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Chapter 58 Conservation Biology

Chapter 58 Conservation Biology. Biology 101 Tri-County Technical College Pendleton, SC. Human Impact. Accelerating pace of human-caused extinctions raises serious questions about future of biological diversity on Earth

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Chapter 58 Conservation Biology

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  1. Chapter 58 Conservation Biology Biology 101 Tri-County Technical College Pendleton, SC

  2. Human Impact • Accelerating pace of human-caused extinctions raises serious questions about future of biological diversity on Earth • Conservation biology is scientific study of how to preserve diversity of life • Estimated extinctions range from 10% to 50% by 2050 • Hawaii, New Zealand, North America, Australia, and on and on

  3. Extinctions • Over 50% of all medicines contain natural plant or animal product • Extinctions deprive us of opportunity to study ecological relationships among organisms • Aesthetic pleasure • Continents versus islands • Rare species versus common species

  4. Most Important Factor • Habitat loss most important contributing factor to extinctions in U.S. • Traditional versus “sun-grown” coffee plantations • Introduced pests, predators, and competitors have eliminated many species • Overexploitation driven many to extinction • passenger pigeon; Steller’s sea lion

  5. News not getting any better… • Elephants and rhinoceroses • Orchids, parrots, reptiles, and tropical reef fishes • Loss of mutualists threaten some species • Plants and pollinators • Global warming threatens some species • > of only 1oC will shift temperature range 150 km north

  6. Warning…warning • Estimates are for a 2-5 degree C shift • Care to move 300-750 km north? • New climates will appear and old climates will disappear • We can make a difference but we must choose NOW!! • Design recovery plans

  7. Better to light a candle… • Captive propagation • Establishing parks and preserves • Restoring degraded ecosystems • Use less, reuse, recycle, and reclaim • Markets and conservation • Biodiversity from scientific, economic, and ethical point of view • We lose just one…any one…and we all suffer

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