1. What can be done? Protecting Biodiversity
Stemming the tide of the Sixth extinction will require changes in the way we humans interact with one another and with the natural world.
Some of these changes are very big.
- BIG CHANGE # 1: Controlling human population growth. The Earth is finite. To large degree, more people on the planet means more resources (especially land) that get allocated to meeting human needs. The more land that gets devoted to human needs, the less undeveloped habitat there is for wildlife.A hopeful trend already underway is that the growth rate for the human population is dropping.Elevating the economic and educational status of women —a good thing in and of itself— is the most effective way to limit human population growth. Why? Because women with more economic and educational opportunities tend to have smaller families, simply because they have their first child later in life. So promoting women’s equality worldwide helps humanity, promotes biodiversity, and enhances equality and social justice.
- BIG CHANGE # 2: Shifting from fossil fuels to renewable energy in order to reduce climate change. Human-caused climate change is creating habitat disturbances at a rate that wildlife can’t adapt to. If we want to maintain habitat, especially in tropical areas that are the highest in biodiversity, we need to slow the rate of human-caused climate change (or stop it altogether). To do that, we need to stop releasing carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. And to do that, we need to shift from fossil fuel combustion in cars, factories, and powerplants to non-carbon based energy sources like wind and solar.
On a smaller scale, we can take some actions to rescue and preserve species that are in (or on the verge of entering) the extinction vortex. So to start, let’s review how the extinction vortex works.
[qwiz]
[h]Reviewing the Extinction Vortex
[q labels = “top”]
[l]even smaller population
[fx] No. Please try again.
[f*] Great!
[l]less fertility, more mortality
[fx] No, that’s not correct. Please try again.
[f*] Good!
[l]population bottleneck
[fx] No, that’s not correct. Please try again.
[f*] Correct!
[l]loss of genetic diversity
[fx] No. Please try again.
[f*] Excellent!
[/qwiz]
2. Protecting endangered species
Species are disappearing at such an high rate that many are being lost before we can take any action. However, legislation like the United States’ Endangered Species act, passed in 1973, has made it a legal obligation to “protect and recover imperiled species and the ecosystems upon which they depend” (US Fish and Wildlife Service). Because of laws like the Endangered Species Act, many species are recovering from direct or indirect threats. This includes the California condor, the Black Footed Ferret, the Florida Manatee, the American Alligator. Please read about the successes of the Endangered Species act in this article in the Washington Post (the link opens in a new browser tab).
3. Proper nature reserve design
A nature reserve is an area that’s managed to preserve its plants, animals, and physical features. Let’s start by applying some of the principles we’ve covered in this tutorial to the design of nature reserves.
[qwiz qrecord_id=”sciencemusicvideosMeister1961-Nature Reserves (HS)”]
[h]Nature reserve design
[i]
[q labels = “top”]The images below show different reserve designs. Label them as “better” or “worse.”
[l]better
[fx] No, that’s not correct. Please try again.
[f*] Good!
[l]worse
[fx] No. Please try again.
[f*] Correct!
[q labels = “top”]Now repeat the process with these three reserve designs
[l]better
[fx] No, that’s not correct. Please try again.
[f*] Correct!
[l]worse
[fx] No, that’s not correct. Please try again.
[f*] Correct!
[q]Let’s analyze these reserves in a bit more detail. All the the reserves in column B are better at preserving biodiversity because they allow for a ____________ population size. This reduces the chance of a population ______________. Clustering several reserves near to one another allows for ___________ to flow between adjacent populations.
[l]bottleneck
[fx] No, that’s not correct. Please try again.
[f*] Great!
[l]genes
[fx] No. Please try again.
[f*] Great!
[l]larger
[fx] No, that’s not correct. Please try again.
[f*] Excellent!
[q]The corridor in the top left of the diagram below is an even more direct method of allowing for genes to [hangman] between adjacent populations. Having diverse ecosystems allows for more complex animal habitat needs. For example, amphibians need both freshwater habitat, and terrestrial habitat. The advantage of the round reserve over the thin reserve is that the round reserve has less [hangman]. In other words, the thin habitat might provide little or no useable interior [hangman].
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[/qwiz]
4. Protecting Biodiversity Hotspots
We’ve looked at how nature reserves can be designed to
- minimize fragmentation,
- minimize the edge effect,
- be large enough to support the wildlife living inside of them
- maximize healthy population size and gene flow between adjacent wildlife populations.
