| Unit name | Conservation Biology |
|---|---|
| Unit code | BIOL20401 |
| Credit points | 10 |
| Level of study | I/5 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2C (weeks 13 - 18) |
| Unit director | Professor. Harris |
| Open unit status | Open |
| Pre-requisites | |
| Co-requisites |
None |
| School/department | School of Biological Sciences |
| Faculty | Faculty of Life Sciences |
One of the biggest problems facing biologists is the long-term conservation of a reasonable level of biological diversity, particularly when faced with such intractable problems as an ever-increasing human population and the concomitant demands on space and natural resources. This unit will review the need for the biological conservation - what parts of the world and which ecosystems are the areas of highest biodiversity, which of these are under most threat, why should we try and conserve them, what are the costs and benefits? The unit will then look at a variety of approaches to addressing these problems including captive breeding and releasing of endangered species, the role of zoos and nature reserves in this process, the problems posed by inbreeding, the maintenance of genetic diversity in a species, metapopulation theory and the effects of habitat fragmentation on isolating populations. The value of nature reserves will be examined in the light of ideas introduced by island biogeography theory; how has this concept shaped our ideas on the design of nature reserves, have all the predictions on the effects of reserve size and isolation on biodiversity and rate of species loss proved to be correct, and how can these ideas be integrated into a broader approach whereby the landscape generally is managed for the benefit of wildlife? The unit will then look at the rate and pattern of landscape change in Britain and other temperate countries, the effects of these changes on the faunal and floral diversity of an area, and the role of linear features in helping to maintain ecological diversity. Finally, the unit will conclude by briefly discussing the role of extinction as a natural biological process, and looking to the future and trying to predict the biodiversity of the planet. Throughout the unit, both botanical and zoological examples will be used, and it will concentrate on a world perspective.
