two or more things functioning together to produce a result not independently obtainable.

Four primary causes of population decline are (+ an extra one):

Habitat alterationFarming, urbanization, damsSome species thrive – rats, pigeons others extirpated

Invasive speciesIsland species particularly vulnerable

PollutionAir, water, land, etc (not as bad as habitat alt though)

OverharvestingEspecially affects K-selected species

Global climate change now is the fifth cause

Biodiversity loss has a variety of causes

Biodiversity provides free ecosystem services

What are some examples of ecosystem services?Provides food, shelter, fuelPurifies air and water, and detoxifies wastesStabilizes climate, moderates floods, droughts, wind, temperatureGenerates and renews soil fertility and cycles nutrientsPollinates plants and controls pests and diseaseMaintains genetic resourcesProvides cultural and aesthetic benefitsMedicinesAllows us to adapt to change

The annual value of just 17 ecosystem services = $16 - 54 trillion per year

3/30 ATBWhat is NDD (nature deficit disorder). Have you ever felt affected by this? Should we develop medication for treatment???

Today:Discuss island biogeographyBook assignment Monday – bring you book if neededQuest -- Tuesday

People value and seek out natureBiophilia =

connections that humans subconsciously seek with lifeOur affinity for parks and wildlifeKeeping of petsHigh value of real estate with views of natural lands

Nature deficit disorder = alienation from the natural environmentMay be behind the emotional and physical problems of the young

Weighing the Issues – p314Biophila and Nature-Deficit Disorder

What do you think of the concepts of biophilia and “nature-deficit disorder”? Have you ever felt a connection to other living things that you couldn’t explain in scientific or economic terms? Do you think that an affinity for other living things makes is innately human?

Pets?Camping?Laying on ground and looking up?

Do we have ethical obligations to other species?

Humans are part of nature and need resources to survive

But, we also have conscious reasoning ability and can control our actions

Our ethics have developed from our intelligence and our ability to make choices

Many people feel that other organisms have intrinsic value and an inherent right to exist

Conservation biology responds to biodiversity loss

Conservation biology = devoted to understanding the factors that influence the loss, protection, and restoration of biodiversityArose as scientists became alarmed at the degradation of natural systemsAn applied and goal-oriented science

4/2 ATBWhat is the minimum viable population?

Today:Finish the chapterBring your book tomorrow (book assignment)52 point quiz or test -- Wednesday

Conservation scientists work at multiple levelsConservation biologists integrate evolution

and extinction with ecology and environmental systems

Design, test, and implement ways to mitigate human impacts

Conservation geneticists = study genetic attributes of organisms to infer the status of their population

Minimum viable population = how small a population can become before it runs into problems

Metapopulations = a network of subpopulations

Small populations are most vulnerable to extinction and need special attention

Island biogeography

Equilibrium theory of island biogeography = explains how species come to be distributed among oceanic islandsAlso applies to “habitat islands” – patches of one habitat type isolated within a “sea” of others

Ex high elevations, habitat scatter around development

Explains how the number of species on an island results from an equilibrium between immigration and extirpationPredicts an island’s species richness based on the island’s size and distance from the mainland

Island biogeography Affects

Biodiversity -- distance from mainland if both islands are same size.

Biodiversity -- Island size.

Extirpation / Extinction rates – large vs. small?

Species richness results from island size and distance

• Fewer species colonize an island far from the mainland• Large islands have higher immigration rates• Large islands have lower extinction rates

The species-area curve

Large islands contain more species than small islandsThey are easier to find and have lower extinction ratesThey possess more habitats

Should conservation focus on endangered species?

Endangered Species Act (1973) (ESA) = forbids the government and private citizens from taking actions that destroy endangered species or their habitatsTo prevent extinctionStabilize declining populationsEnable populations to recover

As of 2007, the U.S. had 1,312 species listed as endangered or threatened

The ESA is controversialMany Americans support protection of endangered

species

Opponents feel that the ESA values endangered organisms more than the livelihood of people

Private land use will be restricted if an endangered species is present“Shoot, shovel, and shut up” = landowners conceal the presence of endangered species on their land

But, the ESA has stopped few development projects

Habitat conservation plans and safe harbor agreements = landowners can harm species if they improve habitat for the species in other places

Biodiversity hotspotsBiodiversity hotspots –

prioritizes regions most important globally for biodiversitySupport a great number of endemic species

=species found nowhere else in the world

The area must have at least 1,500 endemic plant species (0.5% of the world total)It must have lost 70% of its habitat due to human impacthttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YqUdcW_uNMo

Golden Lion TamarinOne of the world’s most endangered primates (Brazil)

There are 34 global biodiversity hotspots

2.3% of the planet’s land surface contains 50% of the world’s plant species and 42% of all terrestrial vertebrate species

4/3 ATBWhat are biodiversity hotspots?

Today:Book assignment

End of Chapter Book Questions:Pg324#1,2,4,5,7,10

Tomorrow: Quiz

The End

4/4Quiz

Turn in your assignment

Yesterday:

Me to Sodl: So I want to take the canoe trip.

Sodl: No.

Me: Let me explain.

Sodl: Ok.

Me: Explain explain explain

Sodl: You can go as long as they have not reached their limit of educational trips.

Me: Ok, sweet.

Skipping CH 12Resource Management, Forestry, Land Use and Protected Areas

CH 13Urbanization and Creating Livable Cities

Urban sprawl

CH 14Environmental Health and Toxicology

Ch 15Freshwater Resources

P 411

Treating wastewater

Wastewater = water that has been used by people in some waySewage, showers, sinks, manufacturing, storm water runoff

Septic systems = the most popular method of wastewater disposal in rural areasUnderground septic tanks separate solids and oils from wastewaterThe water drains into a drain field, where microbes decompose the waterSolid waste needs to be periodically pumped and landfilled

Municipal sewer systemsIn populated areas, sewer systems carry wastewater

Physical, chemical, and biological water treatment

Primary treatment = the physical removal of contaminants in settling tanks (clarifiers)

Secondary treatment = water is stirred and aerated so aerobic bacteria degrade organic pollutantsWater treated with chlorine is piped into rivers or the oceanSome reclaimed water is used for irrigation, lawns, or industry

A typical wastewater treatment facility

Artificial wetlandsNatural and artificial wetlands can cleanse wastewater

After primary treatment at a conventional facility, water is pumped into the wetlandMicrobes decompose the remaining pollutantsCleansed water is released into waterways or percolated underground

Constructed wetlands serve as havens for wildlife and areas for human recreation

More than 500 artificially constructed or restored wetlands exist in the U.S.

Next Chapter…?Ch 16 - Marine and Coastal Systems: Resources, Impacts and Conservation (p442)

Ch 17 – Atmospheric Science and Air Pollution (p472)

Ch 13Urbanization and Creating Livable Cities

p357