local vs. regional influences on local diversity in
... regulation of local diversity has focused on the latter two hypotheses. Direct experimental tests of community saturation are desirable but typically infeasible due to logistic and ethical constraints. However, if sequences of community assembly could be observed, we would expect a saturated communi ...
... regulation of local diversity has focused on the latter two hypotheses. Direct experimental tests of community saturation are desirable but typically infeasible due to logistic and ethical constraints. However, if sequences of community assembly could be observed, we would expect a saturated communi ...
Woylie declines: what are the causes?
... The woylie (Bettongia penicillata) has declined by about 80% since 2001. The largest and most important populations have generally been the most affected, each experiencing greater than 93% losses within two to five years with few or no signs of a subsequent recovery. There are now less than 2000 in ...
... The woylie (Bettongia penicillata) has declined by about 80% since 2001. The largest and most important populations have generally been the most affected, each experiencing greater than 93% losses within two to five years with few or no signs of a subsequent recovery. There are now less than 2000 in ...
The interaction between habitat conditions, ecosystem
... at all scales and what is known cannot be reliably generalised to other areas. However, an emerging trend in thinking involves the idea of biodiversity acting within functional groups as an ‘insurance policy’ or ‘buffer’ against major ecosystem change. The interaction of habitat conditions, ecosyste ...
... at all scales and what is known cannot be reliably generalised to other areas. However, an emerging trend in thinking involves the idea of biodiversity acting within functional groups as an ‘insurance policy’ or ‘buffer’ against major ecosystem change. The interaction of habitat conditions, ecosyste ...
relative effects of species composition and richness on ecosystem
... While complementarity and selection effects can often explain within-trophic-level richness effects, we do not know if these mechanisms will be important when richness varies across more complex food webs (Holt and Loreau 2002, Duffy et al. 2003, Thébault and Loreau 2003, Petchey et al. 2004). In f ...
... While complementarity and selection effects can often explain within-trophic-level richness effects, we do not know if these mechanisms will be important when richness varies across more complex food webs (Holt and Loreau 2002, Duffy et al. 2003, Thébault and Loreau 2003, Petchey et al. 2004). In f ...
Evaluating least-cost model predictions with empirical
... persist in human-dominated ecosystems because protected areas constitute a small fraction of the Earth's surface and because anthropogenic habitats may offer more opportunities for conservation than has been previously thought. We investigated how an important functional group, pollinators (bees; Hy ...
... persist in human-dominated ecosystems because protected areas constitute a small fraction of the Earth's surface and because anthropogenic habitats may offer more opportunities for conservation than has been previously thought. We investigated how an important functional group, pollinators (bees; Hy ...
Progress
... relevance to MAFF. The report is based on the second year of activity of the Programme Advisor, Valerie Brown, in respect of Terms of Reference developed by MAFF. The AU aims to develop practical, cost-effective guidelines on the conservation, enhancement and restoration of species-rich grassland, b ...
... relevance to MAFF. The report is based on the second year of activity of the Programme Advisor, Valerie Brown, in respect of Terms of Reference developed by MAFF. The AU aims to develop practical, cost-effective guidelines on the conservation, enhancement and restoration of species-rich grassland, b ...
Ecological Resilience, Biodiversity, and Scale
... more species-rich rainforests, at least in areas of about 1⁄3 ha (80 3 40 m) for 5 years (Ewel and others 1991). Naeem and coworkers (1994) assembled replicate artificial ecosystems at a number of levels of species richness. They demonstrated that carbon dioxide consumption, vegetative cover, and pr ...
... more species-rich rainforests, at least in areas of about 1⁄3 ha (80 3 40 m) for 5 years (Ewel and others 1991). Naeem and coworkers (1994) assembled replicate artificial ecosystems at a number of levels of species richness. They demonstrated that carbon dioxide consumption, vegetative cover, and pr ...
Disturbance, Diversity, and Invasion: Implications for
... intervals can alter the diversity of species that are able to regenerate in heathland, and h e n c e affect overall c o m m u n i t y diversity. An intermediate fire frequency resulted in the highest species diversity. Fire has b e e n discussed as a factor that can increase the likelihood of invasi ...
