Biodiversity conservation framework problems - abstract

The short review of three articles describes the main problems of biodiversity conserving. The “hotspot method” shows that this approach have more disadvantages than benefits. This method selects the limited spectrum of species only from terrestrial vertebrates and vascular plants of region that have endemic status and ignores all other species. The method from second article (the method of terrestrial ecozones) is much more objective, but not solves the question for aquatic ecosystems. Furthermore, in the map developed by authors ignored the existing of coastal ecosystems. The main problem of biodiversity conservation is determined a bit by Bjørn Lomborg. In his book “The Skeptical Environmentalist” He gives good point that we cannot properly know how many species really are.

INTRODUCTION

During the human progress, anthropogenic pressure to the Earth becomes higher and higher. This pressure causes much of phenomenons that force wildlife species extinction. In parallel with increasing of this pressure, during many years environmental scientists try to develop methods to save species and communities. However, number of scientist are very often equally to the number of methods that they are propose. Almost all of these are unique and good-looking, but sometimes noone can be used effectively because of broad spectrum of causes. In this review I will try to accent your attention on problems that I have found in three publications: “Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities”, “Terrestrial Ecoregions of the World”, “The Skeptical Environmentalist: Measuring the Real State of the World . Ch.23. Biodiversity”.

BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION FRAMEWORK PROBLEMS

During the conservation studies were created two different paradigms of biodiversity measuring. The first of these two is based on counting of species number, second paradigm based on systematizing of biodiversity clusters. Both have own benefits and disadvantages. In the article named “Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities”, group of scientists show serious forces to develop conservation framework based on selecting regions with maximum concentration of unique endemic species. In second article, that named “Terrestrial Ecoregions of the World”, scientists try to develop conservation framework with ecoregions map. Third article, that factually is Bjørn Lomborg`s book chapter, is a critique of classic bioconservation scientists and showing the disadvantages of evaluation methods.

At first article, scientists made huge accent on the number of endemic species and made the map of 25 biodiversity hotspots. Each hotspot must consist at least 0,5 % world`s species as endemics and should have lost 70 % or more of its primary vegetation. In sum that 25 hotspots consists near 35 % vertebrate and 44 % of vascular plants. At first sight everything in this method is logic: places with maximum amount of endemic species must be saved first (500 million $ annual dotation per one point, by the all), but this hotspot method has a lot of problems. First of them is that endemic species list is not identically for each other country, territory of which hotspot covered. Concentration of species can be other by location. Io one country this specific specie can be endemic, in other country it can be the simple specie that just usual specie. Overall, problem consist in the fact that not each species that even be on Earth have been discovered and described as endemics or not. That’s mean that this method representative only for properly discovered and described species.

Next, and more serious problem is that this 35 % of vertebrates include only high animals lake a mammals, birds and amphibian animals. This method ignores not only microbiota but also insects and fishes. 44 % of vascular plants forced to ask a question “why only vascular plants?” Are unique species of lichen and moss can’t be endemic or mustn’t to be saved at all? Considering the air pollution tendencies, exactly lichen and moss suffering first.

Second article shows a framework based on Earth zonation by biomes and biogeographic realms. This method gives widely sight on biodiversity conservation principles. The group of scientists made review of existing biogeographic maps with hi-resolution of ecoregions and proposed their own variant of such map: separate terrestrial world onto 8 biogeographic regions and 14 main biomes. Combination of this 8 and 14 gives 112 potential ecoregions with own complex of treats and unique variants of conservation. So broad zonation helps with classification that can show specific and unique zones that can be unique. The main disadvantage of ecoregion method is a difficulty with ocean zonation, as long as ecozones in oceans situated not in 2 dimensions but in 3. Furthermore, new and optimized map of scientists developed on other`s map base, but after optimization new map has lost the coastal ecological zones.

In third article Bjørn Lomborg gives constructive critic to apocalyptic posts of classicists with predictions. Especially he appellate to Mayer’s declamation that every year extents near 40 000 species, which he does in 1979. Author also make trying to determinate the real amount the annual extinction and make a conclusion that real extinction now is near to 0,7 % per 50 years.

CONCLUSION

As we can see after analyzing of these 3 articles, the main problem of biodiversity conserving is that nobody know completely how many species and communities really are, and nobody know completely, which of them really extinct. That’s why so difficult to determine the priorities in case of biodiversity conserving. Moreover, such method as “hotspots” can`t make the real objective evaluation because it makes conclusion only by concentration of terrestrial vertebrates and vascular plants species that have a label “endemic”, without taking the attention to other species that can be unique. Both of described methods accents the attention on the unique concentration of biodiversity as like as on object to save, but noone solves the problem of single unique species that can extinct too.

Maybe the better way to solve the biodiversity extinction problem is to use or develop the new approach that will based not only on the biodiversity conservation or biocenosis uniqueness but on zonation of anthropogenic pressure. This strategy is useful to save at first the live objects and ecosystems that in process of extinction.

SOURCES

1.       Norman Myers  et al. Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities .

[  Nature 403, 853-858 (24 February 2000)].

2.       David  M. Olson et al. Terrestrial Ecoregions of the World: A New Map of Life on Earth

[ BioScience.  Vol. 51 No. 11,2001. P. 933-938]. 

3.        Bjørn Lomborg.  The Skeptical Environmentalist: Measuring the Real State of the World . Ch.23. Biodiversity.

[Cambridge University Press , 2001].

P.S. sorry for my English :D