Protecting Ecosystems

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Protecting Ecosystems

• Stephanie Skipper
• Dr. Welch
• ECOLOGY

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Protecting Ecosystems

• What is an ecosystem?
• Why should ecosystems be protected?
• What types of areas or ecosystems are most
  important to protect?
• What are the factors that are considered in
  selecting,designing,and managing reserves.

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Ecosystems

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What is an Ecosystem

• An ecosystem can be defined as an interacting
  system of plants, animals, and humans and their
  surrounding physical environment
• Ecosystems can be defined by different scales or
  sizes from as small a puddle or a rotting log to
  a forest to the planet.

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Why should ecosystems be protected?

• To preserve biodiversity
• People take different approaches when making the
  case for preserving biodiversity. Some argue that
  biodiversity is important to ensure access to new
  medications, while others emphasize the
  importance of maintaining healthy ecosystems for
  recreational purposes such as fishing or camping.
  
• Ecosystems are the productive engines of the
  planet, providing us with everything from the
  water we drink to the food we eat and the fiber
  we use for clothing, paper, and lumber

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What types of areas or ecosystems are most
important to protect?

• Fresh water
• The world's Freshwater ecosystem provides most of
  the world's water for drinking, agriculture,
  sanitation, and industry, as well as huge
  quantities of fish and shellfish. The Great
  Lakes, located on the border between the United
  States and Canada, contain 20 of all the fresh
  surface water resources on Earth
• Freshwaters are also home to a tremendous
  diversity of fish, amphibians, aquatic plants,
  invertebrates, and microorganisms. The Amazon
  River alone contains an estimated 3000 species of
  fish
• The Freshwater ecosystem offers important
  cultural, economic and recreational resources for
  human populations around the world.

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Threats to Freshwater Ecosystems

• Chemical pollution introduced into freshwater
  systems through agricultural runoff, the over-use
  of pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers, the
  improper disposal of waste and industrial
  by-products.
• Thermal pollution (the unnatural heating or
  cooling of freshwater habitats), caused by the
  release of heated water, used in industrial
  processes, back into streams, rivers and lakes
  the diversion of our waterways by means of
  concrete embankments and dams built to create
  manmade lakes.
• Deforestation of the Earth's forests, which can
  adversely affect both the sedimentation rate and
  temperature of the Freshwater ecosystem.
• The over-harvesting of fish and edible aquatic
  species for man's consumption.
• Acid rain, resulting from the huge amount of car
  exhaust belched from the incredible number of
  cars driven on a daily basis

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Ways to help the freshwater ecosystems

• Never release into your local rivers, ponds, or
  streams, non-native fish, frogs, turtles, or
  salamanders, kept as pets, when you no longer
  want them
• Do not buy or use toxic pesticides or herbicides
  for your lawns, gardens, or weed and pest
  control. Read the labels! Make it your business
  to know what you are using! Dispose of harmful
  chemicals carefully. Do not just pour them out on
  the ground or down the drain

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Marine Ecosystems

• The ocean is home to the smallest plankton and
  the largest creature on earth, the blue whale.

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Marine Ecosystems

The diversity and productivity of marine
ecosystems are also important to human survival
and well-being. These habitats provide us with a
rich source of food and income, and support
species that serve as animal feed, fertilizers
for crops, additives in foods (i.e., ice-cream)
and cosmetics (i.e., creams and lotions). Areas
such as mangroves, reefs, and sea grass beds also
provide protection to coastlines by reducing wave
action, and helping to prevent erosion, while
areas such as salt marshes and estuaries have
acted as sediment sinks, filtering runoff from
the land. Despite the importance of marine
ecosystems, increased human activities such as
over fishing, coastal development, pollution, and
the introduction of exotic species have caused
significant damage and pose a serious threat to
marine biodiversity
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Marine ecosystems

• Mangrove forest
• Salt marshes
• Mud Flats

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What are the factors that are considered in
selecting and managing reserves

• Ecosystems have been destroyed so much were some
  are very rare in certain parts of the countries
• Some countries have made reserves and national
  parks in order to preserve some of the world
  precious ecosystems
• When choosing the land and area to start a
  reserve on, a number of factors are taken into
  account

• Factors that determine reserves or national parks
• Designing a reserve
• Reserve selection
• Reserve management

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Works cited

• Chapter 8 from Conservation Biology
• Chapter11 from Fundamentals of Conservation
  Biology
• http//www.epa.gov/bioindicators/aquatic/marine.ht
  ml
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