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The Holocene extinction, or Anthropocene extinction, is the ongoing extinction event caused by humans during the Holocene epoch. These extinctions span numerous families of plants and animals, including mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and invertebrates, and affecting not just terrestrial species but also large sectors of marine life. With widespread degradation of biodiversity hotspots, such as coral reefs and rainforests, as well as other areas, the vast majority of these extinctions are thought to be undocumented, as the species are undiscovered at the time of their extinction, which goes unrecorded. The current rate of extinction of species is estimated at 100 to 1,000 times higher than natural background extinction rates and is increasing. During the past 100–200 years, biodiversity loss and species extinction have accelerated, to the point that most conservation biologists now believe that human activity has either produced a period of mass extinction, or is on the cusp of doing so. As such, after the "Big Five" mass extinctions, the Holocene extinction event has also been referred to as the sixth mass extinction or sixth extinction; given the recent recognition of the Capitanian mass extinction, the term seventh mass extinction has also been proposed for the Holocene extinction event.
Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic, species, and ecosystem levels. Biodiversity is not distributed evenly on Earth; it is usually greater in the tropics as a result of the warm climate and high primary productivity in the region near the equator. Tropical forest ecosystems cover less than 10% of Earth's terrestrial surface and contain about 50% of the world's species. There are latitudinal gradients in species diversity for both marine and terrestrial taxa. Marine coastal biodiversity is highest globally speaking in the Western Pacific ocean steered mainly by the higher surface temperatures. In all oceans across the planet, marine species diversity peaks in the mid-latitudinal zones. Terrestrial species threatened with mass extinction can be observed in exceptionally dense regional biodiversity hotspots, with high levels of species endemism under threat. There are 36 such hotspot regions which require the world's attention in order to secure global biodiversity.
Extinction is the termination of a taxon by the death of its last member. A taxon may become functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to reproduce and recover. Because a species' potential range may be very large, determining this moment is difficult, and is usually done retrospectively. This difficulty leads to phenomena such as Lazarus taxa, where a species presumed extinct abruptly "reappears" after a period of apparent absence.
An invasive species is an introduced species to an environment that becomes overpopulated and harms its new environment. Invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native species that become harmful to their native environment after human alterations to its food web. Since the 20th century, invasive species have become a serious economic, social, and environmental threat worldwide.
A feral animal or plant is one that lives in the wild but is descended from domesticated individuals. As with an introduced species, the introduction of feral animals or plants to non-native regions may disrupt ecosystems and has, in some cases, contributed to extinction of indigenous species. The removal of feral species is a major focus of island restoration.
An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived there by human activity, directly or indirectly, and either deliberately or accidentally. Non-native species can have various effects on the local ecosystem. Introduced species that become established and spread beyond the place of introduction are considered naturalized. The process of human-caused introduction is distinguished from biological colonization, in which species spread to new areas through "natural" (non-human) means such as storms and rafting. The Latin expression neobiota captures the characteristic that these species are new biota to their environment in terms of established biological network relationships. Neobiota can further be divided into neozoa and neophyta (plants).
An ecological or environmental crisis occurs when changes to the environment of a species or population destabilizes its continued survival. Some of the important causes include:
Phragmites is a genus of four species of large perennial reed grasses found in wetlands throughout temperate and tropical regions of the world.
The need for a clearly defined and consistent invasion biology terminology has been acknowledged by many sources. Invasive species, or invasive exotics, is a nomenclature term and categorization phrase used for flora and fauna, and for specific restoration-preservation processes in native habitats. Invasion biology is the study of these organisms and the processes of species invasion.
Freshwater fish are those that spend some or all of their lives in fresh water, such as rivers and lakes, with a salinity of less than 1.05%. These environments differ from marine conditions in many ways, especially the difference in levels of salinity. To survive fresh water, the fish need a range of physiological adaptations.
