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Ch. 54 - Biodiversity and Conservation Ecology

Chapter 53, Problem 14

Do you drink coffee? A lot of people do—coffee is a major tropical crop, valued at over $100 billion per year. The most popular species of coffee, Coffea arabica, originated in Africa and is now planted extensively in Central and South America. The pest called the coffee berry borer beetle (Hypothenemus hampeii) moved along with the coffee and is a major problem for coffee farmers, sometimes destroying half of the coffee crop in mature plantations. The abundance of birds and other predators of borer beetles depends on how much natural forest is left within and around the coffee plantations. What is the approximate percentage increase in borer predators per hectare if forest cover is doubled from 15 to 30 percent?

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Hello, everyone. Here. We have a question that says nearly 20% of the Amazon Forest has been lost in the last years. The vast majority of the cleared land was earmarked for livestock ranching. Which of the following will happen as a result of increased deforestation in the Amazon rainforest. A it will cause habitat loss for many animals. This is correct. As we destroy the habitats of these animals, they will lose their homes. B It will increase the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. This is correct. When felled, burned or left to rot trees release sequester carbon. So B is correct. C it will affect the water cycle. The continuous loss of trees will break the water cycle and at least half of the remaining force will become savannah. So C is correct. So our answer here is D all are correct. Thank you for watching. Bye.
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Textbook Question

Do you drink coffee? A lot of people do—coffee is a major tropical crop, valued at over $100 billion per year. The most popular species of coffee, Coffea arabica, originated in Africa and is now planted extensively in Central and South America. The pest called the coffee berry borer beetle (Hypothenemus hampeii) moved along with the coffee and is a major problem for coffee farmers, sometimes destroying half of the coffee crop in mature plantations. Look at the graph.


Why did the researchers bother to collect data from the coffee shrubs before adding the nets to treatment plots to exclude birds?

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Textbook Question

Scientists around the world are collaborating to understand how deforestation, climate change, and natural processes will interact to affect one of the most productive and biodiverse ecosystems on Earth. Researchers have measured the effects of periodic forest fires on primary productivity in Amazon rain forest plots, comparing years with average precipitation and years with severe drought. Propose which controls would be necessary for such studies.

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Textbook Question

Scientists around the world are collaborating to understand how deforestation, climate change, and natural processes will interact to affect one of the most productive and biodiverse ecosystems on Earth. This box-and-arrow model summarizes some of the feedback links observed in the Amazon rain forest. Select True or False for the statements that follow, based on whether they are represented by the model. (Note that the boxes and arrows in this model are used differently than those in the nutrient cycle models). T/F The burning of fossil fuels increases atmospheric CO2. T/F Tree growth reduces atmospheric CO2. T/F The death of trees promotes the invasion of grasses. T/F An increase in CO2 increases the frequency of droughts. T/F Drought increases the frequency of forest fires.

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Textbook Question

Scientists around the world are collaborating to understand how deforestation, climate change, and natural processes will interact to affect one of the most productive and biodiverse ecosystems on Earth. Many studies have raised the concern that positive feedback loops among numerous variables in the Amazon will cause an ecosystem tipping point—a rapid and irreversible transition from forest to grassland. Use the model in Question 14 as a tool to summarize a possible sequence of effects that could cause a transition from forest to grassland.

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Textbook Question

Do you drink coffee? A lot of people do—coffee is a major tropical crop, valued at over $100 billion per year. The most popular species of coffee, Coffea arabica, originated in Africa and is now planted extensively in Central and South America. The pest called the coffee berry borer beetle (Hypothenemus hampeii) moved along with the coffee and is a major problem for coffee farmers, sometimes destroying half of the coffee crop in mature plantations. Draw a simple model to compare the relative species richness and species diversity of these two coffee plantations: one is clear-cut and planted with only coffee shrubs, the other retains some natural forest. For symbols, use a few letters to represent different species of plants and a few numbers to represent different species of animals in a square 1-ha plot.

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Open Question

This study suggests a form of sentience (the capacity to experience feelings and sensations) in bumble bees. How might these findings impact conservation policies?

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