What factors need to fall below a critical level before a species is considered at risk of extinction?
-number of habitats: it’s hard for organisms to find food and shelter if there isn’t enough suitable habitats to support them
-number of individuals: having only a few individuals of a species left makes it hard to find a mate. It also means there won’t be much genetic variation in the population
-genetic variation: this is the number of different alleles in a population.
If genetic variation is low, then a species is less likely to be able to adapt to changes in the environment or survive the appearance of a new disease
How can you evaluate how successful a conservation program is?
- genetic variation: the species being conserved should have enough genetic variation to survive the appearance of new diseases and to cope with environmental change
- viability of populations: they must contain both male and females of reproductive age. The population should be large enough to prevent related individuals having to breed together–inbreeding reduces genetic variation
- available habitats: there should be plenty of suitable habitats to live in. The right type of habitat is necessary for conserving specialist
- interaction between species: species should interact with each other as they would in their nature environment (e.g. predators should hunt prey)
What are conversation programs?
- a program designed to help save endangered plants and animals
- they involve things like, protecting habitats, creating artificial environments and captive breeding
How do conservation programs benefit wildlife and humans?
- protects the human food supply
- provides future medicine that could be wasted through deforestation
- ensuring minimal damage to food chains, conserving one species may help other survive
What is sustainable development?
-providing the needs for today’s increasing population without harming the environment
What is being done to promote sustainable development?
- fishing quotas introduced to prevent some types of fish, such as cod, from becoming extinct in certain areas
- laws insist that logging companies plant new trees to replace the once they’ve felled
What happens as the human population gets bigger?
- more food needed
- more energy needed
- more waste produced
Why are whales used for endangered?
- whales have commercial value, dead or alive
- tourists attractions
- whale meat and oil can be used, and cosmetics can be made from the waxy substance in their intestines
How has whaling been fought?
- the International Whaling Commission (IWC) has struggled to get nations to agree to restrict whaling.
- in 1982, member nations declared a stop to whaling, excluding Norway which still catches whales
- taking a small number of whales for scientific resource is allowed and is carried out by Japan, Iceland and Faroe Islands
- it is hard to check countries are sticking to the agreement, and even if anyone is caught the IWC doesn’t have the authority to enforce any punishment, so a lot of illegal whaling happens
What are the views of keeping whales in captivity?
- captive breeding programs allow whales to be bred in number and released back into the wild
- not much space in captivity,
- sometimes used for entertaining people
- whales loose there freedom and whales are happier in the wild
- captive whales raise awareness to them and their problems
- research on captive whales can help us understand their needs better to help conservation