An archaeophyte is a plant species which is non-native to a geographical region, but which was an introduced species in "ancient" times, rather than being a modern introduction. Those arriving after are called neophytes.
Grasses are one of the most abundant floras on all continents, except Antarctica. Their divergence is estimated to have taken place 200 million years ago. Humans have intentionally and unintentionally introduced these species to North America through travel and trade. On the North American plains, prairies, grasslands, and meadows at least 11% of grasses are non-native. North America is considered a hotspot for many invasive species of grasses, which threatens all of the endangered native grass species and potentially threatens other grass species. Conservation tactics and management policies can help prevent invasive species from taking over and driving native North American plants to extinction.
Genetic pollution is a term for uncontrolled gene flow into wild populations. It is defined as "the dispersal of contaminated altered genes from genetically engineered organisms to natural organisms, esp. by cross-pollination", but has come to be used in some broader ways. It is related to the population genetics concept of gene flow, and genetic rescue, which is genetic material intentionally introduced to increase the fitness of a population. It is called genetic pollution when it negatively impacts the fitness of a population, such as through outbreeding depression and the introduction of unwanted phenotypes which can lead to extinction.
Agricultural pollution refers to biotic and abiotic byproducts of farming practices that result in contamination or degradation of the environment and surrounding ecosystems, and/or cause injury to humans and their economic interests. The pollution may come from a variety of sources, ranging from point source water pollution to more diffuse, landscape-level causes, also known as non-point source pollution and air pollution. Once in the environment these pollutants can have both direct effects in surrounding ecosystems, i.e. killing local wildlife or contaminating drinking water, and downstream effects such as dead zones caused by agricultural runoff is concentrated in large water bodies.
Island ecology is the study of island organisms and their interactions with each other and the environment. Islands account for nearly 1/6 of earth’s total land area, yet the ecology of island ecosystems is vastly different from that of mainland communities. Their isolation and high availability of empty niches lead to increased speciation. As a result, island ecosystems comprise 30% of the world’s biodiversity hotspots, 50% of marine tropical diversity, and some of the most unusual and rare species. Many species still remain unknown.
Biodiversity loss happens when plant or animal species disappear completely from Earth (extinction) or when there is a decrease or disappearance of species in a specific area. Biodiversity loss means that there is a reduction in biological diversity in a given area. The decrease can be temporary or permanent. It is temporary if the damage that led to the loss is reversible in time, for example through ecological restoration. If this is not possible, then the decrease is permanent. The cause of most of the biodiversity loss is, generally speaking, human activities that push the planetary boundaries too far. These activities include habitat destruction and land use intensification. Further problem areas are air and water pollution, over-exploitation, invasive species and climate change.
Climate change and invasive species refers to the process of the environmental destabilization caused by climate change. This environmental change facilitates the spread of invasive species — species that are not historically found in a certain region, and often bring about a negative impact to that region's native species. This complex relationship is notable because climate change and invasive species are also considered by the USDA to be two of the top four causes of global biodiversity loss.
Disease ecology is a sub-discipline of ecology concerned with the mechanisms, patterns, and effects of host-pathogen interactions, particularly those of infectious diseases. For example, it examines how parasites spread through and influence wildlife populations and communities. By studying the flow of diseases within the natural environment, scientists seek to better understand how changes within our environment can shape how pathogens, and other diseases, travel. Therefore, diseases ecology seeks to understand the links between ecological interactions and disease evolution. New emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases are increasing at unprecedented rates which can have lasting impacts on public health, ecosystem health, and biodiversity.
In biology, overabundant species refers to an excessive number of individuals and occurs when the normal population density has been exceeded. Increase in animal populations is influenced by a variety of factors, some of which include habitat destruction or augmentation by human activity, the introduction of invasive species and the reintroduction of threatened species to protected reserves.
An escaped plant is a cultivated plant that has escaped from agriculture, forestry or garden cultivation and has become naturalized in the wild. Usually not native to an area, escaped plants may become invasive. Therefore, escaped plants are the subject of research in invasion biology.
