1. Sustaining Terrestrial Biodiversity by the Ecosystem Approach

2. Concepts Biodiversity US public lands Park Management
Forest Management
Deforestation
Establishment and management of nature preserves
Ecological restoration

3. Factors Increasing Biodiversity
Middle stage of succession
Moderate environmental disturbance
Small changes in environmental conditions
Physically diverse habitat
Evolution

4. Factors Decreasing Biodiversity
Extreme environmental conditions
Large environmental disturbance
Intense environmental stress
Severe shortages of resources
Nonnative species introduction
Geographic isolation

5. Human Activities and Biodiversity
Human Population
Size and resource use
Human Activities
Agriculture, industry, economic
production and consumption, recreation
Direct Effects
Degradation and destruction
of natural ecosystems
Alteration of natural chemical
cycles and energy flows
Changes in number and
distribution of species
Pollution of air, water,
and soil
Indirect Effects
Climate
change
Loss of
biodiversity

6. Importance of Biodiversity
Intrinsic value
Instrumental value
Existence value
Aesthetic value
Bequest value

7. Solutions for Protecting Biodiversity
The Species Approach
The Ecosystem Approach
Goal
Goal
Protect species from
premature extinction
Protect populations of
species in their natural
habitats
Strategies
Strategy
Identify endangered species
Protect their critical habitats
Preserve sufficient areas
of habitats in different
biomes and aquatic
systems
Tactics
Tactics
Protect habitat areas through private purchase or government action
Eliminate or reduce populations of alien species from protected areas
Manage protected areas to sustain native species
Restore degraded ecosystems
Legally protect endangered species
Manage habitat
Propagate endangered species in captivity
Reintroduce species into suitable habitats

8. Conservation Biology Multidisciplinary science Emergency response
Identify “hot spots”
Rapid Assessment Teams
Based on Leopold’s ethics

9. Bioinformatics

10. US Public Lands Multiple-use lands: Moderately-restricted use lands:
National Forests
National Resource Lands
Moderately-restricted use lands:
National Wildlife Refuges
Restricted-use lands:
National Park System
National Wilderness Preservation System

11. US Public Lands

12. Geyser and Hot Spring,
Yellowstone NP, Wyoming

13. Old Faithful Geyser
Yellowstone National Park Wyoming

15. Bison in the Geyser Basin

16. Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona

17. Entrance to Yosemite Valley, California

18. St. Mary’s Lake,
Glacier NP Montana

19. Giant Sequoia Trees,
Yosemite NP California

20. Smokey Mountain National Park
North Carolina

21. Acadia National Park, Maine

22. Managing US Public Land
Biodiversity and ecological function
No subsidies or tax breaks for use
Public should get fair compensation
Users held responsible for actions

23. Managing and Sustaining National Parks
Inadequate protection
Often too small to sustain biodiversity
Invasions by nonnative species
Too many human visitors
Traffic jams and air pollution
Better pay for park staff

24. Solutions National Parks
Integrate plans for managing parks and nearby federal lands
Add new parkland near threatened parks
Buy private land inside parks
Locate visitor paring outside parks and use shuttle buses for entering and touring heavily used parks
Increase funds for park maintenance and repairs
Survey wildlife in parks
Raise entry fees for visitors and use funds for park management and maintenance
Limit number of visitors to crowded park rangers
Increase number and pay of park rangers
Encourage volunteers to give visitor lectures and tours
Seek private donations for park maintenance and repairs

25. Forests Old-growth (frontier) forests Second-growth forests
Tree farms/plantation

26. Managing and Sustaining Forests
Ecological Importance of Forests
Food webs and energy flow
Protect soils from erosion
Local and regional climate
Numerous habitats and niches
Air purification

27. Clear-Cutting Forests
Trade-Offs
Clear-Cutting Forests
Advantages
Disadvantages
Higher timber yields
Maximum economic return
in shortest time
Can reforest with genetically
improved fast-growing trees
Short time to establish new
stand of trees
Needs less skill and planning
Best way to harvest tree
plantations
Good for tree species needing
full or moderate sunlight
for growth
Reduces biodiversity
Disrupts ecosystem processes
Destroys and fragments some wildlife habitats
Leaves moderate to large openings
Increases soil erosion
Increases sediment water pollution and flooding when done on steep slopes
Eliminates most recreational value for several decades

28. Managing and Sustaining Forests
Economic Importance of Forests
Fuelwood
Lumber
Paper
Livestock grazing
Mineral extraction and recreation

29. Forest Management Rotation cycle Even-aged management
Uneven-aged management
Improved diversity
Sustainable production
Multiple-use

