BIOS1301 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Pink Pigeon, Economic Security, Ecological Succession
29 May 2018
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BIOS1301 – Ecology and Sustainability
LEC 1:
• Abiotic (water, turbidity, light, temperature, geology) and biotic factor (food web,
competition, mutualism, disease, organisms)
• Community, population definitions
Ecology: The study of interactions between organisms and their environment. Study of relationships,
distribution and abundance of organisms.
Species' habitat requirements - niche
E.g. Niche for water holding frog: wet environment but adapted to desert living.
Levels of ecological organisation:
• Organism
• Populations
• Communities/ecosystems
o Assemblages of species populations occurring together in space and time
• Landscapes
Biodiversity:
• Genetic variability
• Species richness
• Species diversity (no. of species and abundance)
• Functional diversity (relative number of different functional organisms)
• Gradient diversity
• Community diversity
• Landscape diversity
LEC 2:
• Extinction events (extinction rates are the most valuable measuring/reference points
for the state of the earth)
• Population dynamics (human populations)
• Key issues of sustainability (key threatening processes)
o Land clearing, pollution, climate change, overharvesting, pest species, diseases
Key issues of sustainability
Case study 1: Land clearing in Australia
(Guardian 6/3/18)
Environmental issues:
• Land clearing
• Impacts on ecosystem services and biodiversity
Effect on environment:
• Destruction of habitat for large range animals, and vegetation communities
Role of environmental science:
• Measure of extent of land clearing
• Impacts on biodiversity
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
• Map different vegetation using satellite imagery
Policy and management:
• Legislation, regulation and codes
• Aus. gov. role in relation to the state gov. roles
Extinction:
• IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
• Birds:
o 127 named birds extinct over 400 years
o Humans responsible for 20%
• Fish:
o Global fish catch increase six times between 1950 and 1997
• Speed of extinction today is 1000x faster then previous background extinction rates (for every
thousand species, one became extinct every 1000 years)
• Humans have played a role in some mass extinctions (moa in NZ)
• People in developed countries have massive ecological footprints compared to those in
developing countries (e.g. NZ 8.62, US 7.44 -> Ethiopia 0.99, India 0.65) = world av. 1.78
Why is biodiversity loss significant?
o Biodiversity provides and regulates ecosystems for the benefit of humans
o Directly impacts human societies, usually poor societies
o Utilitarian values (medicines, pollination, water and air quality)
• World population: has grown exponentially, with majority in less developed countries
• There are more people who are born in an area where biodiversity loss will have the
biggest impact
• Human diet is so wide and vast that there is high pressure on natural resources.
Taxonomy of threats affecting the environment:
• Habitat loss and degradation
• Pollution (climate change)
• Pest species
• Overharvesting
• Diseases (e.g. birth control hormones affecting wild life species i.e. males reducing)
LEC 3:
• Different definitions of sustainability, no standard (e.g. only about growth and
economics of company)
• No appropriate measure of natural capital (should be how we value our natural
resources, it is measured by GNP, GDP which only become valuable when it is being
turned into a product - devaluing natural/basic resources and is viewed as
unsustainable)
o Valuing natural capital is another way to create a new economic standard
Case Study: Valuing natural resources (clean air, water) now, will reduce the probability of
needing a lot of funding for an expected resource.
Case Study 2: Plastic pollution
(Guardian 6/3/18)
Environmental Issue:
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
• Plastic pollution of oceans
• Micro plastics
Effect on environment:
• Ingested by animals, killing wildlife
• Pacific garbage patch - circulation of garbage in the ocean
• Ingested in seafood
Role of Envir. Sci.:
• Measure extent of issue
• Estimate impacts on biodiversity
• Possible solutions
Sustainability:
• "avoiding depletion of natural resources" - Oxford dictionary
• Inter-generational equity: The right of each generation to the use of the environment's
resources.
o Failed sustainability:
• Polynesian colonisation 400AD (9,000 people)
• Dutch explorer arrived 1722 (down to 2,000 people)
• Deforestation of thick palm forests and lack of habitats of animals left the
environment unable to sustain the human population.
▪ Overpopulation, depletion of food sources, erosion, soil depletion
Attempts at Sustainability
The Earth Summit, 1992 - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
o United Nations Conference on Environment and Development
o Discussions of environmental sustainability and sustainable development
• Agenda 21: Themes --> product of Earth Summit.
• Prospering World (growth and sustainability), Just World (sustainable living),
Habitable World (human settlement) etc.
• Successes:
o Public awareness
o Interest from private industry
o Slight improvements of issues addressed
o Foundation of international cooperation
• Failures:
o No international funding
o No national commitment
o No solid leadership
Sustainable development goals for 2030, Sept 2015
o 17 SDGs
• E.g. By 2025, prevent and reduce marine pollution
• By 2020 conserve at least 10% of coastal and marine areas
o Implemented 1/1/2016 for over 15 years
o Apply to all countries to promote prosperity while protecting the planet
o Not legally binding, but assessed regularly
Global waste
• By 2075 - world population reach 9.5 billion
• Currently produce 4 billion tonnes of food p.a.
• 1.2-2 billion tonnes is not consumed
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Lec 1: abiotic (water, turbidity, light, temperature, geology) and biotic factor (food web, competition, mutualism, disease, organisms, community, population definitions. Ecology: the study of interactions between organisms and their environment. Study of relationships, distribution and abundance of organisms. Niche for water holding frog: wet environment but adapted to desert living. Levels of ecological organisation: organism, populations, communities/ecosystems, assemblages of species populations occurring together in space and time. Functional diversity (relative number of different functional organisms: genetic variability, gradient diversity, community diversity. Lec 2: extinction events (extinction rates are the most valuable measuring/reference points for the state of the earth, population dynamics (human populations, key issues of sustainability (key threatening processes, land clearing, pollution, climate change, overharvesting, pest species, diseases. Case study 1: land clearing in australia (guardian 6/3/18) Effect on environment: destruction of habitat for large range animals, and vegetation communities. Role of environmental science: measure of extent of land clearing. Impacts on biodiversity: map different vegetation using satellite imagery.