References
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- 1 2 Da Lage, Antoine; Métailié, Georges (2015). Dictionnaire de biogéographie végétale. French National Centre for Scientific Research. p. 47. ISBN 9782271085870.
- ↑ Wagner, Warren L.; Herbst, Derral R.; Sohmer, Sy H. (1999). Manual of the Flowering Plants of Hawai'i (Revised ed.). Hololulu: Bishop Museum Press.
- ↑ Pyšek, Petr; et al. (Vojtěch Jarošík, Philip E. Hulme, Ingolf Kühn, Jan Wild, Margarita Arianoutsou, Sven Bacher, Francois Chiron, Viktoras Didžiulis, Franz Essl, Piero Genovesi, Francesca Gherardi, Martin Hejda, Salit Kark, Philip W. Lambdon, Marie-Laure Desprez-Loustau, Wolfgang Nentwig, Jan Pergl, Katja Poboljšaj, Wolfgang Rabitsch, Alain Roques, David B. Roy, Susan Shirley, Wojciech Solarz, Montserrat Vilà, and Marten Winterd) (2010). "Disentangling the role of environmental and human pressures on biological invasions across Europe". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America . 107 (27): 12157–12162. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1002314107 . PMC 2901442 . PMID 20534543.
- 1 2 Martin-Albarracin, Valeria L.; Amico, Guillermo C.; Simberloff, Daniel; Nuñez, Martin A. (2015). "Impact of Non-Native Birds on Native Ecosystems: A Global Analysis". PLOS One . 10 (11): e0143070. Bibcode:2015PLoSO..1043070M. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0143070 . PMC 4648570 . PMID 26576053.
- ↑ Martin-Albarracin, Valeria L.; Nuñez, Martin A.; Amico, Guillermo C. (2015). "Replacement of native by non-native animal communities assisted by human introduction and management on Isla Victoria, Nahuel Huapi National Park". PeerJ . 3: e1328. doi: 10.7717/peerj.1328 . PMC 4662593 . PMID 26623176.
- ↑ List compiled from the Global Invasive Species Database, compiled by the Invasive Species Specialist Group (ISSG) group 'IUCN
- ↑ Mooney, Harold A.; Cleland, E. E. (2001). "The evolutionary impact of invasive species". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America . 98 (10): 5446–5451. Bibcode:2001PNAS...98.5446M. doi: 10.1073/pnas.091093398 . PMC 33232 . PMID 11344292.
- ↑ Fehr, Vincent; Buitenwerf, Robert; Svenning, Jens-Christian (November 2020). "Non-native palms (Arecaceae) as generators of novel ecosystems: A global assessment". Diversity and Distributions. 26 (11): 1523-1538 (. Bibcode:2020DivDi..26.1523F. doi: 10.1111/ddi.13150 . JSTOR 26937448.
- ↑ Marion, Loïc (April 2013). "Is the sacred ibis a real threat to biodiversity? Long-term study of its diet in the introduction zone compared to its area of origin". Comptes Rendus Biologies (in French). 336 (4): 207–220. doi:10.1016/j.crvi.2013.05.001. PMID 23849724.
- ↑ Stefanowicz, Anna M.; Stanek, Małgorzata; Majewska, Marta L.; Nobis, Marcin; Zubek, Szymon (2019). "Invasive plant species identity affects soil microbial communities in a mesocosm experiment". Applied Soil Ecology. 136: 168–177. Bibcode:2019AppSE.136..168S. doi:10.1016/j.apsoil.2019.01.004. S2CID 91818852.
- ↑ Langmaier, Magdalena; Lapin, Katharina (2020). "A Systematic Review of the Impact of Invasive Alien Plants on Forest Regeneration in European Temperate Forests". Frontiers in Plant Science. 11: 524969. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2020.524969 . PMC 7509433 . PMID 33013958.