Melting of glaciers: During the last 27 years the Quelccaya glacier in Peru retracted. At its place a lake of melted water appeared

Lonnie Thompson, Ohio State University

Temperate regions: From 1990 to 2005 the Morteratsch glacier in the Bernina area

(Switzerland) retracted several ten meters.

Kilimanjaro

The Human impact

The pole caps

During three years the north polar ice shields shrinked by about 30%.

http://www.ipcc.ch

http://www.grida.no/publications/

Predicted changes in winter precipitation up to 2100

Predicted changes in summer precipitation up to 2100

The worst case scenario (steady rise in CO2 emissions

Measured temperatures, precipitation and snow cover (northern hemisphere) since 1850.

Global Average Sea Level Change 1990 to 2100

What is global change?

Major global environmental global changes

Climate changeClimate change is manifest through the increase of atmospheric CO2 and other greenhouse gasesStratospheric ozone lossO3 protect us from the harmful effects of ultraviolet rays. It is destroyed by chlorofluorocarbonsAir pollutionAir pollution, once thought to be of only local importance (SMOG) has now become a global problemOcean pollutionPollution more and more reduce the ability of the world’s oceans to sustain life and to provide food

Fresh water issuesA rising number of countries has problems to provide it’s people with fresh waterSoil degradationOver the past 50 years, about 11% of the earth’s vegetated land surface has experienced moderate top extreme soil degradationBiodiversity lossAlthough estimates are very imprecise it seems clear that we are actually undergoing a phase of mass extinction.

Potential change in area occupied by 10 North American forest types. Mean values of five climatic scenarios that gave similar results

(modified from Iverson and Prasad 2001, Ecosystems 4: 186-199).

-750 -500 -250 0 250 500 750

Area in 1000 km 2

Aspen - birchMaple - beech - birchElm - ash - cottonwood

Oak - gum - cypressOak - hickoryOak - pine

Loblolly - shortical pineLongleaf - slash pineSpruce fireWhite - red - jack pine

Species distribution modelling

ParkRanked geogr.

position

Current species number

Species lost

Species gained

Gained - lost

Acadia 3 43 3 8 5Big Bend 8 48 10 22 12Glacier 1 52 2 45 43GSM 7 48 8 29 21Shenandoah 4 33 3 11 8Yellowstone 2 53 0 49 49Yosemite 5 64 6 25 19Zion 6 53 1 41 40

R2 = 0.27

R2 = 0.58

00.10.20.30.40.50.60.70.80.9

1

0 2 4 6 8 10

Rank geographic position [north to south]

Rel.

spec

ies t

urno

ver

Gaines

Losses

Data from Burns et al. (2003) Proc. Natl. Acd. Sci. USA 100: 11474-11477

Relative effects of major drivers on changes in biodiversity. Land use was given the value of 1.

Major drivers on changes in biodiversity

0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1

Land use

Climate

N deposition

Biotic exchange

CO2

Sala O. E. et al. 2000. Science 287: 1770-1774

Effect of five important drivers on future biodiversity change for 12 terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems or biomes.

Arctic

00.20.40.60.8

1

Land

use

Clim

ate N

Exch

ange

CO2

Apine

00.20.40.60.8

1

Land

use

Clim

ate N

Exch

ange

CO2

Savanna

00.20.40.60.8

1

Land

use

Clim

ate N

Exch

ange

CO2

Lakes

00.20.40.60.8

1

Land

use

Clim

ate N

Exch

ange

CO2

Northern temperate forests

00.20.40.60.8

1

Land

use

Clim

ate N

Exch

ange

CO2

Southern temperate forests

00.20.40.60.8

1

Land

use

Clim

ate N

Exch

ange CO

2

Boreal

00.20.40.60.8

1

Land

use

Clim

ate N

Exch

ange

CO2

Grassland

00.20.40.60.8

1

Land

use

Clim

ate N

Exch

ange

CO2

Mediteranean

00.20.40.60.8

1

Land

use

Clim

ate N

Exch

ange

CO2

Desert

00.20.40.60.8

1

Land

use

Clim

ate N

Exch

ange CO

2

Tropical forests

00.20.40.60.8

1

Land

use

Clim

ate N

Exch

ange CO

2

Streams

00.20.40.60.8

1

Land

use

Clim

ate N

Exch

ange

CO2

Sala O. E. et al. 2000. Science 287: 1770-1774

Relative amounts of change under the assumption that major drivers act independent

Relative amounts of change under the assumption that major drivers act synergistic

CE: crisis ecoregions; BH: biodiversity hotspots; EBA: endemic rd areas; CPD: centers of plant diversity; MC: megadiversity countries; G200: global 200 ecoregions; HBWA: high biodiversity

wilderness areas; FF: frontier forests; LW: last of the wild

Global biodiversity conservation priorities

From Brooks T. M. et al. 2006. Science 313:58-61

Crisis ecoregion

Biodiverity hotspots

Endemic bird areas

Centres of plant

diversity

Megadiversity countries

Global 200 ecoregions

High biodiversity wilderness

areas

Frontier forests

Last of the wild

Crisis ecoregion - 33 14 10 44 36 2 1 4Biodiverity hotspots 61 - 33 21 46 78 0 5 6Endemic bird areas 43 50 - 24 68 70 7 11 11Centres of plant diversity 34 40 28 - 48 66 18 14 21

Megadiversity countries 38 21 19 12 - 53 18 11 24

Global 200 ecoregions 28 33 19 15 48 - 16 16 28

High biodiversity wilderness areas 6 0 15 19 79 72 - 41 53

Frontier forests 4 8 11 13 39 64 35 - 73Last of the wild 5 4 4 7 34 43 17 28 -Percent land area 30 16 10 9 35 37 8 9 24

Spatial overlap (percents) between nine priority approaches

From Brooks T. M. et al. (2006)

Areas of potential conservation value only partly overlap. Depending on the criteria different areas receive high conservation values.

