1. How does human activity affect biological diversity.
Chapter 4
How does human activity affect biological diversity.

2. 4.1 Reducing Biological Diversity
Urbanization (the building of cities) and industrialization of agriculture and forestry are putting stress on our ecosystems.
Results in a decline in our diversity:
Genetic Diversity (less variation within species)
Species Diversity (fewer number of species)
Ecosystem diversity (less habitats, etc.)
This threatens the ecological, economic, and cultural benefits we get from it.

3. 4.1 Reducing Biological Diversity
Some species are becoming extinct.
Others are endangered.
Other are booming beyond control.
REDUCES BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY overall!!!!
The decline of biological diversity of our planet is accelerating with every decade.

4. Extinctions and Extirpation
Extinction- the disappearance of every individual species from the entire planet. These can be man made or natural.
For example: by comets, volcanoes or an ice age.
Extirpation- a local extinction or the disappearance of a species from a particular area or location.
For example: the grizzly bear was once found on the prairies where they HAD a rich supply of food. Now they are found only in the mountains. Oil, forestry, natural gas, roads and buildings threaten its existence.

5. The current rate of extinction is from 100 to 10,000 species a year
The current rate of extinction is from 100 to 10,000 species a year. This is between 100 and 1000 times faster than our best estimate of historical rates.

6. MISSING December 1989
REWARD
GOLDEN TOAD

9. Order to Extinction Special Concern Threatened Extirpated / Extinct
Endangered
Woodland
Caribou
Wolverine
Ferruginous Hawk
Short eared owl
Swift Fox
Burrowing Owl
Grizzly Bear
Greater Prairie
Chicken
Wood Bison
Peregrine Falcon

11. Extirpated from the Manitoba Prairies
Threatened of being extirpated from northern Alberta
Threatened of being extirpated from northern Alberta
Extirpated from the Manitoba Prairies
Extirpated from the Manitoba Prairies

12. Natural selection is usually a very slow process.
Natural Causes of Extinction and Extirpation.
Natural selection is usually a very slow process.
Natural causes for extinction or extirpation include catastrophic events such as floods
- volcanic eruptions
- or fires

13. - Other natural causes include :
- lack of food or overpopulation
- disease

14. Natural Extinction
If a habitat remains intact for a long period of time, animals can become overspecialized.
adaptations by an organism that suit them to only a narrow set of environmental conditions.
For example: The Panda and Bamboo or the Koala bear and Eucalyptus.
If the environment changes, the species will not be able to survive.

16. Human Causes Habitat Introduced Loss Species Pollution Over harvesting
Sport
Hunting

17. Most extinctions today are caused by humans.
Human Causes of Extinction and Extirpation
Most extinctions today are caused by humans.
Habitat Destruction :
Construction of buildings, agricultural development, logging and the damming of rivers all change the environment very rapidly.
Pollution affects both the areas immediately around the source and areas further away

18. Some pollutions can cause an increase in the number of birth defects within a certain species.
Examples include :
- Pesticides
- Herbicides
- and Fertilizers

19. Introduction of Non-Native Species
New species being introduced will compete with the native species for the same resources, causing a decline in the numbers of the native species.
If natural predators do not exist in the new area, the introduced species can reproduce with nothing to keep it in check.

20. Introduction of Non-Native Species

21. Over-Hunting
For sport or for using the animal for food or clothing. Over-hunting has caused many species to be extirpated or extinct.
Wild Bison
Passenger Pigeon

22. Overhunting

23. Effects of Extinction and Extirpation
Reduce Biological Diversity.
If an animal is gone its predators’ numbers will decrease and become threatened.
Its prey’s numbers will increase and could become pests.

24. How Can We Reduce Our Impact on Biological Diversity?
4.3
How Can We Reduce Our Impact on Biological Diversity?

25. Strategies to Conserve Biological Diversity
How can the government help?
Fixing Biological
Diversity
Protect Habitat
Restore
Ecosystem
Reintroduce
Species
Control
Foreign Species
Conserve
Genetic Resources
In-situ
Conservation. =
Keeping the
animals in their
current
environment.
Repairing
damaged
ecosystems.
Put species that
Are extirpated
back into their
natural
Environment.
Prevent species
from other areas
from invading
natural
ecosystems
Ex-situ conservation =
Store as many
Genetic variations
as possible.

26. Reducing Our Impact on Biological Diversity
Protected Areas :Canada is currently covered by km2 of protected areas.
In-Situ Conservation : The maintenance of populations of wild organisms in their functioning ecosystem. This allows the ecological processes of an area to continue undisturbed.

27. Ex - Situ Conservation : The conservation of components of biological diversity outside of a natural habitat.
Whooping Crane

28. Protecting Habitat
To protect endangered species we need to preserve the habitat they live in.
The largest threat to habitat is human development and pollution.
Banff National Park.
Y2Y
12% of BC is protected parks!

29. Banff

30. Protecting and Restoring Habitat
Many farmers in Alberta have taken it on themselves to restore natural wetland ecosystems
Nature Conservatory of Canada, purchases repairs and protects lands within Canada for species at risk.

31. We have to fix the damage!

32. Controlling the Spread of Exotic Species
Bringing in foreign species into an environment can be damaging to ecosystems.
Have no natural predators
Cause interspecies competition
And can even take over and destroy an ecosystem.

33. Zebra Mussel

34. Ex Situ Conservation
In some cases protecting animals in their habitat is not easily done. So we have to find other ways to protect the genetic diversity of our ecosystem.
Seed Banks store seeds of rare plants.
Animals are difficult how can we preserve animals if we can’t do it in nature?

