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“The pale blue dot” …. Earth from the Voyager spacecraft, > 4 billion miles away http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/multimedia/display.cfm?IM_ID=2148 http://www.solstation.com/stars/earth.htm http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/photo_gallery/photogallery-mars.html http://www.thew2o.net/# http://www.misterteacher.com/rainforestwebquest.html CO2 N2 H2O Ar Earth Mars 0.035% 77% 1% 0.93% 95% 2.7% 0.007% 1.6% O2 http://www.misterteacher.com/rainforestwebquest.html 21% trace http://science.kennesaw.edu/~jdirnber/BioOceanography/Lectures/LecPhysicalOcean/LecPhysicalOcean.html 0.5 bya: Cambrian 0.24 bya:Mesozoic 0.065 bya:Cenozoic 0.9 bya: first animals 1.8 bya: first eukaryote 2.3-2.0 bya: Oxygen 4.0 bya: Oldest Rocks 3.4 bya: Oldest Fossils 4.5 bya: Earth Forms Earth History 4.5 million to present (1/1000th of earth history) All genera The “big five” Mass Extinction Events Millions of Years Ago http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Phanerozoic_biodiversity_blank_01.png Thousands of Genera “well described” genera (% of Genera) Permian mass extinction: 96% of all marine species and 70% of terrestrial vertebrate species WHY? WHY? WHY? WHY? WHY? http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/prehistoric-world/mass-extinction/ ecological collapse Almost all animals over 25kg (~55 lbs) went extinct. (The things that require the most energy to survive) http://we.vub.ac.be/~dglg/Web/Claeys/Chicxulub/Chixproject.html BIODIVERSITY NOW http://www.coral.org/node/3230 Millenium Ecosystem Assessment (2006) http://englishontour.blogspot.com/2011/03/beetles.html http://www.illuminatedorigin.com/The_Illuminated_Origin_of_Species/Blog/Entries/2011/9/22_Beetles!.html Detritivores Pollinators Insect predators Herbivores http://www.sbs.utexas.edu/jcabbott/abbottlab/ http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/photography/42636-incredible-costa-rican-euglossine-bees.html Pollinators Insect Parasitoids (lay eggs on other insects) Insect Predators http://magicbelles.com/flutterbudclub/special-wonders/beetles Jewel Bug Herbivores Pollinators Parasites Detritivores Malagasy Sunset Butterfly http://www.brisbaneinsects.com/brisbane_flies/images/PWC_8410.jpg http://buggirl.tumblr.com/post/12568644622/bugs-that-break-the-rules-themadagascar-sunset http://www.trekearth.com/gallery/Africa/South_Africa/West/Eastern_Cape/Kob_Inn/photo915391.htm Herbivores Detritivores http://www.flowersociety.org/Redwood-profile.htm PRODUCERS http://www.paulsanghera.com/infonential-Contact.html Most vertebrate species are fishes http://www.elp.manchester.ac.uk/pub_projects/2003/MNZO0MLK/lecture1.htm http://ambergriscaye.com/critters/redeyedtreefrog.ht ml http://australian-animals.net/plat.htm http://freakz.info/2011/09/21/10-interesting-seahorse-facts/ http://www.pbase.com/image/37557333 http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/life/Blue_Whale Herbivores, Predators, Detritivores, Pollinators http://www.hodag.info/what%E2%80%99s-going-on-herethen-100 But do we NEED all these species?? There’s a lot of redundancy in nature… http://katherinegerdes.com/portfolio/11/rainy-day-jewels Are all species equally important? If not, which ones are critical? with without We don’t know which species are critical So we need to save them all to maintain ecosystem function But what does biodiversity do?? 1) Biodiversity increases “productivity” ... FOOD Monoculture They all need the same things at the same concentrations; they compete. “Niche Complementarity” Monoculture Polyculture They all need the same things at Combinations of different plants can be the same concentrations; they planted at higher density, and they use compete. different "niches" and coexist. Even if abundance of "most productive" species drops, this loss can be offset. “Positive Effects” Monoculture They all need the same things at the same concentrations; they compete. Polyculture without beans with beans Nitrogen fixing legumes (beans) nutrify the soil, increasing the growth of other plants. And you have beans! 2) Biodiversity improves ecosystem services Estimates of various Ecosystem Services $U.S. trillions Ecosystem services Value (trillion $US) Soil formation Recreation Nutrient cycling Water regulation and supply Climate regulation (temperature and precipitation) Habitat Flood and storm protection Food and raw materials production Genetic resources Atmospheric gas balance Pollination All other services Total value of ecosystem services 17.1 3.0 2.3 2.3 1.8 1.4 1.1 0.8 0.8 0.7 0.4 1.6 33.3 Source: Adapted from R. Costanza et al., “The Value of the World’s Ecosystem Services and Natural Capital,” Nature, Vol. 387 (1997), p. 256, Table 2. TOTAL GLOBAL GNP (1997) = 18 trillion. 3) Aesthetics and Inspiration: Biodiversity enriches our cultures 3) Aesthetics and Inspiration: Biodiversity enriches our cultures How is our biodiversity doing? Genetic diversity within species Species diversity in communities Ecosystem diversity How is our biodiversity doing? Humans used hundreds of crop species worldwide; now 3 species (rice, wheat, corn) provide 60% of our calories from crop plants. According to the FAO of the UN, 70% of the genetic diversity of crop plants has been lost in the last 75 years as we’ve shifted to industrial farming and the use of GM strains. How is our biodiversity doing? 2000 Pacific Island bird species (15% of global total) have gone extinct after human colonization 20 of the 297 mussel species in N.A. have gone extinct in the last 100 years; 60% are endangered 40 of 950 fish species in N. A. have gone extinct in the last century; 35% are threatened or endangered http://www.americanscientist.org/issues/pub/the-real-biodiversity-crisis/1 Yellow-finned cutthroat trout http://www.fishdecoys.net/pages/LDC_Collection/BenzieJoDecoys.htm http://www.nps.gov/sacn/planyourvisit/st-croixcurrents.htm?customel_dataPageID_206517=289024 How is our biodiversity doing? 1 in 4 mammal species is endangered 1 in 8 bird species is endangered 1 in 3 amphibian species is endangered 48% of primate species are threatened Data from: http://iucn.org/what/tpas/biodiversity/ How is our biodiversity doing? 35% of mangrove habitat has been lost in the last 20 years In the Caribbean, hard coral cover has declined from 50% to 10% in the last 20 years Since 2000, 232,000 sq miles of old growth forest have been lost (size of Texas). WHY? 7 billion in 2011 (12 years later) http://news.mongabay.com/2011/1009-amazon_deforestation_revised.html 13,000 sq kilometers is about the size of Connecticut Extent of Virgin Forest, Contiguous U. S. http://mvh.sr.unh.edu/mvhinvestigations/old_growth_forests.htm Millenium Assessment 2006 Humans use/control 40% of the ‘food’ produced on the planet. 1 10 million? Fragmentation Fragmentation Area Effects CARNIVORES HERBIVORES PLANTS LARGE AREA OF HABITAT Fragmentation HABITAT FRAGMENTATION Fragmentation 1)Carnivores lost - (reduce diversity) 2)Herbivores compete – (reduce diversity) 3)Plants overgrazed – (reduce diversity) HABITAT FRAGMENTATION We are a geological force, operating on an ecological timescale Mountaintop removal in West Virginia We are a geological force, operating on an ecological timescale Gold mining in Peruvian Amazon We are a geological force, operating on an ecological timescale We are a geological force, operating on an ecological timescale We are a geological force, operating on an ecological timescale Hmmmm…. Sixth major mass extinction event - NOW All genera The “big five” Mass Extinction Events Millions of Years Ago http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Phanerozoic_biodiversity_blank_01.png Thousands of Genera “well described” genera 22 May 2010 –Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon: “Biodiversity loss is moving ecological systems ever closer to a tipping point beyond which they will no longer be able to fulfill their vital functions.” What Can We Do? We need to protect and preserve large intact, biodiverse ecosystems. This is great, but it ain’t gonna do it… We need to rethink our model of community… nature nature Development Development Development Development We need to find out what’s out there! We need to appreciate the societal and economic value of biodiversity Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) http://www.justmeans.com/Stop-Loss-CSR-Biodiversity/28856.html “Protection of biodiversity should be the underlying reason for every CSR effort. Biodiversity loss is the most severe threat to human-wellbeing on the planet. It rates even higher than climate change and related problems…. The head of Deutsche Bank's Global Markets predicts that our current rate of biodiversity loss could see 6% of global GDP wiped out as early as 2050. The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity executive summary (2010) reports that “over 50% of CEOs surveyed in Latin America and 45% in Africa see declines in biodiversity as a challenge to business growth. In contrast, less than 20% of their counterparts in Western Europe share such concerns” If we recognize the grandeur of life, we might appreciate it… If we appreciate it, we might value it… If we value it, we might sustain it… If we sustain it, we might be able to sustain our societies and economies, as well. ECONOMY SOCIETY ENVIRONMENT If we don’t, we won’t… Thylacine - 1936 Tecopa Pupfish - 1981 Quogga - 1883 Vietnamese Rhinoceros - 2010 Yangtze River Dolphin - 2006 Golden Toad - 1989 A few extinct animal species.