... intervals can alter the diversity of species that are able to regenerate in heathland, and h e n c e affect overall c o m m u n i t y diversity. An intermediate fire frequency resulted in the highest species diversity. Fire has b e e n discussed as a factor that can increase the likelihood of invasi ...
Scarab Beetle (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae)
... man-made habitats. The practice of keeping large herbivores such as cows and horses in pastures has probably increased the abundance of several species substantially. The 'suitability' of dung is also crucial because different species can have varied preferences for dung that ...
... man-made habitats. The practice of keeping large herbivores such as cows and horses in pastures has probably increased the abundance of several species substantially. The 'suitability' of dung is also crucial because different species can have varied preferences for dung that ...
Notes towards Biodiversity Chapter 6
... Extinction events are relatively short (in terms of geological time) periods with greatly increased extinction rates (Leakey & Lewin 1995, Futuyma 1998, Futuyma 2005, Wikipedia Contributors 2006c). Extinction events form peaks on the graph shown. The definition of a mass extinction event depends on ...
... Extinction events are relatively short (in terms of geological time) periods with greatly increased extinction rates (Leakey & Lewin 1995, Futuyma 1998, Futuyma 2005, Wikipedia Contributors 2006c). Extinction events form peaks on the graph shown. The definition of a mass extinction event depends on ...
Notes towards Biodiversity Chapter 5
... Mass extinctions are considered too extensive and too sudden to be the result of biological causes such as disease or competition (Leakey and Lewin 1995, Wikipedia Contributors 2006c). The End Ordovician mass extinction This is the earliest of the 5 mass extinctions (Raup and Sepkoski 1982). Of the ...
... Mass extinctions are considered too extensive and too sudden to be the result of biological causes such as disease or competition (Leakey and Lewin 1995, Wikipedia Contributors 2006c). The End Ordovician mass extinction This is the earliest of the 5 mass extinctions (Raup and Sepkoski 1982). Of the ...
Networking Agroecology: Integrating the Diversity of Agroecosystem
... owing to continuing population growth (Godfray et al., 2010). There is some potential to address the shortfall by reducing waste and altering consumer dietary demands (Godfray et al., 2010; Tscharntke et al., 2012), but this will not be sufficient. We will therefore need to increase both the amount ...
... owing to continuing population growth (Godfray et al., 2010). There is some potential to address the shortfall by reducing waste and altering consumer dietary demands (Godfray et al., 2010; Tscharntke et al., 2012), but this will not be sufficient. We will therefore need to increase both the amount ...
Access and Benefit Sharing from Genetic Resources
... the legislation. Hence, the collection, sale, or purchase of a single biological specimen constitutes access to genetic resources. Genetic resources are accessed by different bioprospectors (collectors, researchers, and others) for different purposes. The ABS law does not differentiate between these ...
... the legislation. Hence, the collection, sale, or purchase of a single biological specimen constitutes access to genetic resources. Genetic resources are accessed by different bioprospectors (collectors, researchers, and others) for different purposes. The ABS law does not differentiate between these ...
Small Mammals in Mbeere, Kenya
... CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION, STUDY AIM AND SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES 1.1 INTRODUCTION The term land use refers to two aspects of habitat condition; it includes the patterns of actual use of land (immediate activities that change habitat conditions) as well as the ecological consequences of these activities ...
... CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION, STUDY AIM AND SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES 1.1 INTRODUCTION The term land use refers to two aspects of habitat condition; it includes the patterns of actual use of land (immediate activities that change habitat conditions) as well as the ecological consequences of these activities ...
Ecosystems - Oxford University Press
... more than just one type of food. Diversity in food sources ensures that if one food source becomes scarce, the organism can eat something else. This means a species may be part of many food chains at the same time. These multiple food chains can be linked together in a food web to represent the feed ...
... more than just one type of food. Diversity in food sources ensures that if one food source becomes scarce, the organism can eat something else. This means a species may be part of many food chains at the same time. These multiple food chains can be linked together in a food web to represent the feed ...