Another move can be to protect biodiversity hotspots.
Biodiversity hotspots are high biodiversity areas that are under threat. They
- Have at least 1500 endemic plant species. Endemic species are those found in one location, and nowhere else. A high diversity of endemic plants is often an indicator of high diversity of all types of wildlife.
- Have less than 30% of their original vegetation (because of habitat destruction or degradation).
Around our planet, 36 areas have been identified as hotspots. These areas cover only 2.4% of the Earth’s surface, but they support more than half of the world’s plant species. The hottest hot spots — with a total area of only 1.5% of the Earth’s surface — are home to about a third of the Earth’s birds, amphibians, mammals, and plants.
5. Protecting Biodiversity: Flashcards
[qdeck qrecord_id=”sciencemusicvideosMeister1961-Protecting Biodiversity (HS)”]
[h]Protecting Biodiversity: Flashcards
[q]What are two very big changes that humanity can make to protect biodivesity
[a]Two changes include
- Controlling human population growth by elevating the economic and educational status of women.
- Shifting from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources to limit climate change.
Many other changes could have been listed…
[q]What’s the name of the landmark U.S. law for protecting biodiversity?
[a]The Endangered Species Act.
[q]List at least two of the species that have been saved from extinction by the Endangered Species Act.
[a]Species saved from extinction by the Endangered Species Act include the California Condor, the Black footed Ferret, the Florida Manatee, the American Alligator, and many others.
[q]A well designed nature reserve will
- minimize _____________ (begins with “f”)
- minimize the _________ effect,
- be ________ enough to support the wildlife living inside of them
- maximize healthy population __________
- maximize ______ flow between ________ wildlife populations.
[a]A well designed nature reserve will
- minimize fragmentation,
- minimize the edge effect,
- be large enough to support the wildlife living inside of them
- maximize healthy population size
- maximize gene flow between adjacent wildlife populations.
[q]The most important areas to preserve are called ____________ ___________
[a]The most important areas to preserve are called biodiversity hotspots.
[q]Biodiversity hotspots have many _____________ species found nowhere else, and have less than ___________ percent of their original vegetation intact.
[a]Biodiversity hotspots have many plant species found nowhere else, and have less than 30 percent of their original vegetation intact.
[/qdeck]
6. Ecosystem Disruption, Cumulative Quiz
[qwiz qrecord_id=”sciencemusicvideosMeister1961-Ecosystem Disruption Cumulative Quiz (HS)”]
[h] Disruptions to Ecosystems
[i] Biohaiku
The Sixth Extinction.
Anthropocene Legacy
That will long endure
[q] The name of the age in which humans have become the dominant biological force is the [hangman].
[c]IEFudGhyb3BvY2VuZQ==[Qq]
[f]IEdyZWF0IQ==[Qq]
[q] A key process that’s driving the biodiversity losses of the Sixth Extinction is human destruction of wildlife [hangman].
[c]IGhhYml0YXQ=[Qq]
[f]IEV4Y2VsbGVudCE=[Qq]
[q] Sometimes habitat isn’t completely lost. But its quality can be [hangman] (begins with “d”) to the point where wildlife can no longer live in it.
[c]IGRlZ3JhZGVk[Qq]
[f]IEV4Y2VsbGVudCE=[Qq]
[q multiple_choice=”true”] It’s been estimated the humans have modified ______ percent of the Earth’s land surface.
[c]IDEw[Qq]
[f]IE5vLiBNb3JlIHRoYW4gMTAlLg==[Qq]
[c]IDMw[Qq]
[f]IE5vLiBNb3JlIHRoYW4gMjAl[Qq]
[c]ID Uw[Qq]
[f]IEV4YWN0bHkuIEh1bWFucyBoYXZlIG1vZGlmaWVkIGFib3V0IDUwJSBvZiB0aGUgRWFydGgmIzgyMTc7cyBsYW5kIHN1cmZhY2Uu[Qq]
[c]IDkw[Qq]
[f]IE5vLiBJdCYjODIxNztzIGxlc3MgdGhhbiA5MCUu[Qq]
[q] A problem connected with construction of highways and other obstacles to wildlife is habitat [hangman].
