Introduction to Conservation Biology

SBV1013

Topic 8
Conservation best practices
 CONSERVATION
(Pemuliharaan)
What is conservation?:

 Sensible and careful use of natural resources by humans.

People with this view are called conservationist

Conservation biology:

 Multidisciplinary science created to deal with the crisis of maintaining:

 the genes
 the species
 communities Earth’s biological diversity
 ecosystems

 Its goals are to investigate human impacts on biodiversity and to

to develop practical approaches to preserving biodiversity

 People who practice conservation biology is conservation biologist

 CONSERVATION
(Pemuliharaan)

•Conservation biology integrates the following fields to

conserve biological diversity at all levels:
- Ecology
- Evolutionary biology
- Physiology
- Molecular biology
- Genetics
- Behavioral ecology
Restoration ecology
Applies ecological principles in an effort to return degraded ecosystems to
conditions as similar as possible to their natural, predegraded state.

Scientists have described and formally named about:

- 1.8 million species of organisms.
- Some biologists think that about 10 million more species currently exist.
- Others estimate the number to be as high as 200 million.

Throughout the biosphere, human activities are altering trophic structures,

energy flow, chemical cycling, and natural disturbance.

The amount of human-altered land surface is approaching 50%, and we use

more than half of the accessible surface fresh water.

In the oceans, we have depleted fish stocks by overfishing. Some of the most
productive aquatic areas, such as coral reefs and estuaries, are
severely stressed.

Globally, the rate of species loss may be as much as 1,000 times higher
than at any time in the past 100,000 years.
 The Three Levels of Biodiversity
Biodiversity has three main components
- Genetic diversity
- Species diversity
- Ecosystem diversity

Genetic diversity in a vole population

Species diversity in a coastal redwood ecosystem

Community and ecosystem diversity

across the landscape of an entire region
Genetic Diversity
 Genetic diversity comprises
 The genetic variation within a population

 The genetic variation between populations

Species Diversity
 Species diversity
 Is the variety of species in an ecosystem or throughout

the biosphere
Tropical forests

Contain some of the greatest concentrations of

species that are being destroyed at an alarming rate.
 Human activities threaten Earth’s biodiversity
•Extinction is a natural phenomenon that has been occurring
since life evolved on Earth.

•The current rate of extinction is what underlies the

biodiversity crisis.

• Rates of species extinction

- Are difficult to determine under natural conditions
- The current rate of species extinction is high
- And is largely a result of ecosystem degradation
by humans
- Humans are threatening Earth’s biodiversity
Conservation biologist;
- Concerned about species loss
- Because of a number of alarming statistics
regarding extinction and biodiversity
 FOCUS OF CONSERVATION BIOLOGY
 Genes – genetic diversity
 Species – species diversity
 Communities
 Ecosystems

 to conserve genetic diversity

 to conserve species diversity

 to protect species from extinction

 to conserve habitat or ecosystem

 to conserve endangered species, and if possible to return the

endangered species to normal population
Background of conservation ideas

 Pinchot (1865 – 1946) - Ecosfera (woodland, clean water, wild life,

species diversity & landscape) are natural resources that should be
protected for the betterment of mankind (Prickmack et al., 1998)

 Grumbine (1994), Noss and Cooperider (1994) - Ecosystem

management -- management for sustainable ecosystem and
proper management of wild life

 Sustainable development paradigm

 Enrich of natural resources for the benefit of mankind,

to protect the resources for future generation

Any healthy environment/ ecosystem have economic value,

and aestitical value – to conserve ecosystem is to take care
all components within the ecosystem
 How many species have been identified in the world

Serangga 751,000 Spesies

Tumbuhan 248,000
Alga hijau (green algae) 26,000
Kulat 69,000
Haiwan selain serangga 281,000
Protista (satu sel,
satu nukleus) 38,000
Bakteria 4,800
Virus 1,000
-----------------
Jumlah 1,413,000 spesies
==========
Numbers of species

Insects make up the vast majority of animal species.

