Reasons for Conservation (Cambridge (CIE) IGCSE Biology) : Revision Note

Reasons for Conservation: Extended

Extended Tier Only

• There are numerous reasons why conservation programmes are important

  • Maintaining or increasing biodiversity

    • Which allows ecosystems to remain stable

  • Reducing extinction

    • Helps to retain iconic species and maintain biodiversity

  • Protecting vulnerable ecosystems which would have been quickly lost to human activity

  • Maintaining ecosystem functions

    • Nutrient cycling eg. carbon cycling to hold back climate change

    • Resource provision, such as

      • Food - making sure we have enough for the population

      • Drugs - having access to plants for plant-based remedies

      • Fuel - for improtant activities such as cooking

      • Genes - so the gene pool remains wide and variety exists in all species

Conservation Techniques: Extended

Extended Tier Only

• Certain conservation techniques can be used to maintain biodiversity

• Examples include

  • Artificial insemination (AI) in captive breeding programmes

    • This process involves inserting sperm from a male into the reproductive tract of a female, e.g. using a syringe

    • The advantage of this is that sperm can be transported around the world between different zoos, for use in AI, reducing the need to transport animals

  • In vitro fertilisation (IVF) in captive breeding programmes

    • IVF involves using sperm to fertilise egg cells in a lab; the resulting fertilised egg cell can then be implanted into a female for development

    • This allows gametes with known alleles to be used, ensuring that the next generation remains genetically diverse

Risks to a species

• If its population size decreases, a species will experience reduced genetic variation

• This renders the species more susceptible to environmental change

• The species is less resilient and has a greater risk of extinction