Essay On Microclimates

Much of the work that has sought to measure landscape pattern and habitat fragmentation comes out of the disciplines of conservation biology and landscape ecology (Theobald 1998). These disciplines are founded on the premise that landscape patterns strongly influence and are influenced by ecological processes (Forman and Godron 1986). How does landscape fragmentation affect species diversity? 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).

Forests affect the climate and are also a very important source of oxygen. One major factor that the forests carry is that they are the home to over one half of the world’s total species (Dudley). Current... ... middle of paper ... ...humans are going to have to undergo some degree of ideological change. Humans are going to have to live more sustainable lives and become closer with nature. Once the crisis of deforestation has passed, humankind will enjoy a finer existence, and will look forward to a bright future.

Native grasslands and grassy woodlands with high biodiversity provide abundant genetic resources and reserve evolutionary processes, while those with relatively low biodiversity act as corridors between areas of high biodiversity for the continuing movement of genetic material (Eddy 2002). In addition, these ecosystems offer food and shelter for a wide variety of animals. Most of Victoria’s extinct mammals depended on grassland ecosystems. One third of Victoria’s rare or threatened plants, birds and reptiles in danger of extinction are part of the grassland ecosystems (Iramoo 2014). Conservation Management Disturbance management It is widely acknowledged that maintaining diversity in productive sites requires periodical biomass reduction.

2016). Traditionally, vegetation changes are mainly attributed to climatic drivers, despite a dominating CO2 influence being reported by a recent investigation. Global vegetation can be divided into water-, temperature- and solar radiation- limited growth regions. Moreover, the combination of these climatic factors also determines the distribution of plants types, with each type showing a clear correspondence with differing climates. Previous investigations suggest that both the rate and the magnitude of climate change have profound impacts on vegetation growth (Garcia, Cabeza et al.

The use of a marginal region was used under the assumption that these regions are generally of high nature and landscape conservation value. Birds and carabids were chosen as they provide key ecosystem services and also because they are known to rapidly respond to changes in land-use intensity (Gottshalk et al. 2007). The authors quantified the changes in species ri... ... middle of paper ... ...able to evaluate land use alternatives. Works Cited Agarwal C., Green G. M., Grover J. M., Evans T. P., Schweik C. M. (2002) A Review and Assessment of Land-Use Change Models: Dynamics of Space, Time and Human Choice United States Department of Agriculture, General Technical Report NE-297 Fohrer N., Moller D. and Steiner N 2002 An interdisciplinary modelling approach to evaluate the effects of land use change Physics and Chemistry of the Earth 27:655-662 Gottschalk T. K., Diekotter T., Ekschmitt K., Weinmann B., Kuhlmann F., Purtauf T., Dauber J. and Wolters, V 2007 Impact of agricultural subsidies on biodiversity at the landscape level, Landscape Ecol.

For example, the issue of Global population and how forests are being used, land use and the ways forests contribute, wood use, forest growth, destruction and the reasons for cutting down the trees. The second half of the essay will cover the issues that are harmful to the environment because of deforestation. Many environmental issues take place everyday; a big question that arises, is if the global economy will ever finds middle on the issue of forest thinning. If deforestation was used only in the most crucial of times, the world might become a better place. Some of the most po... ... middle of paper ... ...o enforce programs that used recycling, the need for disposable products would be diminished.

 What is deforestation, degradation and climate change Deforestation: It implies the long term permanent loss of forest cover and implies transformation into another land use. Such a loss can only be caused and maintained by a continued human-induced or natural perturbation (FAO, 2001). Forest degradation: The long term reduction of the overall potential supply of benefits from the forest, which includes carbon, wood, biodiversity and other goods and services (FAO, 2003). Climate change: It refers to a statistically significant variation in either the mean state of the climate or in its variability, persisting for an extended period (typically decades or longer). Climate change may be due to natural internal processes or external forcings, or to persistent anthropogenic changes in the composition of the atmosphere or in land use (IPCC, 2001).

Areas with the greatest concentration of ecosystem services and/or highest level of degradation from the effects of climate change can then be considered as priority sites for actions targeted at conserving the benefits that these ecosystem services provide. Two such actions are: 1) the establishment of silvopastoral systems, which incorporate strategically tree or shrub productive species cover on ranchlands; and 2) compensation and rewards for ecosystem services schemes, which create incentives for better land management. What is the problem? The Sibundoy valley with 46,000 ha is located into the Andean Amazon piedmont, Colombia’s Upper Putumayo region (Fig 1.) endowed with a wealth of biodiversity and natural resources (Barthlott et al.

Forest Soils on Acid Forest ecosystems are important both ecologically and economically. It is arguable that the most fundamental dynamic of the forest ecosystem is the forest soil. The acidity of forest soils can alter the chemistry, biota, and hydraulics of the soil, and thus, alter the soil formation characteristics and the soil composition. It follows that the acidification of forest soils demands a great deal of research and attention. Forest soils are commonly found to have pH readings of 4-6, even in areas of moderate to low acid deposition (Binkley et al, p. 4).

Soil is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. The Earth's body of soil is the pedosphere, which has four important functions: it is a medium for plant growth; it is a means of water storage, supply and purification; it is a modifier of Earth's atmosphere; it is a habitat for organisms; all of which, in turn, modify the soil. Soils have many different properties, including texture, structure or architecture, water holding capacity and pH (whether the soils are acid or alkaline). These properties combine to make soils useful for a wide range of purposes. Soil properties govern what type of plants grows in a soil or what particular crops grow in a region.