Biological Diversity Papers

Wenzel, Lauren

a) The need to preserve biological diversity worldwide has become one of several international environmental issues that have captured Congress's attention in recent months. In a body traditionally concerned with immediate, tangible problems, issues such as preserving biological diversity are often perceived as theoretical and relegated to the back burner. This year, however, the famine in Africa and the environmental degradation that contributed to it have sparked a debate about the importance of protecting natural resources worldwide, including living ones.; b) Certain measurements are crucial to our ordinary understanding of the universe. What, for example, is the mean diameter of Earth? 12,742 km. How many stars are there in the Milky Way? 10 11. What is the mass of an electron? 9.1 x 10 -28 grams. How many species of organisms are there on Earth? We don't know, not even to the nearest order of magnitude. Of course, the number of described species is so impressive that it might appear complete. But these figures alone grossly underestimate the diversity of life on Earth, and its true magnitude is still a mystery.; c) Many species will be lost because no habitat reseres are set aside for them, but even those within reserves will be threatened by a combination of genetic and ecological events. Recent investigation into these events has provided insight into how reserves should be designed and managed. If the greenhouse effect occurs, it will pose a new and major threat to species within reserves, species already stressed by the effects of haitat fragmentation.; d) In this article I describe conservation biology, define its fundamental propositions, and note a few of its contributions. I also point out that ethical norms are a genuine part of conservation biology, as they are in all mission- or crisis-oriented disciplines.

Biological Diversity Papers

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