[c]IGZyYWdtZW50YXRpb24=[Qq]
[f]IEdyZWF0IQ==[Qq]
[q] The problem with small or fragmented areas is that the wildlife populations trapped within them often suffer from a population [hangman]. As they lose genetic [hangman], they often become less fertile, with causes further decreases in the [hangman] of the population.
[c]IGJvdHRsZW5lY2s=[Qq]
[f]IEV4Y2VsbGVudCE=[Qq]
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[q] Another problem with fragmented habitats is that they contain too much [hangman] habitat, indicated by “B,” and too little [hangman] habitat, indicated by “A.” This creates stressful conditions for the plants and animals that require the conditions found in habitat A.
[c]IGVkZ2U=[Qq]
[f]IEV4Y2VsbGVudCE=[Qq]
[c]IGludGVyaW9y[Qq]
[f]IEdyZWF0IQ==[Qq]
[q] The positive feedback loop shown is known as the [hangman] [hangman]
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[f]IEV4Y2VsbGVudCE=[Qq]
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[q] Species like the Passenger Pigeon, the Gray Wolf, the Wooly Mammoth, and many others have all become extinct or nearly extinct because of [hangman].
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[q] Fast growing, fast reproducing species introduced from other habitats that outcompete native species are called [hangman] species.
[c]IGludmFzaXZl[Qq]
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[q] The purpose of the wildlife overpass shown below is to allow for [hangman] to [hangman] between populations that live on opposite sides of the highway.
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[q multiple_choice=”true”] The combination of factors that constitutes the most common causes of extinction are
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[c]IGxvc3Mgb2YgaGFiaXRhdCwgYW5kIG92ZXJodW50aW5nIGJ5IGh1bWFucw==[Qq]
[f]IE5vLiBZb3UmIzgyMTc7cmUgcmlnaHQgYWJvdXQgbG9zcyBvZiBoYWJpdGF0LCBidXQgbm90IGFib3V0IG92ZXJodW50aW5nLg==[Qq]
[c]IGhhYml0YXQgbG9zcyBhbmQg aW52YXNpdmUgc3BlY2llcw==[Qq]
[f]Q29ycmVjdDogdGhlc2UgYXJlIHRoZSB0d28gYmlnZ2VzdCB0aHJlYXRzIHRvIGJpb2RpdmVyc2l0eS4=[Qq]
[q multiple_choice=”true”]Compared to the background rate of extinction, the current rate of extinction is
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[c]MjAwJSBoaWdoZXI=[Qq]
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[c]MTAwIHRvIDEwMDAg dGltZXMgaGlnaGVy[Qq]
[f]VGhhdCYjODIxNztzIHJpZ2h0LiBFeHRpbmN0aW9uIHJhdGVzIHRvZGF5IGFyZSAxMDAgdG8gMTAwMCB0aW1lcyBoaWdoZXIu[Qq]
[c]b25lIG1pbGxpb24gdGltZXMgaGlnaGVy[Qq]
[f]Tm8mIzgyMzA7VGhhdCYjODIxNztzIHRvbyBoaWdoLg==[Qq]
[q multiple_choice=”true”]To qualify as a biodiversity hotspot, an area must
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[f]Tm90IHF1aXRlLiBUaGF0JiM4MjE3O3MgY29ycmVjdCwgYnV0IHRoZXJlJiM4MjE3O3MgbW9yZS4=[Qq]
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[f]Tm90IHF1aXRlLiBUaGF0JiM4MjE3O3MgY29ycmVjdCwgYnV0IHRoZXJlJiM4MjE3O3MgbW9yZS4=[Qq]
[c]Ym90aCBvZiB0 aGUgYWJvdmUu[Qq]
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[/qwiz]
7. Suggested Reading
- The Insect Apocalypse is Here, New York Times, Brooke Jarvis, November 27, 2018.
- The Sixth Extinction, The New Yorker. This is the article that Elizabeth Kolbert wrote in 2009. In 2014 she expanded her research to write a book, The Sixth Extinction, which I highly recommend.
- The Song of The Dodo, David Quammen. This is a fantastic book about both biogeography (and the origins of biodiversity) and the effects of fragmentation.
8. What’s next?
This tutorial ends this HS-Level module on Ecosystem Disruption. Use the previous link to return to the Ecosystem Disruption main menu, or use the menus above to choose another topic.