Welcome! Please read the board!. Monarchs! Are these worth protecting?
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Transcript of Welcome! Please read the board!. Monarchs! Are these worth protecting?
Welcome!Please read the board!
Monarchs!
Are these worth protecting?
Why should we protect biodiversity? (all the species on the planet)
5 Reasons to protect biodiversity
• 1. Medicinal• 2. Commercial• 3. Agricultural• 4. Ecological• 5. Ethical/Aesthetic
Reason #1:Medicinal
Rosy Periwinkle: Hodgkin’s disease and lymphocytic leukemia
If a species disappears, it could
have been an important cure for a
serious disease!
• 40% of modern medicines come from plants/animals/fungi
• 95% of known plant species have never been tested for medicinal value
Vampire Bat saliva • Used to create an
anticoagulant to prevent clotting during surgery
Pacific Yew – Taxol cancer medicine
Reason #2: Commercial – We should protect species because we can make money from them.
Harvesting: Shrimp industry Harvesting: Recreational hunting
Commercial: Ecotourism – spending money to visit an ecosystem or a species
Visiting Nature Preserves Whale Watching
Ecotourism
Austin’s bat colony Snorkling
Ecotourism
Mountain biking Whitewater Rafting
Biomimicry - engineering designs based on natural systems
Biomimicry – engineering designs based on natural systems
Whale fins – better wind turbinesUnderwater plants – floating
energy harvesters
Reason #3: Agricultural – we should protect species because they could strengthen our crops
• Of 80,000 known edible plants on the planet, we depend on 20 species to provide 90% of global food supply.• Corn, rice and wheat are
50% alone!• So . . . What if a disease
strikes one of these important crops?
Relying too heavily on one variety of a species can be risky
1841-1851
• http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2011/07/food-ark/potato-variety
Maybe these could be new food sources
Winged Bean of New Guinea Katemfe berry
Agricultural – We should protect species
because they might be pollinating our food.
Reason #4: Ecological – We should protect species because they all play a role in their ecosystem.
Food webs
• Food webs• Symbiotic relationships• Indicator species• US Fish and Wildlife
Service estimates that losing one plant can trigger the loss of 30 other species
Simba says it’s all connected!
Ecological• Ecosystem services!• Air purification• Water filtration• Climate control
(absorbing CO2)• Gene bank• Soil building
Reason #5: Aesthetics/Recreation/Spiritual/Moral – We should protect species because it’s the right thing to do and a diverse world is more interesting!
We are ONE species
• 1.5 million KNOWN species• More are discovered
every year
Biodiversity enriches our lives!
“Endangered means there’s still time!”
• Threatened• Endangered• Extinct
Which reasons apply to our friend the Monarch?