Nareefa N. Bacchus Grade 8 Science CONSERVATION OF LIFE

Vocabulary that you will learn ECOSYSTEM BIODIVERSITY EXTINCT SPECIES ENDANGERED SPECIES THREATENED SPECIES INTRODUCED SPECIES NATIVE SPECIES

BIODIVERSITY: The Variety of Life Biodiversity refers to the variety of life in an ecosystem. An ecosystem is a community of living organisms (biotic) in conjunction with the nonliving (abiotic) components of their environment, interacting as a system.

How is Biodiversity Measured? The common measure of biodiversity is the number of species that live in an area. In general, it has been observed by scientists, that biodiversity increases as you get closer to the equator.

It is an imaginary line drawn around the earth equally distant from both poles, dividing the earth into northern and southern hemispheres. What is the equator?

Difference in Biodiversity (i.e., cold climates vs. warm climates). As mention, biodiversity increases as you move towards that equator because the temperatures tend to be warmer. Ecosystems with the highest biodiversity usually have warm, moist climates and cold climates usually have lower biodiversity. FUN FACT: Tropical regions contain 2/3 of all of Earth’s land species.

Looking at the these two images, which would you say has higher biological diversity?

Why is biodiversity important? Beauty of the environment, and the pleasure of nature aren’t the only reason that biodiversity is important. Humans need biodiversity: Hundreds of species help to feed the human population. Biodiversity helps to improve food crops. Biodiversity provides people with many useful materials. Furniture and building are made from wood and bamboo. Fibers from cotton, flax, and wool are woven into clothing. Most of the medicines used today originally came from wild plants. For example, the velvet bean plant is the original source of a drug that is used to treat Parkinson’s disease. (#MuhammadAli).

Maintaining Stability Biodiversity allows for stability of the environment. (Think of biodiversity as the endocrine system of nature and its environment). However, despite the ability to maintain stability, loss of biodiversity can weaken an ecosystem.

What reduces biodiversity? The passenger pigeon is a species of birds that were dominant in the skies of North America. However, they are now extinct and have been for approximately 100 years. VOCAB: EXTINCT: a species, family, or other larger group having no living members. So, extinction reduces biodiversity, but what accounts for extinction?

The Passenger Pigeon

Group Work Read this article and determine what was the cause of the Passenger Pigeons disappearance.

What causes Extinction? 1. Competition from other species 2. Changes in the environment 3. Meteorite

Loss of Species (aka extinction). From Scientists’ observations, it is clear that extinctions appear to be rising. Scientists believe that human activity may have something to do with the loss of species. (What proof do we have of this?) As the human population increases, loss of species has an increased likelihood of increasing as well. Loss of Species (aka extinction).

How humans contribute to extinction. Human activities that influence the extinction and endangerment of wild species fall into a number of categories: (1) Unsustainable hunting and harvesting that cause mortality. (2) Land use practices like deforestation. , (3) introduction of destructive diseases, parasite, and predators. (4) ecological damage caused by water, air, and soil pollution. (5) anthropogenic global climate change.

The African Black Rhinoceros: Gone Extinct

Endangered species are species that are likely to soon disappear Endangered species are species that are likely to soon disappear. To help prevent extinctions, it is important to identify endangered species and bring awareness. Some examples of endangered species include: Polar bear, Blue whale, Panda, the Asian elephant, Green sea turtle, and much more. Endangered Species

Threatened Species If a species is likely to become endangered it is classified as a threatened species. An example of a threatened species would be the Australian Koala.

Mini Recap: Progression to extinction are as follow: A threatened species  Endangered Species  Loss of species (Extinction). Describe the progression to extinction. s Describe habitat loss.

Habitat Loss: What is a habitat? A habitat is the natural home or environment of an animal, plant, or other organism. As the habitat of an organism is disrupted or lost, the harder it becomes for the species to survive and the biodiversity will decrease.

Divided Habitat: Biodiversity can be reduced when a habitat is divided by roads, cities, or farms. Small patches of habitat usually have less biodiversity than large areas. Small habitat areas also make it difficult for species to recover after disasters.

INTRODUCED SPECIES This is the opposite of Native species. Native species are the original animals of an ecosystem. Introduced species are organism that moves into a new ecosystem as a result of natural disaster or human activities. Introduced species often have no competitors or predators in the new area. So, how would this affect their population?

OTHER FACTORS THAT AFFECT BIODIVERSITY (Let’s read the text). Water Pollution Air Pollution Global Warming Ozone Depletion

Group Work: Reasons for Biodiversity Reduction. Based on the information you were just given, explain at least 5 factors that account for Biodiversity Reduction.

PROTECTING BIODIVERSITY The study of methods for protecting biodiversity is called Conservation Biology. Conservation Biology usually has 2 goals: 1. To protect a species from harm. 2. To protect the species’ habitat.

Divided Habitats Divided habitats result in the introduction of species. These species didn't appear out of the blue, they are just a variation of the initial species. The variation was brought about by the division that caused the species that be split apart.

Introduced Species An introduced species (also known as an exotic species) is an organism that is not native to the place or area where it is considered introduced and instead has been accidentally or deliberately transported to the new location by human activity.

Some strategies of Conservation Biology: (You do not need to know these in depth, you’ll just read this section and write a summary for homework). 1. Legal Protection 2. Habitat Preservation 3. Wildlife Corridors 4. Habitat Restoration 5. Wildlife Management 6. Captive Populations 7. Reintroduction Programs 8. Seed Banks 9. Relocation

This End of PowerPoint Slide is dedicated to Hamdeh.

Hope we understand each other better now Ibrahim.

How big is the earth sun moon. How long have they been in existence.