There is no unequivocal criterium which area to protect.

Primary causes of endangerment for 98 US plant species

Agriculture5% Grazing

11%

Military1%

Logging7%

Development21%

Roads4%

Oil, Gas, Mining8%

Off-road vehicles6%

Collecting10%

Fire control4%

Trampling8%

Natural causes1%

Water control8%

Exotics6%

Invasive species

„But the cardoon (Cynara cardunculus) has a far wider range.: it now occurs in these latitudes on both sides of the Cordillera across

the continent. I saw it in unfrequented spots in Chile, Entre Rios, and Banda oriental. In the latter country alone, very many

(probably several hundred) square miles are covered with one mass of these prickly plants, and are impenetrable by man or

beast. Over the undulating plains, where these great beds occur, nothing else can live. Before their introduction, however, I

apprehend the surface supported as in other parts a rank herbage. I doubt whether any case is on record of an invasion of so grand

scale of one plant over the aborigines”Charles Darwin 1839: Voyage of the Beagle.

What are invasive species?

Invasive species (neobiota) are those that• were accidently introduced into new habitats by man

(alien species) • were intentionally introduced into new habitats by

man for commercial purposes• were intentionally introduced into new habitats by

man for biological control• greatly extended their natural home ranges towards

new areas for instance due to climate change or human activities (roads, tunnels)

Some well known examples

Colorado Potato beetle Gipsy moth

First introduced to Europe in 1877

First record in Poland 1960First introduced into North America in 1868

Has about 650 different host plants

During outbreaks causes major damages in softwood forests

Tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus) Nil perch

Introduced into the great Est African lakes during the 1950s and 1960s to improve fishering.

Caused dramatic changes in faunal and floral composition

Caused algal blooms and eutrophication

Caused the extinction of more than 200 native fish species (2/3 of all species)

The Asian species was first reported from Houston texas in 1985

Now established in Brazil, Europe, and New Zealand

Vectors of yellow and dengue fever, as well as encephalitis

First occurrence in mainland France in 2006. Now recorded from Belgium, Italy, France, Balkan region. Since 2007 in Middle Europe (Germany)

In Germany it partly outcompetes the indigen Culex pipiens.

First deadly infection of Chikungunya feaver in Italy 2007.

Hulecoeteomyia japonicus

The Asian bush mosquito was introducuded to southern Europe since about 2000.Since 2013 in Central and Eastern Germany

Occasisonal vector of West-Nil virus and Encephalitis.

Sciurus carolinensis

The grey squirrel was introduced to great britain in 1989 and since then outcompeted the red squirrel Sciurus vulgaris due to its resistence against an Parapox virus. Introduced also to Ireland, Italy and RPA. In 2006 a campaign against the grey sqirrel started.

Marenzelleria viridisEichhornia crassipes

Introduced into China from South America in the 1930s as an ornamental plant, to provide liestock food and to control air pollution

Caused reduction of lake areas and let to the extinction of about 30 fish species

Reduced lake areas caused climate changes and changes in water cycling

The flatworm was introduced via ship ballast water (first records 1979)

In the vistula lagoon it has become the dominant species constituting up to 97% of the total biomass of the bottom- living macrofauna

Harmonia axyridis

First observations of the Asian Lady beetle 2001: Belgium2002: Germany, Netherlands2004: UK, France2007: Scandinavia, Poland2009: Whole of Poland

In the USA unsuccessfully used as aphid predator in biological control programs since 1916.Sudden spread in USA since 1980.Major impact on natural communities of aphid predators due to its high reproduction rate.

Unknown Leiobunum harvestman (Opilionida) species

First observed in the Netherlands (2007)In 2008 massive invasion along the Rhine river up to Switzerland

Species are up to 18 cm in diameter.They occur in large colonize of up to several hundred individuals.They show colonial movements.

     Number of

native species  Number of

invasive speciesNew Zealand (plants) 1790 1570Hawaii (plants) 956 861Hawaii (all species) 17591 4465Tristan de Cunha (plants) 70 97Campbell Islands (plants) 128 81South Georgia (plants) 26 54Southern Africa (freshwater fish) 176 52California (freshwater fish) 83 52Berlin (plants)    839    593Woody perennials (Southern Australia) 2230 188Europe (spiders) 3500 80Great Britain (trees)    35    1700

How many species are invasive?

Data from McNeely J. A. (1999), Kobelt and Nentwig (2008), Caley et al. 2008, and Sukopp (1990)

Air cargo39%

Miscella-neous

2%Mails3%

Baggage40%

Ship cargo16%

How do alien species come to Hawaii?

25% of all Hawaiian species are alien

Human activitiesDisturbance

Changing environmental

conditions

Changing land management

Changing land use

Changing of ecosystem functioning

Invading species

Habitat fragmentation

Increasing opportunities for invaders

A conceptual model of invading species

What makes a species

invasive?

Charcteristics of invasie species• r-strategists• have high dispersal ability• have small genome sizes• are habitat or feeding generalists• self pollinators (plants)• have long flowering periods (plants)• have a high proportion of leaf area (grasses)• have small seed sizes (in woody plants)• occupy often disturbed sites

Marcel Rejmanek (1946-

DNA contents of 148 Californian angiosperms (from Knight et al. 2005)

• Early to mid-successional habitats

• Mesic environments and open water

• Disturbed habitats

• Fragmented habitats

What habitats are susceptible to invasions?