35. Genetic Diversity?!?

36. Questions
1. What is in-situ conservation? How is different from ex-situ conservation?
2. Why is it important to protect ecosystems and habitat? Provide and example of a species at risk that would benefit.
3. What are some ways the Canadian Government has been involved in protecting Biological Diversity? Give an example.
4. What methodis have been used t conserve genetic resources? What issues do they have to overcome?

37. Chapter 4.1 Questions
1. State 2 examples of where biological diversity may be reduced?
2. What kinds of natural causes lead to the extinction of a species?
3. In what ways can human activity lead to the extinction or extirpation of a species? Use examples in your answer.
4. Explain the term overspecialization.
5. Suppose an organism is extirpated from an area. In what way(s) might other organisms be affected? Use examples.

38. How do we select desirable traits when breeding plants and animals?
4.2
Essential Question:
How do we select desirable traits when breeding plants and animals?

39. Ways to selectively breed
Artificial
Selection:
3. Genetic
Engineering
2. Artificial
Reproductive
Technology
1. Cloning Plants

40. Selecting Desirable Traits
Artificial Selection :
A process of selecting and breeding certain members of a species that have a desired trait with the intention that the offspring will demonstrate that trait.

41. Cloning Plants
If we see a strain of a plant that has good characteristics we can clone it
Vegetative Reproduction via cuttings
Self-pollinate the plants / crops
Take cells of the plant, grow them in hormones and nutrients and they will develop into seedlings. The seedling can be planted.
Some of this technology is thousands of years old. Back to the Egyptians.

42. Cloning Plants

43. Cloning Plants
Diagram 1
                                     
Diagram 2
                      
Diagram 3
Diagram 4
Diagram 5

44. Modern Day Corn Came from a grass
Some were selected because of their large seeds.
They were cross-bred with other plants and today we have corn.

46. Oops
There have been cases of genetically modified plants crossing with weeds that are now resistant to pests.
These weeds are growing out of control like a foreign species and competing with crops for water, food etc.

47. Artificial Reproductive Technology :
This refers to any method of artificially joining a male and female gamete.
Artificial Insemination : This is the introduction of harvested sperm from a bull with desired traits, into a female. The benefit to this technology is that it allows the bulls sperm to be in many different places at the same time.

49. In Vitro Fertilization :This is when the sperm from a bull with desired traits and the egg from a cow with desired traits are mixed together in a Petri dish. At this point the embryos can be place in host cows to give birth to the offspring with the desired traits.

50. Artificial Reproductive Technology
Artificial Insemination.
A Desirable bull will have its sperm transplanted into a desirable cow.
1 bull can inseminate many cows.
In vitro fertilization –
Many eggs and many sperm are harvested from desirable cattle.
Mixed in a petri dish.
Produces MANY embryos.
Transplanted into a MANY cows.
Scientist can look at the chromosomes of the embryos and select those which are female (XY) for dairy cows…

51. In Vitro Fertilization

52. Genetic Engineering
Anything that directly alters the DNA of an organism. Changing it.
Taking the gene of 1 species into another (gene splicing)
Bacteria have been genetically engineered to produce life saving insulin.
Scientists have taken the gene from a toxic producing bacteria and inserted it into plants so they can make NATURAL insecticides.
The genes from beetle resistant canola have been inserted into normal canola to make a resistant strain.

53. Genetic Engineering

54. Genetically Modified Foods

55. Their release is 'genetic pollution' and is a major threat because GMOs cannot be recalled once released into the environment. - Greenpeace
Genetically modified foods will someday rid the planet of its greatest disease-
hunger and starvation (Unknown)

57. Other Biotechnology Cloning
Dolly the sheep was the first animal clone.
The DNA (all the chromosomes) are removed from the cell of a desirable animal and placed into an empty egg (its DNA removed) and transplanted into a host. This host will be a perfect clone to the parent.
REDUCES genetic diversity. Why is this a problem?
Produce A LOT of animals with DESIRABLE traits.
We are genetically modifying animals to better understand human diseases.

58. Cloning

60. Quotes on Cloning
Banning human cloning reflects our humanity. It is the right thing to do. Creating a child through this new method calls into question our most fundamental beliefs. It has the potential to threaten the sacred family bonds at the very core of our ideals and our society. At its worst, it could lead to misguided and malevolent attempts to select certain traits, even to create certain kind of children -- to make our children objects rather than cherished individuals. (Bill Clinton)

61. Cloning
Cloning represents a very clear, powerful, and immediate example in which we are in danger of turning procreation into manufacture. Leon Kass
Medical Advances:
GM Organisms: Stem cells:

62. Cloning

63. Cloning Adult Animals

64. Cross Species Cloning

65. Risks of Biotechnology
Reduces genetic variation in a species and makes them susceptible to diseases.
Artificial Insemination reduces the number of males required to one, and can fertilize many females but IVF reduces it to one male, one female.
Cloning hasn’t worked that well. For example: Dolly the sheep was born with arthritis and died as if she were born old.

66. Risks in Plants
Crops cross-breed with weeds and make them genetically strong and makes their populations soar.
These genetically engineered weeds will compete with natural plants for resources.
It is like a foreign species being introduced

67. Questions
1. How does artificial selection differ from natural selection?
2. Describe 2 technologies that human use to select the traits of organisms?
3. Who were the earliest plant technologists in North America, and what did they develop? How?
4. Simplify the term artificial selection into such a way a grade 4 student could understand it.
5. What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of artificial selection with biotechnologies?