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Human impact on the ecosystem
Human impact on the ecosystem
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Ecology is the study of relationships among organisms and the environment within an ecosystem. (Hoefnagles, 2012) In other words, ecology is all living things together in a specific environment, such as the plants and animals of the rainforest, and how they interact. Mankind has had many impacts on the ecosystem – rapid development, depleting natural resources, overhunting, and pollution of various kinds- all of which have resulted badly for other species within our world. There are also natural occurrences which can affect species – acid rain, natural selection, predators, disease, and asteroid/cosmic radiation. Without ecology, we would not know the affects many of these factors play for species or the balance of ecosystems as they function. For the purpose of this paper, we will focus on the animal kingdom and the interactions many species have within the ecosystems they live in.
There are many factors which go into any ecosystem. When talking about extinction and endangered species of the animal kingdom, we need to look at all factors. When humans dump waste products into rivers and streams it endangers the species living in that environment. The waste is considered an abiotic factor, as it is not living. (Hoefnagles, 2012) Other abiotic factors which can alter the sustainability of a species are sunlight, rainfall, terrain, etc. With many developers looking to the rainforest and mountains to build road, railways, and infrastructures, many species are losing their natural habitat and having to seek refuge elsewhere – adapting to new surroundings. The loss of a habitat is a biotic factor, as the habitat is full of plants, animals, insects, etc. (Samuel, 2010) The study of ecology allows us to better understand the s...
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...om National Wildlife Federation: http://www.nwf.org/Wildlife/Wildlife-Conservation/Endangered-Species-Act.aspx
Samuel, L. (2010, September 12). Principles of Ecology (Powerpoint Slides). Retrieved from Interactive Biology: http://www.interactive-biology.com/1106/principles-of-ecology-powerpoint-slides-chapter-2/
US Fish and Wildlife Services. (2005, July). Why Save Endangered Species? Retrieved from US Fish and Wildlife Services: http://www.fws.gov/nativeamerican/pdf/why-save-endangered-species.pdf
World Wildlife Fund. (2011). Jovan Rhinoceros. Retrieved from WWF Global: http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/endangered_species/rhinoceros/asian_rhinos/javan_rhinoceros/
World Wildlife Fund. (2012). About Species. Retrieved from WWF Global: http://wwf.panda.org
World Wildlife Fund. (2013). Giant Pandas. Retrieved from World Wildlife Organization: http://www.worldwildlife.org
References Campbell, N.A., “Biology,” New York: The Benjamin/Cummings Publishing Company, Inc., 1996, 182-200. Karohl, D., “Principals of Biology Laboratory,” Lorain, Lorain County Community College, 2003, 65-71. Lewis, R., “Life,” Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2004, 97-114. Nishio, J.N., “Why are higher plants greener? Evolution of the higher plant photosynthetic pigment complement,” Plant, Cell and Environment, 2000, 23, 539-5.
The next topic for discussion in this paper is ecology. This will include, preferred habitats and interactions with abiotic and biotic elements of the environment.
Landscape fragmentation contributes to loss of migratory corridors, loss of connectivity and natural communities, which all lead to a loss of biodiversity for a region. Conservation of biodiversity must include all levels of diversity: genetic, species, community, and landscape (CNHP 1995). Each complex level is dependent upon and linked to the other levels. In addition, humans are linked to all levels of this hierarchy. A healthy natural and human environment go hand in hand (CNHP 1995). An important step in conservation planning, in order to guarantee both a healthy natural environment as well as a healthy human environment, is recognizing the most endangered elements.
Extinction is no longer just a natural process. It is an enemy, slowly changing our world into a barren wasteland where life is as rare as a flower in the Arctic Circle's winter. The wolf, the tiger, the caribou, the elephant, the bison, the cheetah, the sequoia cactus, the redwood tree – all of these and so many more things are on the verge of disappearing from our planet forever. Extinction is the most pressing environmental issue of our time, because if it continues the way it is going without anything being done to counteract its causes and consequences, there will soon be no environment left for there to be debates about.
