Importance Of Biodiversity Conservation

Biodiversity loss caused by increasing pressures from human activities is far from being halted despite numerous efforts from regional to global political initiatives. On the one hand, implementation of conservation action remains slow and is often hindered by a shortage of financial resources and inappropriate management plans (due to gaps in applied knowledge). On the other hand, biodiversity conservation often still follows traditional approaches which largely neglect the needs of human beings. However, humans strongly depend on functioning natural systems as the existence of human society is dependent on the natural ecosystems and their services.

Hence, the concept of ecosystem services has attracted increasing interest in the scientific literature (e.g. Costanza et al. 1997; Daily 1997; Luck et al. 2009). Since the United Nations Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MEA 2005) inventory on the condition of the world’s natural systems, it has become increasingly recognized that ecosystem services play a key role in the conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Another issue which is not sufficiently addressed in current conservation approaches is the dynamic nature of ecosystems. Most conservation strategies focus on protected areas and are still developed around a static and uniform view of their nature and environment. Yet, ecological research increasingly emphasizes dynamic processes within populations, habitats and ecosystems.

Conservation and sustainable use of fish diversity and commercial fish resources is, in this context, a goal that can be achieved by the transition to an adaptive management approach which recognizes the dynamic, non-linear nature and complexity of both populations/species and the systems...

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...ae; 4) Shallow sloping embankments and littoral diversification is required to function as buffer zones and refuges for juvenile (0+) fish against wash-out effects in the event of strong water level fluctuations and floods. Such complex requirements have become the main restriction for the existence of a highly adapted fish fauna in large rivers under regulated conditions.

Unfortunately, in Europe, North America and northern Asia, 71% of large rivers and associated floodplains are affected by dams and dikes, their natural flow regime and connectivity having been altered (Burgess et al. 2012). The severe alterations of both hydrological regime and habitat diversity has induced subsequent changes of all biotic communities, including the change and decrease of the fish species diversity and biomass (Grift et al., 2001, Collins & Montgomery, 2002, Light et al., 2006).