Key points

Question 1

Protected need what 3 qualities?

Answer 1

1. To incorporate habitat heterogeneity
2. To be connected on a large-scale
3. Need adequate funding

Question 2

What were the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals?

Answer 2

Basically to integrate biodiversity protection into society, development and poverty reduction and to take urgent action against habitat loss and extinction.

Question 3

What is the IPBES?

Answer 3

Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

Group of 124 governments split into 5 regions globally, aim is to facilitate the integration of scientific evidence into policy

Question 4

What are the main 4 factors that determine genetic variation in a population?

Answer 4

1. Gene flow
2. Mutation
3. Natural selection
4. Drift

Question 5

What is the MVP?

Answer 5

The minimum size a population can be before it is overwhelmed by drift, thought to be between 50-100 individuals.

Question 6

What are deterministic factors that act on populations?

Answer 6

Those that can be predicted and have known effects.

Question 7

Give 5 examples of deterministic factors on populations.

Answer 7

Age structure, sex ratio, density dependence, predator pressure, pollution

Question 8

What are stochastic factors that act on population?

Answer 8

Those that cannot be predicted with random effects

Question 9

What two types of stochasticity affect populations?

Answer 9

1. Demographic e.g. drift

2. Environmental e.g. catastrophes

Question 10

What are the vital rates?

Answer 10

Birth and death rate

Question 11

Geometric population growth is used for…

Answer 11

Growth over discrete time intervals, e.g. non-overlapping generations

Question 12

Exponential population growth is used for…

Answer 12

Continuous growth e.g. overlapping generations

Question 13

Populations are arranged as metapopulations that depend on what kind of interactions?

Answer 13

Colonisation-extinction in source-sink populations.

Question 14

Who came up with the model that describes patch occupancy in metapopulations?

Answer 14

Levins, 1970

Question 15

What is an ecological trap?

Answer 15

An evolutionary lag between patch quality and a behavioural pattern

Question 16

What are the 3 options for species to avoid extinction in the face of climate change?

Answer 16

1. Cope
2. Evolve
3. Disperse

Question 17

What is the problem of coping with climate change?

Answer 17

Organisms must display phenotypic plasticity, difficult for organisms already at the limits of their physiological tolerances e.g. those in the tropics

Question 18

What is the problem with evolving in the face of climate change?

Answer 18

The trait must have heritable quality and be under strong selection pressure, plus it takes ages

Question 19

When/what was the MA?

Answer 19

2000-2005
First big study on human impacts on ES, involved 1360 scientists from 95 countries, a multi-stakeholder board of governments, businesses, NGOs and indigenous peoples

Question 20

What are the 4 types of ecosystem service?

Answer 20

1. Provisioning
2. Regulating
3. Cultural
4. Supporting

Question 21

What were the major findings of the MA?

Answer 21

Humans have converted ecosystems at an unprecedented rate to meet growing demands for food, water, fibres and energy (increased provisioning services)

These changes have improved the lives of many but weakened Earth’s capacity to produce other services

If humans do not change their attitudes/practices then pressures on ES will increase globally, we can no longer take for granted that ES will be able to sustain future generations

Question 22

What were the 2 reactive scenarios to come out of the MA?

Answer 22

Global Orchestration: focuses on a globally-connected society based on market reform and trade liberalisation to reshape economies

Order from Strength: a regionalised and fragmented society whereby there are no common goods, everyone looks out for themselves and global inequality is exacerbated

Question 23

What were the 2 proactive scenarios to come out of the MA?

Answer 23

TechnoGarden: significant investments into developing new technologies for managing ES, widespread use of payments and development of markets. Tight human management of natural systems to increase productivity

Adaptive mosaic: the rise of local management and institutions to create investment for social programmes and education

Question 24

Define ES.

Answer 24

ES are the aspects of ecosystems, utilised either actively or passively, to produce human wellbeing

Question 25

Measuring extinction risk looks at the effects of extrinsic factors (environmental) on intrinsic factors (a species' biology). List 9 intrinsic factors that predispose a species towards extinction.

Answer 25

1. Large-bodied 2. High trophic level 3. Long-lived 4. Slow reproducing 5. Dispersal-limited 6. Specialisation 7. Small geographic range 8. Large home range size 9. Low genetic variability

Question 26

What is PVA? Why is it useful?