As a soft guide, however, the numbers of identified modern species
as of 2004 can be broken down as follows:

287,655 plants, including:

15,000 mosses,
13,025 ferns,
980 gymnosperms,
199,350 dicotyledons,
59,300 monocotyledons;
74,000-120,000 fungi;[15]
10,000 lichens;
1,250,000 animals, including:

1,190,200 invertebrates:
950,000 insects,
70,000 mollusks,
40,000 crustaceans,
130,200 others;
58,808 vertebrates:
29,300 fish,
5,743 amphibians,
8,240 reptiles,
10,234 birds, (9799 extant as of 2006)
5,416 mammals.

However the total number of species for some phyla may be much higher:

10-30 million insects;[16]

5-10 million bacteria;[17]
1.5 million fungi;[15]
~1 million mites[18]
An endangered species

Is one that is in danger of becoming extinct throughout its

range

Threatened species

Are those that are considered likely to become

endangered in the foreseeable future
 Extinct and Endangered Species in Peninsular Malaysia

N. Of % % Extinct Author
Species Endangered

Trees 2830 15.7 2.3 Ng, 1991

Palms 195 19.5 0 Kiew, 1991

E. O. Wilson has identified the Hundred Heartbeat Club

- Species that number fewer than 100 individuals

and are only that many heartbeats from extinction

(a) Philippine eagle

(b) Chinese river

dolphin

(c) Javan
rhinoceros
 Ecosystem diversity

Identifies the variety of ecosystems in the biosphere

Is being affected by human activity

Human biophilia

- Allows us to recognize the value of biodiversity

for its own sake

Species diversity

- Brings humans many practical benefits

 Benefits of Species and Genetic Diversity
Pharmaceuticals

- Contain substances originally derived from plants

Catharanthus roseus

-Use for cancer, hypertension,

penenang, menghentikan
pengaliran darah

-Chemical contents – alkoloid,

28 bi-indole alkoloid, vinblastin,
leurosine, catharanthine
Artemisia vulgaris

Pendarahan usus
Mencegah keguguran
Dysentri
Muntah darah

Selasih – Ocimum basilicum

Demam, sakit kepala

Abdominal distention
Radang usus
 IN SITU Conservation
 in situ conservation – conservation at their natural habitat
 plants
 wild life

 e.g. Tropical rain forest (TRF) Reserve and Parks

 plant genetic diversity

 animal genetic diversity

e.g. in Malaysia – Taman Negara Endau Rompin, Taman Kinabalu

Lembah Danum, Sabah & Taman Negara Bako,
Sarawak
Taman Negara Endau
Rompin - Malaysia
Example of genetic/ species diversity - fungi
Example of species/ genetic diversity - plants
 EXSITU Conservation
• Conservation and protection of biodiversity in controlled
environments, such as:
- zoos
- botanical gardens
- aquariums
- gene banks
Zoo and Safari
 Tujuan diadakan taman haiwan

 Membiakkan rare species dan endangered species

 Menyebarkan maklumat mengenai rare species dan
endangered species
 Mengadakan pangkalan data (data base) untuk rare species and
endangered species

ISIS – International Species Inventory System

 4,200 species
 395 zoo and safari in the world
 39 countries

 Memilih kaedah terbaik untuk pembiakan, kelangsungan hidup

Akuarium

 To protect aquatic species from extinction

 fish
 turtle
 water plants
Whale watching is part of species
restoration and gives economical
benefit to local people
Botanical Garden & Arboretum

 Botanical garden – koleksi tumbuhan hidup ditempatkan dalam

habitat sesuai

 Sumber pemuliharaan tumbuhan

 Di dunia ada 1,500 taman botani - terbesar Kiew Garden, London

 25,000 tumbuhan (10% species

tumbuhan dunia)
 2,700 terancam pupus
 Di Malaysia – Penang Botanical Garden

 Di SEA – Bukit Timah Botanical Garden, Singapore

Bogor Botanical garden

 Bank Gen Ladang (Plantation Gene Bank)

 Taman Botani Dengan Tanaman Khusus

 Taman Botany Arnold, University Harvard, USA – winter plants

 New England Wildlife Flower Society, USA – herba musim sejuk

 California – Arboretum Pinus (72 species dari 110 species di dunia)

