Vocabulary!
Species RichnessThe number
of species in a given area
Species Evenness The relative proportion of different
species
in a given area.
Microevolution Evolution occurring below the species level.
Macroevolution Evolution that gives rise to new species, genera, families,
classes, or phyla.
Evolution by Natural Selection A change in the genetic composition of a population over
time as a result of the environment determining
which individuals are most likely to survive and reproduce.
Evolution by Artificial Selection A change in
the genetic composition of a population over time as a result of humans
selecting which individuals are most
likely to survive and reproduce.
Allopatric Speciation The
process of speciation that occurs with geographic isolation.
Sympatric Speciation This evolution of one
species into two, without geographic
isolation.
Fundamental Niche The suite
of ideal environmental
conditions for a species.
Exponential Growth Model A growth model
that estimates a populations future size after a period of time based on the intrinsic
growth rate and the number of
reproducing individuals currently in the
population.
Logistic Growth Model A
growth model that describes a population whose growth is initially exponential,
but slows as the population approaches the carrying capacity of the
environment.
Carrying Capacity the limit
of how many individuals in a population the food supply can sustain.
Keystone Species a species
that is far more important in its community than its relative abundance might suggest. (Beyonce is the supreme)
What is a biodiversity
hotspot and why are they important?
A biodiversity hotspot is an isolated location that is
very small and holds Endemic species, which is species that live in a very
small area of the world and nowhere else. These areas end up holding a high
proportion of all species on earth, which is why they serve such a grand
importance.
Where is your hotspot
located and what type of ecosystem is present there?
The hotspot I’ve chosen is the Horn of Africa and the
ecosystem present there is the Savanna. Savannas are tropical grasslands with
warm temperatures year-round
Describe at lease one
endemic plant species and animal species found here. Explain what it
means to be an endemic species.
To be an Endemic species means that the
species must live in a small are of the world and nowhere else. One of the
endemic plant species in my hotspot is the cucumber tree, which is only found
on Socotra. This plant holds a high importance because it has a massive water
storing trunk and tendrils (a slender threadlike appendage of a climbing plant
on its branches.) An endemic species found on the horn of Africa would be the Beira,
which is one of the several types of endemic antelope species in the hotspot.
The Beira is known to stay in dry and inhospitable hills and mountains of
northern Somalia, eastern Ethiopia and Djibouti this is where it can survive
without water.
Cucumber tree
beira antelope
Describe the human
induced and/or natural reasons why biodiversity is decreasing in the area.
Human activity is a great threat to the Horn of Africa
making it one of the most degraded hotspots in the world, with only about 5% of
original habitat in relative condition. A major threat caused by humans in the
hotspot is the production of charcoal. Charcoal is made from the Acacia bussei
and the production is rapidly causing the decline of the plant, which is
hurting the structure of the ecosystem. A major reason why there are threats
such as this is due to the fact that the hotspot has a lack of governance and
political instability. If the hotspot were better governed then there would be
laws in place to protect the ecosystem.
part of charcoal production
Explain what is being done to protect the area.
At
first Africa’s 41 protected area cover nearly 9% of the land area and not all
ranges were able to do something but the United Nations Development Program has
begun a major program for "Sustainable Development and Biodiversity
Conservation for the People of the Socotra Islands," which is a 5 year
program financed with United States (whoop represent #amurica!) $5 million from
UNDP and the governments of Italy and Yemen specifically to support the people
of Socotra through conservation and sustainable use of the islands'
unique
biodiversity and natural resources
Pick a side!
Certain conditions do lead to species
extinction. Since the world was created (or since we as humans believe) there
have been periods of global mass
extinction. Different things have caused each mass extinction and each one
happened differently but because of certain resources we are able to know more
about these mass extinctions for example, fossils.
Fossil records have made scientists able to know what once roamed the
earth. Some extinction are not as big as a mass extinction but are smaller such
as evolution by artificial or natural
selection. Evolution by artificial
selection is when humans are influencing the species usually by breeding,
humans have caused many species to go extinct by only breeding types of sheep,
pigs, cattle, dogs, chickens and more by using the traits that they seem to fit
the humans needs best. Natural selection however, is not caused by humans hence
“natural”, since it lets nature run its course by allowing nature to determine
which species can survive and reproduce. These species only survive by adaptations which is a species ability
to adapt when there is a change in its ecosystem.
Reflection!
Economics and Human Interaction:
Money of course rules the world so it has a HUGE impact on
everything. As talked about in my hotspot questions, the Horn of Africa suffers
endangerment because of the charcoal industry. The charcoal industry is one of
the few opportunities the people have to make money to sustain their lives and
support their families so they work very hard to produce this charcoal, which is
hurting the land. The people need their money to survive but their survival necessities
unfortunately cause the decline of the important Acacia Bussei plant, which has
an ultimately negative effect on the ecosystem. Since money makes the world go
round these people have no choice but to work and hurt the ecosystem. Because economics
have created a hard ship on humans, human interaction have caused a hardship on
the ecosystem. It
Government legislation
Fortunately in the United States we have many laws regarding the
environment and what can be built where or how many hours factories can be open
for, due to pollution smoke, and these laws are what keep America beautiful so
in countries like Africa this may not always be the case. Because of the very
bad financial situation in Africa, the Horn of Africa does not have laws to
protect its environment so when the people of the community are mass producing
charcoal and hurting the ecosystem the government of Africa is not able to do
anything about it.
is just a big chain reaction mess.
Environmental impact:
Although the government of Africa is limited to what they can do
the countries around Africa have been able to help out. The United States and
Italy along with the United Nations and many others have partnered together to
create the Sustainable Development and Biodiversity Conservation for the People
of Socotra Islands which has helped the land and people who cannot afford to
sustain their land.
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