Full-Text PDF
... Most recent studies of environmental impacts on insect communities have been aimed at land use changes such as urbanization, agricultural intensification, habitat disruption and/or fragmentation, and only recently on impacts of rapid climate change [73±80]. A meta-analysis of 134 point source chemic ...
... Most recent studies of environmental impacts on insect communities have been aimed at land use changes such as urbanization, agricultural intensification, habitat disruption and/or fragmentation, and only recently on impacts of rapid climate change [73±80]. A meta-analysis of 134 point source chemic ...
The Marine Outcomes Monitoring framework
... concern for older maturing species with lower reproductive rates such as elasmobranchs. From a species perspective, the Leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) population in the Pacific has declined substantially. While nesting sites have been rigorously protected on the Mexican Pacific coast, thi ...
... concern for older maturing species with lower reproductive rates such as elasmobranchs. From a species perspective, the Leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) population in the Pacific has declined substantially. While nesting sites have been rigorously protected on the Mexican Pacific coast, thi ...
Biology 300 GENERAL ECOLOGY Spring 1997
... population or species of your choice. Relevant evidence (experimental, descriptive, comparative, or otherwise) supporting your points must be included. The second option requires that you describe a specific interaction or set of interactions between species in an ecological community. The effect(s) ...
... population or species of your choice. Relevant evidence (experimental, descriptive, comparative, or otherwise) supporting your points must be included. The second option requires that you describe a specific interaction or set of interactions between species in an ecological community. The effect(s) ...
Biotic interactions and speciation in the tropics
... species on just 15 hectares in Yasuni National Park, Ecuador (Pitman et al. 2002), and an estimated 22 500 species in the New World tropics (Fine & Ree 2006). The cause of the latitudinal biodiversity gradient has been the subject of intense interest from biologists ever since Wallace (1878) first d ...
... species on just 15 hectares in Yasuni National Park, Ecuador (Pitman et al. 2002), and an estimated 22 500 species in the New World tropics (Fine & Ree 2006). The cause of the latitudinal biodiversity gradient has been the subject of intense interest from biologists ever since Wallace (1878) first d ...
Climate Change Risk Assessment Comment
... For: ‘Warming – changes in ‘climate space’: Climate space is about much more than just temperature – moisture availability is key to many sop Loss of grouse from N England and consequent loss of management has huge consequences for fire risk and loss of moorland habitat. Changes in competition ...
... For: ‘Warming – changes in ‘climate space’: Climate space is about much more than just temperature – moisture availability is key to many sop Loss of grouse from N England and consequent loss of management has huge consequences for fire risk and loss of moorland habitat. Changes in competition ...
Ecological scaling alters observed relationships between diversity
... Table of Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................... - 1 Methods and Materials ................................................................................................. - 7 Study site .............. ...
... Table of Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................... - 1 Methods and Materials ................................................................................................. - 7 Study site .............. ...
adaptive radiation driven by the interplay of eco
... the case when secondary contacts result from biogeographical changes. Such processes, resulting in the repeated alternation of allopatry and sympatry, are called landscape dynamics (Keymer et al. 2000; Aguilée et al. 2009). They are thought to have contributed, for example, to the radiation of the ...
... the case when secondary contacts result from biogeographical changes. Such processes, resulting in the repeated alternation of allopatry and sympatry, are called landscape dynamics (Keymer et al. 2000; Aguilée et al. 2009). They are thought to have contributed, for example, to the radiation of the ...
Pigmy Bluetongue Lizard Factsheet
... in 1863. However, the cryptic nature of the species meant that less than 20 specimens were collected between 1863 and 1959. Builders found live specimens in 1959, while taking apart an old shed at Marion. At the time, it was thought that Pygmy Bluetongue Lizards lived in mallee country and many unsu ...
... in 1863. However, the cryptic nature of the species meant that less than 20 specimens were collected between 1863 and 1959. Builders found live specimens in 1959, while taking apart an old shed at Marion. At the time, it was thought that Pygmy Bluetongue Lizards lived in mallee country and many unsu ...