Pemuliharaan Biji Benih

 Paling banyak digunakan & ekonomikal – pemuliharaan sumber genetik

 Disimpan di tempat sesuai – seed bank/ gene bank

 IRRI – padi di Filipina

 Cimmyt – gandum dan jagung di Meksiko

 MARDI – tanaman pertanian di Malaysia

 INVITRO Conservation
 tissue culture

 Vegetative reproduction (Pembiakan tampang)

Cariopreservation (Kariopreservasi)

 pembekuan tisu pada suhu sangat rendah

 Dalam cecair nitrogen (-1960 C)

Menghalang metabolisme sel

Pemuliharaan Ekosistem Alam dan Pemuliharaan Biota

 Berkait rapat dengan pengurusan ekosistem (tanah, air & biota)

 Perkara-perkara penting untuk pemuliharaan

o pengekalan kualiti sekitaran
o mengekalkan kualiti estitika
o sebagai sumber makanan
o sumber takungan gen (gene pool) & germplasma
o mengekalkan kepelbagaian biologi

 UNESCO mencadangkan Taman Negara (National Park) dan kawasan

perlindungan untuk

o pemuliharaan komuniti haiwan dan tumbuhan

o memelihara kepelbagaian genetik species
o memungkinkan evolusi berterusan
 Taman Negara dan kawasan perlindungan meliputi:

o kawasan unik yang mewakili bio

o komuniti biotik penting
o boleh dijadikan tempat pertemuan - ahli sains
- ekonomis Generasi kini
- pendidik Dan akan
- kebudayaan Datang
- rekreasi

 mempunyai pembahagian zon

Buffer zon II – biotic interference

Buffer zon I – kajian dan penyelidikan

Core zone – dilindungi – tidak diganggu

 Kawasan Perlindungan Hidupan Liar

Koridor

Preserve
Preserve

Unfavourable
Koridor habitat

Unfavourable
Koridor habitat

Preserve
 Conservation of habitats and ecosystems

Bioremediation
Biological augmentation
Bioremediation is the use of living organisms, usually
prokaryotes, fungi, or plants, to detoxify polluted
ecosystems
● Restoration ecologists use various types of
organisms to remove many different types of
toxins from ecosystems.

● For example, some plants adapted to soils

containing heavy metals are capable of
accumulating high concentrations of potentially
toxic metals.
Bioremediation

- Restoration ecologists can use these plants

to revegetate sites polluted by mining and then
harvest the plants to remove the metals from
the ecosystem

● The bacterium Pseudomonas has been used to

clean up oil spills on beaches.

● Genetic engineering may become increasingly

important as a tool for improving the performance
of certain species as bioremediators.
Biological augmentation is a strategy for removing
harmful substances by using organisms to add
essential materials to a degraded ecosystem.

Augmenting ecosystem processes require,

- determining what factors, (such as chemical

nutrients), have been removed from an area
and are limiting its rate of recovery.

.
 How are we going to practice biological augmentation:

- Encouraging the growth of plants that

thrive in nutrient-poor soils often speeds up the rate
of successional changes that can lead to recovery of
damaged sites
-An example is the rapid regrowth of indigenous
plants alongside of PLUS after colonization of the
areas by plants that thrives on nitrogen-poor soils.

-The rapid buildup of organic material from the

nonnative plant enabled the indigenous plants to
recolonize the area and overgrow the introduced
species
 Challenges of biodiversity conservation

Economical - including biodiversity into macro economical

indicators of countries, economical asset of biodiversity

a) as real value (medic and genetic engineering),

b) profit for activity - eco-tourism, cost of restoration
of damaged biodiversity

Management - creation of partnership by involving

governmental, commercial organisations, navy and military,
NGOs, local populations and general public.
Challenges of biodiversity conservation cont.

Legislation - including biodiversity aspects into all relevant

laws, designation of legislation support of biodiversity
conservation

Scientific - formalization of decision-making procedure,

looking for biodiversity indicators, cadastre of biodiversity,
development of monitoring