1. Conservation Biology & Restoration Ecology

2. What is conservation biology?
conserve biological diversity at all levels.

3. What is Restoration Ecology?
The goal of Restoration ecology is to return degraded ecosystems to normal conditions

4. Biodiversity Three main levels: community/ecosystem diversity
Across a region such as a landscape
Species diversity in an ecosystem
Different species coexisting in same area
Genetic diversity
Diversity and difference within a population

5. Major Threats to Biodiversity
Habitat destruction
Introduced Species
Biggest threat
Both marine and terrestrial ecosystems
Leads to habitat fragmentation
And smaller populations
Brought on by:
Agriculture
Urban development
Forestry
Mining
Pollution
species are introduced to new regions, with no predators, the species usually spread rapidly.
Accidently or on purpose with good intentions
40% of extinctions are due to introduced species that:
Either preyed on them
Or competed against them for the same food

6. Major Threats to Biodiversity cont.
Overexploitation
Disruption of Interaction Networks
Human harvesting of plants organisms faster than the population’s ability to rebound.
Animals such as:
Elephants
Tuna
whales
How the changes in one species in an area can directly lead to changes for another species that is somehow connected to them.
Decline of natural pollinators due to pesticides and habitat destruction has led to decline in wild and domesticated plant success.

7. Small Populations
Just because a population is small, does not mean it is struggling.
Low genetic variability is a key factor that dooms a population.
Less genes, less variation
-not always the case, northern elephant seals are one exception.
Smaller populations tend to lose genetic variation over time.
Ways to conserve smaller populations:
Increase the population size through migration
Introduce bears that are not related, therefore genetically different
Promote dispersal in the population.

8. Extinction Vortex
The extinction vortex is a downward spiral of a population
unique to small populations.
Lack of genetic diversity is a key factor behind an extinction vortex because without it, evolutionary responses to environmental change, such as new strains of pathogens may not be possible.
A small population is prone to positive-feedback loops of inbreeding and genetic drift that draw it into a vortex toward smaller and smaller numbers until extinction is inevitable.

9. Restoring Ecosystems to their previous states.
Although ecosystems have many mechanisms that can help the ecosystem “bounce back” after suffering from a disturbance of some kind, they are not everlasting if the disturbances occur often.
The dynamics of an ecosystem must be balanced.
Ecologists are studying ways to speed up the natural mechanisms to help ecosystems recover.

10. Bioremediation vs. Biological Augmentation.
Bioremediation is the use of living organisms, usually prokaryotes, fungi, or plants, to detoxify polluted ecosystems.
Plants and organisms are being used to detoxify soils, clean up beaches and remove substances that are hindering a ecosystem from recovering.
biological augmentation uses organisms to add essential materials to a degraded ecosystem.
Adds materials to an ecosystem help it recover faster.
Chemical nutrients in soils reintroduced thanks to the growth of indigenous plants.

11. Sustainable development while conserving biodiversity
Sustaining biodiversity while continuing the development of the human world safely.
not just about science, include life sciences, social sciences, economics, and humanities.
Equally important, it requires a reassessment of our social values.
Changing how we view the world, and who we share it with.