| Term | Definition |
|---|
| Biodiversity defined | Variety and variability among living organisms & ecological complexes |
| Genetic diversity | Organisms as disjunct populations sometimes differentiated into subspecies |
| Genetic diversity; e.g. mobile | 1/ Panthera tigris; Bengal 2/ Indo-China 3/ Siberia 4/ Sumatra 5/ South China |
| Genetic diversity re. many plants | Sedentary organisms 1/ widespread distribution 2/ high intraspecific genetic variation |
| Genetic diversity; e.g. sedentary | Shorea macroptera (Borneo) - an outcrossing plant species encouraging gene exchange & variation |
| Community diversity complexes | 1/ Intra-ecosystem variability 2/ inter-ecosystem variability |
| Intra-ecosystem variability | Variation in response to small & large scale gradients, e.g. slope, soil, altitude |
| Inter-ecosystem variability | Variation in response to large scale gradients,e.g. tropical rainforest, savannas, desert |
| Implications for conserving biodiversity | 1/ Preservation of genetic variation 2/ conserve in-situ ecological complexes 3/ inclusion of people |
| How many species? | 1.4 to 1.8 identified, 3-7 million estimated |
| Species estimation; 5 methods | 1/ Extrapolation 2/ inference 3/ direct estimates 4/ species-size relationships 5/ species turnover |
| Extrapolation; birds & mammals (Raven) | 2 tropical species/ 1 temperate species |
| Extrapolation; most species are insects (Raven) | 2/3rds of all named species found outside tropics |
| Extrapolation; tropical to temperate/boreal ratio (Raven) | Hypothesis of 2 unnamed tropical insects/ 1 named temperate,boreal insect... 3-5 million species |
| No. of species - Inference; using beetles (anthropod canopy fauna) (Erwin) | 40% of all known arthropods are beetles... 400 canopy arthropods/ 1 tree species |
| Inference; using insects (anthropod canopy fauna) (Erwin) | For every 2 named insect canopy species: 1 unnamed nearby... 600 canopy arthropods/ 1 tree species |
| Inference; using tropical trees (anthropod canopy fauna) (Erwin) | As there is 50,000 tropical tree species... x 600 canopy arthropods = 30 million tropical arthropods |
| No. of species - Inference; doubt with beetle/host ratio (Erwin) | Proportion of host specific beetles. e.g. 1 in 10 of all beetles/ 1 oak (U.K) (Erwin - 400:1) |
| Inference; doubt with beetle/canopy species ratio (Erwin) | Proportion of beetles/ arthropod canopy species. e.g. 16% in Brunei (Erwin - 40%) |
| Inference; doubt with canopy/ground species ratio (Erwin) | Proportion of canopy arthropod species/ ground species. e.g. 1:2 - Borneo, Sulawesi (Erwin 2:1) |
| Direct estimates; Hemiptera in Sulawesi (Hodkinson & Casson 1983) | 1690 recorded species (37%) on 500 tree species, 67 % unrecorded... 2.7 million insects in tropics |
| Biodiversity in coral reefs (i.e. Great Barrier reef) | <0.1% of ocean surface, 8% world fish species, e.g. 4000spp. molluscs |
| Biodiversity in tropical rainforests | 7% of land surface, >50% world species, e.g. 100,000spp. flowering plants |
| Benefits of climate on biodiversity | More stable climate than temperate zones over geological time |
| Benefits of age on biodiversity | Communities are older than temperate communities - |
| Benefits of temperature on biodiversity | Warmth & humidity provide migration & evolution to development |
| Benefits of selection pressure on biodiversity | Greater abundance of pest, disease & parasites without cold variation |
| Benefits of fertilisation on biodiversity | Greater outcrossing; less selfing... >heterogeneity |
| Benefits of solar energy on biodiversity | Increased productivity of biomass |
| Endemism; Latin America | Isolated patches of unusual habitats 1/ cloud ridge forest 2/ isolated dry valleys - Cuba & Hispaniola |
| Patterns of diversity & endemism (Gentry 1992) | Largely non-coincident |
Combine with other sets
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