ES 100: Biodiversity Conservation

1. “The current extinction rate is now approaching 1,000 times the background rate and may climb to 10,000 times the background rate during the next century, if present trends continue. At this rate, one-third to two-thirds of all species of plants, animals, and other organisms would be lost during the second half of the next century, a loss that would easily equal those of past extinctions.” -Peter Raven (1999) ES 100: Biodiversity Conservation November 15th, 2006

2. Announcements: • Next Wednesday: Field Trip to Ellwood • 10% of course grade: • 1/2 background research assignment, 1/2 field trip assignment • Background Research Assignment posted on website • Do before field trip: will enhance your experience • Sign up for Van Transportation in Section this week • You may complete field trip early, on your own • Field trip assignment and directions will be posted on website tonight. • You must sign release form in section

3. Last Time: WWF and MPA’s • WWF: “draws circles”; tries to conserve biodiversity • Today: How do ecologists ‘draw circles’ (decide that one area is more important than another) • Highlighted importance of social factors that shape the success of MPA’s • Today: Another social component is the awareness and acceptance of intrinsic changing nature of communities (and what it means for conservation) • Succession

4. Early shade intolerant nutrient demanding short-lived poor competitors Late shade tolerant adapted to lower nutrient conditions long-lived good competitors Who Wins?Early vs. Late Succession Species

5. Who wins in the beginning? Secondary succession • space, light, and nutrients are abundant • classic r-selected species (opportunists) Primary succession • space and light are abundant • nutrients may not be • N-fixing plants are common • convert atmospheric N2 into NH4+

6. How does succession happen? Facilitation • early succession species alter conditions to favor the growth of late succession species • N-fixers make soil richer • dune grass stabilizes sand • Acceleration • late succession species alter conditions to favor their own • growth and prevent the growth of early succession species • some plants produce toxic litter

7. Predestined Communities? • A community is a group of living organisms that occupy a certain area and interact with one another. Clement’s climax community theory

8. Classic Succession Clements’ idea of “climax community” • eventually, a given system reaches a predictable steady-state • independent of the early succession community • Community predestined by climate?

9. Mixed Beech-Maple Forest Oak forest Oak-Hickory Oak woodland Pine forest Willow shrub Sumac-Pine Poplars Cattail marsh Broomsedge Dune grass Aquatic plants Aster-Goldenrod Annual weeds Sand dune Swamp Old field

10. The Role of Randomness (aka Stochasticity) • 2 species are equally suited to be next “successors” • Outcome is CHANCE (dispersal, weather, ect.)

11. What is the relationship between disturbance and diversity? b c a Diversity Disturbance frequency or intensity

12. Intermediate Disturbance Hypothesis -Joseph Connell, UCSB, 1978

13. Fire • Fire-adapted systems (Fire in pine forest prevents hardwoods from establishing) • (Some) Seeds germinate after fire • Why doesn’t So. Cal have nice, intermediate fires? • Human values/perceptions

14. Why Is Succession Important? • Understanding ‘natural’ disturbance recovery can aid human’s restoration efforts. • Biotic and Abiotic processes are important • Management plans must recognize that disturbance is not intrinsically bad!

15. Where is damage most prominent? Conservation International: Biodiversity Hotspots CI quantified by number of endemic plant species and threat

16. Assessing Biodiversity • Indicator species: Species that are present only under strict environmental conditions • Can be used to detect healthy/unhealthy ecosystems • Example: steelhead, certain diatoms • Species diversity/richness: number of species in sample -diversity: number of species within a single habitat type -diversity: difference in species composition between habitats • Species evenness: equality of relative abundance • Unevenness might indicate unhealthy ecosystem • Biodiversity Index

17. Shannon-Wiener Biodiversity Index Where: H = the Shannon-Wiener biodiversity index pi = proportion of each species in the sample (relative abundance) loge = the natural log of pi s = the number of species in the community (species richness) H(Community II) = -(.3*ln(.3)+.07*ln(.07)+.1*ln(.1)+.5*ln(.5)+.03*ln(.03))

18. Protection of Species or Habitat? • Will one protect the other? • Endangered Species Act: • Attempts to preserve endangered species. • Forbids federal agencies from actions that are: “likely to jeopardize the continue existence of any endangered or threatened species or result in the destruction or modification of their habitat. • Hunting permits…. ect. • Development of federal land • Cost was not considered….

19. Endangered Species Act: Species Protection vs. Property Rights “Shoot, Shovel, and Shut Up” Pombo Bill: Elimination of “critical habitat” Passed in House, will go to Senate next •  Pombo's bill, which has some Democratic support in the House, would also require the federal government to compensate a developer or property owner if land use is restricted as a result of the act. •     Moreover, the bill is designed to expedite development decisions by giving federal officials a six-month deadline to determine whether a proposed project would harm a species protected under the act. •     The bill would eliminate the requirement for an independent group of scientists to arbitrate endangered species disputes and put the secretary of Interior in charge of determining the "best available science" regarding protected species. •     One controversial amendment, by Rep. Greg Walden (R-OR), would exempt the use of pesticides from regulation under the Endangered Species Act for five years. The amendment removes the requirement limiting the use of a pesticide known to kill an endangered species.

20. Species Protection • Minimum Viable Population (MVP) • Inbreeding, genetic drift • Genetic bottleneck • Minimum Viable Area—habitat protection

21. Most genetic diversity is retained Genetic bottleneck-Population loses much of its genetic diversity from a population decline

22. Which Species to Protect? • Umbrella species • Flagship species • Keystone species

23. Habitat Protection: Reserves • One large or many small? • Shape? • Connectivity?

24. SLOSS Debate: Single Large vs. Several Small Species-area curve • Management implications: • Small reserves: area = species • As area increases, diminishing returns To consider: Genetic exchange Extinction events Edge effects Future Pressures Cost/Flexibility

25. Reserves…. Size matters!

26. Shape Matters too! Cores and Buffers:

27. Connectivity: Nodes and Corridors Is connectivity important in MPA’s?

28. Habitat Conservation Management Tools • Conceptual diagrams • Collaboration (with stakeholders, community) • Mathematical/computer models • GIS (Geographic Information Systems) • Remote sensing • Bioassessment • Environmental Impact Reports

29. The new trend…… Ecosystem Based Management (EBM) "EBM looks at all the links among living and nonliving resources, rather than considering single issues in isolation . . . Instead of developing a management plan for one issue . . ., EBM focuses on the multiple activities occurring within specific areas that are defined by ecosystem, rather than political, boundaries."
 US Ocean Commission Report, 2004 http://ebm.nceas.ucsb.edu/faq/definition/