Answer 26

A process for estimating the likelihood a population will cross thresholds of viability in a given time. Allows identification of the biggest extinction threats

Question 27

Is PVA predictive?

Answer 27

No bc environmental conditions are always subject to change.

Question 28

Priority assessment by the IUCN is the current method for assessing extinction risk. What kind of system is it?

Answer 28

A rule-based system with qualitative thresholds

Question 29

What are the IUCN criteria?

Answer 29

``` A: declining population B: small distribution C: small population (the above 3 need to be declining) D: very small or restricted e.g. demographic effects like loss of heterozygosity E: quantitative analysis ```

Question 30

List 3 good points of the Red List.

Answer 30

1. Uses occurrence data and area of occupancy to estimate pop. size; can be used to interpret spatial information 2. Uses mature individuals to estimate pop. size; is more reflective of Ne 3. Uses generation time to estimate time; describes a 'real-time'

Question 31

List 3 bad points of the Red List:

Answer 31

1. Criterion A includes species that are abundant but declining, or excludes very small populations that are not declining 2. Caps timescales in the past and future 3. Range measured using grid area, presents problems of scale

Question 32

Why is intrinsic value insufficient to protect biodiversity alone?

Answer 32

Many humans harbour preferences for particular animals, 'intrinsic value' is subjective/biased. Value cannot be defined outside of preference. Without human preference then nature is supposed to have the same intrinsic value, which is useless in decision-making.

Question 33

How much was pollination worth worldwide in 2005?

Answer 33

$200bn

Question 34

Global biodiversity is declining but regional is increasing, why?

Answer 34

Invasive species

Question 35

What is the Linnean shortfall?

Answer 35

For every 1 known species, there are 2 unknown

Question 36

What is the Wallacean shortfall?

Answer 36

We know little of known species' distributions

Question 37

What is the CBD's definition of biodiversity?

Answer 37

The variability of living things from all sources, including inter-alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part; this includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems

Question 38

Give 3 reasons why we should assign economic value to biodiversity?

Answer 38

1. Provides incentive for policy-makers 2. Important to understand how wildlife is used e.g. ecotourism or illegal wildlife trade 3. Charities do this in order to estimate fundraising targets to design/implement conservation schemes

Question 39

When did the Holocene begin?

Answer 39

11,000-12,000 years ago

Question 40

What are the 5 major drivers of biodiversity loss?

Answer 40

1. Habitat loss and fragmentation 2. Pollution 3. Overexploitation 4. Climate change 5. Invasive species

Question 41

What are the 4 major effects of CC on biodiversity?

Answer 41

1. Phenological changes 2. Abundance changes 3. Pole-ward and up-slope range shifts 4. Extinction

Question 42

List 2 methods of ex-situ conservation. What are the disadvantages of these?

Answer 42

1. Captive breeding 2. Assisted migration They are selective, have a narrow focus and require much time, energy and money. Selective = disregards the delicate balance of ecosystems by prioritising one species over another.

Question 43

According to the IPCC, a 2degree rise in temperature will move what percentage of species closer to extinction? What about a 3.5degree rise?

Answer 43

``` 2d = 20-30% 3.5d = 40-70% ```

Question 44

Define an invasive species.

Answer 44

When species are moved beyond their natural geographic boundaries by humans and colonise environments where they are not previously known to occur.

Question 45

Species can be moved accidentally or deliberately. Give examples of each.

Answer 45

Accidental: ballast water, parasites in food products, pets that escape Deliberate: biocontrol, game species, ornamental species

Question 46

Can invasion be natural?

Answer 46

Yes, e.g. The Great American Exchange 29 genera went South 12 genera went North

Question 47

What are the 4 stages of invasion?

Answer 47

1. Transport 2. Introduction 3. Establishment 4. Spread

Question 48

Gough Island in the South Atlantic is 2-3my old. Over the years it has accumulated 28 native insect fauna. Since human landing in 1675 there are now 71 invasive species. What was the historic colonisation rate? What is the human-mediated invasion rate?

Answer 48

``` Historic = 1 colonisation every 95,000 years Invasive = 1 every 4.5 years ```