V6. N1:140-143. Netscape Web Sites - "The Web" Biology 65: Biological Conservation (lecture 1-Introduction). http://mamba.bio.uci.edu/pjbryant/bio65/lec01/b65/lec01.htm EDF Letter: Moratorium Ends, but Wildlife Needs a Better Law? http://www.edf.org/pubs/EDF-Letter/1996/Jul/l_mbean.html. Endangered Species Act:.
Mills, Scott L., Daniel F. Doak, and Michael E. Soule. "The Keystone-species Concept in Ecology and Conservation." BioScience 43.4 (1993): 219-25. Apr. 1993. Web. 30 Oct. 2011.
are at a very high risk of extinction. There are over 3000 endangered species around the world due to many factors including over-fishing, hunting, destruction of habitat, climate change and a decrease in food supply. As the number of endangered species are increasing quickly it is very important that action is taken to preserve them for a number of reasons. If endangered species are not preserved it could easily lead to the species becoming extinct which could upset the food chain and lead to further extinction of other species. This could have not only negative effects on there predators but would eventually lead to having negative effects on species further up the food chain including the human species. Over the years researches have come to discover and find that all species play an important part in looking after our ecosystem and extinction could cause a big hole in the system.
Humans are destructive. Not a lot of us think about how what we do affects the world around us. We almost act like we are the only ones on this planet. We go around polluting and destroying our world with no regard for our actions. The things that live out in the wild are paying the price for it. Every day that passes there is another animal or plant that is placed on an endangered list. This is happening at an alarming rate. Because of man’s desire to expand and conquer their surroundings, there are animals and plants that are on the brink of extinction that will not be around for our kids and future generations to enjoy if something is not done about it now. This problem has been going on for hundreds of years. There are animals and plants that can only been seen in paintings or early photography. It is because of our early ancestors that we have this problem today and we have to do more to prevent more animals and plants from disappearing forever.
Various plant and animal species depend on each other for what each offers and these diverse species ensures natural sustainability for all life forms. A healthy and solid biodiversity can recover itself from a variety of disasters. It is estimated that the current species extinction rate is between 1,000 and 10,000 times higher than it would naturally be. Therefore, there is an urgent need, not only to manage and conserve the biotic wealth, but also restore the degraded ecosystems. c) Captivity breeding species can again be reintroduced into the wild.
According to World WildLife Fund, many ecosystems around the world are being destroyed, eliminating many plant and animal species that inhabit them (“Pollution”).
= == In this project I aim to explain the contributes to the environment by the actions of humans and display the consequences. I am going to divide the project into different sections and then sub sections to make the project easier to navigate around and keep the information in relevant sections. · Section 1: HABITAT REDUCTION BY HUMANS.
Biodiversity loss can lead to extinction, and hurt human life. It is our responsibility to take care of the environment. We bring in machines that harm the environment and destroy animal life. We need to limit ourselves on how much land and resources we consume. There are major issues that are causing species to become extinct and hurt our way of life and other animals do to the change in food chain.
Scientists have begun to say that we have to do more to protect our ecosystem, because our very existence is depending upon it. When the ecosystem is not functioning properly the continuation of plant, animal and human life ecosystems would be impossible. Life cycles can not function without ecosystems. The ecosystem provides us with clean air, water, habitats for fish and other services. They also aid in the mod...
Nowadays it is common to read articles in newspapers and magazines regarding biodiversity issues. Human beings have been knowingly and unknowingly destroying biodiversity since their existence. Biodiversity is the measure of the variety of species of animals living in an area. Forests are usually areas with high biodiversity while deserts are the opposite. Human beings have always destroyed biodiversity either by deforestation, or by some other means. Biodiversity depletion is a natural phenomenon. But the present levels of biodiversity depletion are many times higher than the natural rate. Recently the levels of loss in biodiversity have started causing global concern. Some of the main causes for loss in biodiversity are alteration of habitats, increasing levels of pollution and human population growth.
In our world today we have approximately 26,021 endangered species. Endangered species are organisms that may possible become extinct. The term 'endangered species' refers to all species that fits this description. However some conservation biologists and scientists normally use the term ‘endangered species’ to refer to species that are put on the IUCN(International Union for Conservation of Nature)Red List. Many factors can be looked at when considering the conservation status of a species. Factors such as human threats or environmental threats can cause a species to become endangered.