Bee diversity effects on pollination depend on functional
... crisis of crops and wild plants. However, experimental evidence for effects of pollinator species diversity on plant reproduction is extremely scarce. We established communities with 1–5 bee species to test how seed production of a plant community is determined by bee diversity. Higher bee diversity ...
... crisis of crops and wild plants. However, experimental evidence for effects of pollinator species diversity on plant reproduction is extremely scarce. We established communities with 1–5 bee species to test how seed production of a plant community is determined by bee diversity. Higher bee diversity ...
Reports
... change. We know little about alpine plant community responses to the predicted abiotic changes, or to possible changes in the biotic environment caused by climate change. Four years of experimental warming and nutrient addition altered dominance hierarchies, community structure, and diversity of an ...
... change. We know little about alpine plant community responses to the predicted abiotic changes, or to possible changes in the biotic environment caused by climate change. Four years of experimental warming and nutrient addition altered dominance hierarchies, community structure, and diversity of an ...
Biodiversity
Global Biodiversity is the variety of different types of life found on Earth and the variations within species. It is a measure of the variety of organisms present in different ecosystems. This can refer to genetic variation, ecosystem variation, or species variation (number of species) within an area, biome, or planet. Terrestrial biodiversity tends to be highest near the equator, which seems to be the result of the warm climate and high primary productivity. Biodiversity is not distributed evenly on Earth. It is the richest in the tropics. Marine biodiversity tends to be highest along coasts in the Western Pacific, where sea surface temperature is highest and in the mid-latitudinal band in all oceans. There are latitudinal gradients in species diversity. Biodiversity generally tends to cluster in hotspots, and has been increasing through time but will be likely to slow in the future.The number and variety of plants, animals and other organisms that exist is known as biodiversity. It is an essential component of nature and it ensures the survival of human species by providing food, fuel, shelter, medicines and other resources to mankind. The richness of biodiversity depends on the climatic conditions and area of the region. All species of plants taken together are known as flora and about 70,000 species of plants are known till date. All species of animals taken together are known as fauna which includes birds, mammals, fish, reptiles, insects, crustaceans, molluscs, etc.Rapid environmental changes typically cause mass extinctions. More than 99 percent of all species, amounting to over five billion species, that ever lived on Earth are estimated to be extinct. Estimates on the number of Earth's current species range from 10 million to 14 million, of which about 1.2 million have been documented and over 86 percent have not yet been described. The total amount of related DNA base pairs on Earth is estimated at 5.0 x 1037, and weighs 50 billion tonnes. In comparison, the total mass of the biosphere has been estimated to be as much as 4 TtC (trillion tons of carbon).The age of the Earth is about 4.54 billion years old. The earliest undisputed evidence of life on Earth dates at least from 3.5 billion years ago, during the Eoarchean Era after a geological crust started to solidify following the earlier molten Hadean Eon. There are microbial mat fossils found in 3.48 billion-year-old sandstone discovered in Western Australia. Other early physical evidence of a biogenic substance is graphite in 3.7 billion-year-old metasedimentary rocks discovered in Western Greenland. Since life began on Earth, five major mass extinctions and several minor events have led to large and sudden drops in biodiversity. The Phanerozoic eon (the last 540 million years) marked a rapid growth in biodiversity via the Cambrian explosion—a period during which the majority of multicellular phyla first appeared. The next 400 million years included repeated, massive biodiversity losses classified as mass extinction events. In the Carboniferous, rainforest collapse led to a great loss of plant and animal life. The Permian–Triassic extinction event, 251 million years ago, was the worst; vertebrate recovery took 30 million years. The most recent, the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, occurred 65 million years ago and has often attracted more attention than others because it resulted in the extinction of the dinosaurs.The period since the emergence of humans has displayed an ongoing biodiversity reduction and an accompanying loss of genetic diversity. Named the Holocene extinction, the reduction is caused primarily by human impacts, particularly habitat destruction. Conversely, biodiversity impacts human health in a number of ways, both positively and negatively.The United Nations designated 2011–2020 as the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity.