Biol 4 Conservation

Conserving Species and Habitats is Important for Many Reasons

• Species for resources for lots of things that humans need, e.g. rainforests contain species that provide things like drugs, clothes and food. If the species and their habitats aren't conserved, the resources that we use now will be lost. Resources that may be useful in the future could also be lost.
• Some people think that we should conserve species just because its the right thing to do, e.g. most people think that organisms have the right to exist, so they shouldn't become extinct as a result of human acitivity.
• many species and habitats bring joy to lots of people because they're attractive to look at. The species and habitats may be lost if they aren't conserved, so future generations won't be able to enjoy them.
• Conserving species and habitats can help prevent climate change. for example when trees are burnt, CO2 is released into the atmosphere, which contributes to global warming. if they're conserved this doesnt happen. 
• Conserving species and habitats helps to prevent the disruption of food chains, which could mean loss of resources. For example, some species of bear feed on salmon, which feed on herring. If the number of herring decreases it can affect both the salmon and bear populations.

There are Different Ways to Conserve Species and Habitats

1. Plants can be stored using seed banks. 

• Seed Banks are stores of lots of seeds from lots of different plant species.
• They help to conserve species by storing the seeds of endangered plants
• They also help to conserve different varieties of each species by storing a range or seeds from plants with different characteristics, e.g. seeds form both tall and short sunflowers.
• If the plants become extinct in the wild the stored seeds can be used to grow new plants.
• Seed Banks are a good way of conserving plant species - large numbers can be conserved because the seeds dont need much space. seeds can be stored anywhere and for a long time, as long as the conditions are cool and dry.
• However there are disadvantages. the seeds have to be regularly tested to see if they're still viable ( whether tehy are able to grow into a plant), which can be expensive and time consuming. 

There are many Different Ways to Conserve Species and Habitats

2. Fish species can be conserved using fishing quotas.

• These are limits to the number of certain fish species that fishermen are allowed to catch.
• Scientists study a species and decide how big the population needs to be fot them to maintain their numbers. they then decide how many its safe for fishermen to take without reducing the population too much.
• International Agreements are made (e.g. the Common Fisheries Policy in the EU) that state the amount of fish each country can take and where they can take them from.
• Fishing Quotas help conserve fish species by reducing the numbers that are cought and killed, so the populations aren't reduced too much and the species are not at risk of becoming extinct.
• There are problems with fisking quotas though - many fishermen dont agree with the scientists who say the fish numbers are low. some also think that intrducing quotas will cause job losses.

There are many Different Ways to Conserve Species and Habitats

3. Animals can be conserved using Captive Breeding Programmes

• These involve breeding animals in controlled environments
• Species that are endangered, or already extinct in the wild, can be bred in captivity to help increase their numbers, e.g. pandas are bred in captivity because their numbers are dangerously low.
• There are problems with captive breeding programmes though, some animals can have problems breeding outside their natural habitat, which can be hard to recreate in zoo. For example pandas dont reproduce as successfully in captivity as they do in the wild.
• Animals that are bred in captivity can be reintroduced to the wild. this increases their numbers in the wild, which can help to conserve their numbers or even bring them back form the brink of extinction.
• Reintroducing animals into the wild can cause probles though. Reintroduced animals could bring new diseases to habitats harming other species living there.

There are many Different Ways to Conserve Species and Habitats

4. Any Organism can be Conserved by Relocation

• Relocating a species means moving a population of a species to a new location because they're directly under threat, e.g. from poaching, or the the habitat they are living in is under threat, e.g. from rising sea levels.
• The species is moved to an area where its not at risk, like a national park, but with a similar environment to the one where its form, so the species will still be able to survive.
• It's often used for speies who only exist in one place (if that population dies out the species will be extinct).
• It helps to conserve species because they're relocated to a place where they are more likely to survive, so their numbers may increase.
• Relocating species can caue problems though, for example the native species in the new area may be out-competed by the species that ahs moved in so they may become endangered themselves.

There are many Different Ways to Conserve Species and Habitats

5. Habitats can be conserved using protected areas.

• Protected areas, such as national parks and nature reserves, protect habitats (and so protect the species in them) by restricting urban development, industrial development, and farming.
• Habitats in protected areas can be managed to conserve them, for example by coppicing - cutting down trees in a way that lets them grow back, so they don't need to be replanted. this helps to conserve the woodland , but allows some wood to be harvested.
• There are problems with protected areas to conserve habitats. National parks are also used as tourist destinations (many funded by the revenue fom the tourists that visit). This means that there's conflict between the need to conserve habitats and the need to allow people to visit and use them