Methods of maintaining biodiversity

• Endangered species


  A species that is being threatened with extinction
• Methods of maintaining biodiversity

  • In situ conservation
  • Ex situ conservation
  • Frozen zoos
  • Seed banks
• In situ conservation


  Conservation carried out in the natural habitat
• In situ conservation methods

  • National parks
  • Marine parks
• Ex situ conservation


  Conservation outside the natural habitat
• Ex situ conservation methods

  • Zoos
  • Botanic gardens
• Zoos and botanic gardens take part in conservation programmes
• Scientists have come up with methods to ensure long-term survival of endangered species through frozen zoos and seed banks
• National parks


  • Wildlife and environment are protected
  • Humans access is strictly controlled
  • Industrial activities are tightly regulated
  • Hunting is limited or prohibited
• Marine parks


  • Protected areas of water for conservation of endangered marine ecosystems and species
  • Restrictions to prevent overfishing and pollution
• Public engagement with conservation efforts

  Important for long term success
• Benefits of public engagement

  • Increase money and awareness for conservation efforts
  • Provide jobs and increase acceptance of protected areas
  • Use profits to improve health and education in nearby communities
• A large proportion of the land and water surrounding the Galapagos Islands is protected
• Humans are not allowed to travel to many of the islands in the Galapagos National Park and fishing is illegal in the Marine Park areas
• Management of the Galapagos protected areas is shared between locals and conservation experts
• There have been strong efforts made to remove invasive species and increase native species in the Galapagos
• Zoos


  • Captive breeding programmes
  • Scientific research on animal genetics, behaviours and habitat needs
• Captive breeding of small species populations can reduce genetic diversity
• Certain animal species will not breed in captivity
• Not all zoos can provide adequate habitats for animals with specific needs
• Success and failure of zoos in conservation

  • Oryx antelope saved from extinction and reintroduced into the wild
  • Pandas have been in captive breeding programs for over 60 years and not a single panda has been reintroduced into the wild
• Botanic gardens


  • Use cuttings and seeds collected from the wild to establish a population of endangered plant species in captivity
  • Methods of tissue culturing and cloning to obtain large numbers of plants from a small sample size
  • Research on plant reproduction and growth to enable captive cultivation
  • Try to find suitable new habitats if the original habitat no longer exists
• Zoos and botanic gardens are instrumental to education and raising awareness of vulnerable, endangered species and conservation efforts worldwide
• Frozen zoos


  Store genetic material from animals (eggs, sperm, tissue samples etc) at very low temperatures so that they can be kept for a very long time
• Seed banks


  Conserve plant diversity by drying and storing seeds in a temperature controlled environment
• Seeds can only be stored for so long, after a certain period they are grown into plants and fresh seeds are taken for storage
• Some plants have seeds that cannot be frozen, so successive generations must be grown or tissue cultures taken to preserve their genetic diversity
• Conservation methods


  • National parks
  • Marine parks
  • Zoos
  • Botanic gardens
  • Frozen zoos
  • Seed banks
• Roles of conservation methods

  • Protecting endangered animal and plant species through strict regulations
  • Increasing public engagement in conservation
  • Captive breeding programmes for reintroduction of species
  • Research
  • Education
  • Long term storage of genetic material