30. Rotation Cycles

31. Roads Lead to Forest Degradation
Increased erosion and runoff
Habitat fragmentation
Pathways for exotic species
Accessibility to humans

32. Harvesting Trees Selective cutting High-grading Shelterwood cutting
Seed-tree cutting
Clear-cutting
Strip cutting

33. Logging near
Baxter State Park, Maine

34. Clear Cut Forest, Washington State

35. Shelterwood Cutting

36. Sustainable Forestry Longer rotations Selective or strip cutting
Minimize fragmentation
Improved road building techniques
Certify sustainable grown

37. Solutions Sustainable Forestry
Grow more timber on long rotations
Rely more on selective cutting and strip cutting
No clear-cutting, seed-tree, or shelter-wood cutting
on steeply sloped land
No fragmentation of remaining large blocks of forest
Sharply reduce road building into uncut forest areas
Leave most standing dead trees and fallen timber for
wildlife habitat and nutrient recycling
Certify timber grown by sustainable methods
Include ecological services of trees and forests in
estimating economic value

38. Insect and Pathogen Threats to U.S. Forests
Sudden oak death
White pine blister rust
Pine shoot beetle

39. Insect and Pathogen Threats to U.S. Forests
Beech bark disease
Hemlock woolly adelgid
Asian Long Horned Beetle

40. White pine blister rust
Sudden oak death
White pine blister rust
Pine shoot beetle
Beech bark disease
Hemlock wooly adelgid

41. Forest Fires
Surface fires
Crown fires
Fig p. 208

42. Logging in U.S. National Forests
Provides local jobs
Provides only 3% of timber
Increases environmental damage
Hinders recreation income

43. Logging in U.S. National Forests
Trade-Offs
Logging in U.S. National Forests
Advantages
Disadvantages
Helps meet
country’s timber
needs
Cut areas grow
back
Keeps lumber
and paper prices
down
Provides jobs in
nearby
communities
Promotes
economic growth
in nearby
Provides only 4% of
timber needs
Ample private
forest land to meet
Has little effect on
timber and paper
prices
Damages nearby
rivers and fisheries
Recreation in
national forests
provides more local
jobs and income
for local
communities than
logging
Decreases
recreational
opportunities

44. Deforestation

45. Tropical Deforestation: Consequences
Rapid and increasing
Loss of biodiversity
Loss of resources (e.g., medicines)
Contributes to global warming

47. Burning Tropical Forests

48. Causes of Tropical Deforestation
Oil drilling
Mining
Flooding from dams
Tree plantations
Cattle ranching
Cash crops
Settler farming
Fires
Logging
Roads
Basic
Secondary
Secondary Causes
Not valuing
ecological services
Exports
Government policies
Poverty
Population growth
Roads
Basic Causes

49. Reducing Tropical Deforestation
Encourage protection of large tracts
Sustainable tropical agriculture
Debt-for-nature swaps
Reduce illegal cutting
Reducing poverty and population growth

50. Sustaining Tropical Forests
Solutions
Sustaining Tropical Forests
Prevention
Restoration
Protect most diverse and
endangered areas
Educate settlers about sustainable
agriculture and forestry
Phase out subsidies that encourage
unsustainable forest use
Add subsidies that encourage
sustainable forest use
Protect forests with debt-for-nature
swaps, conservation easements,
and conservation concessions
Certify sustainably grown timber
Reduce illegal cutting
Reduce poverty
Slow population growth
Reforestation
Rehabilitation of degraded
areas
Concentrate farming and
ranching on already-cleared

51. Establishing, Designing, and Managing Nature Reserves
Include moderate to large tracts of land
Involve government, private sector and citizens
Biosphere reserves
Adaptive ecosystem management
Protect most important areas (“hot spots”)
Wilderness areas

52. Ecological Restoration
Rehabilitation
Remediation
Replacement
Creating artificial ecosystems

53. Ecological Restoration: Basic Principles
Mimic nature
Recreate lost niches
Rely on pioneer species
Control nonnative species
Reconnect small patches

54. Sustaining Terrestrial Biodiversity
What Can You Do?
Sustaining Terrestrial Biodiversity
Plant trees and take care of them.
Recycle paper and buy recycled paper products.
Buy wood and wood products made from trees that
have been grown sustainably.
Help rehabilitate or restore a degraded area of
forest or grassland near your home.
When building a home, save all the trees and as much
natural vegetation and soil as possible.
Landscape your yard with a diversity of plants natural
to the area instead of having a monoculture lawn.