This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced. Wetlands are the most productive of all biological systems and support a heterogeneous range of wildlife, both aquatic and terrestrial (Jennings 1996). SW Western Australia is one of the worlds major biodiversity hotspots. I'm also interested in the health and well-being benefits of experiences of nature, and we are showing increasingly that experiences of nature fundamentally underpin human health and well-being. Those areas that are most productive for farming are also the most productive for biodiversity.. We pay our respect to Aboriginal Elders and recognise their continuous connection to Country. White Spider Orchid Lower Swamp (Frog Swamp) North Lake Reserve 2014 by Samantha Mickan | Jun 25, 2018 | Environment, Download PDF:ISPL Insight WA unique biodiversity. This adds to the threat to biodiversity which has already been placed under stress by other human activities. What goes on there? Biodiversity and Conservation Science staff have expertise in animal biology, animal breeding, aquatic ecology, biological survey, collections . Australia is one of seven countries responsible for more than half of global biodiversity loss, according to a study published today. Western Australia; Travel Videos; Entertainment. Come and explore what our researchers, curators and education programs have to offer. "The predominant one is landclearing ongoing clearing for habitat. White Spider Orchid Lower Swamp (Frog Swamp) North Lake Reserve 2014 Image copyright Holly Story Black Swans (Cygnus atratus), Perth (WA), John Oldham Park, September 2006. That's a kind of fundamental underpinning for my own basis here. He is drawn to unusual projects, which he describes as walking out on the edgewhere a lot of the good science is. Biodiversity, or biological diversity, is a term used to describe the variety of living things in the natural environment: the different plants, animals and micro-organisms; the genes they contain; and the ecosystems in which they occur. For example, we look in our cities and we find that there are species that are thriving and doing really well out of the, let's face it, environmental destruction associated with bulldozing natural environments and turning them into cities. They've spent thousands of years honing these migration journeys to arrive at the right moment and in the right physiological condition. Climate Change: Changes . Everyday, more people need more space, consume more resources and generate more waste as world population continues to grow at an alarming rate. The sheer scale and intensity of the Australian bushfire crisis have led to apocalyptic scenes making the front pages of newspapers the world over. The excitement doesnt last long, though; a few camera flashes reveal the eyes belong to a common ringtail possum. Surely thats not a greater glider? exclaims one of our small party. So I'm fascinated by what constitutes a healthy relationship between people and nature and how can we enhance that to drive the conservation agenda forwards. The diverse landscape and extensive coastline of Western Australia provides abundant opportunities to study species in spectacular marine, freshwater and terrestrial environments. Similarly, Australia lost 5-10% of its biodiversity between 1996 and 2008 while high levels of deforestation to make way for agricultural plantations have particularly affected the species rich rainforests of Indonesia. RESEARCH INTO THE birds and mammals that pollinate banksias and eucalypts in south-west Western Australia is challenging existing theories on the region's enormous biodiversity. Professor Fuller, you glory in the name of a laboratory, the Fuller Laboratory at the University of Queensland. Human impact on Australia's biodiversity? Would you agree with him? Ian Pulsford explains that this animal already survives at the top of the regions elevation range, so there simply isnt anywhere for it to go. Humans rely on various plants, animals, and other organisms for food, building materials, and medicines, and their availability as commodities is important to many cultures. When we go away, theres such a beautiful feeling when we come back herethe smells and fragrances at different times of year, or when its wet it helps you get grounded and get rid of some of the stress of the city, Wayne says as we watch a horse cantering across a paddock far below. Such connections are a major focus of some new conservation approaches. This is a last chance decade for both biodiversity and climate: up to one million species are threatened by extinction . . But his plan is to try breeding the animals at ambient temperatures and then release them into a large outdoor enclosure at Secret Creek Sanctuary in Lithgow, NSW. The Australian Government promotes the conservation of threatened species and biodiversity through the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. Iain Gordon, a biodiversity expert with the CSIRO in Townsville, says land quality is as important as quantity. This is due to the States geographical expanse, climatic diversity, areas of relative wilderness, regions with extremely nutrient-impoverished soils, and the fact that significant areas of WA have not been covered by sea or glaciated over geological time. The researchers conceded that species native to multiple countries presented an obstacle to their calculations, but lead author Anthony Waldron says they were able to narrow down where the pressures were coming from. Many pastoral properties contain significant conservation values, both in the traditionally understood sense of biodiversity values but also [in the] ecosystem services they provide, such as being a source of fresh water, says Doug Humann, CEO of Bush Heritage. Of the 109 countries studied, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, China and the United States (primarily Hawaii) also ranked inside the top seven as the worst offenders on conservation. Environmental sustainability professor Barry Brook from the University of Tasmania said there were a number of pressures threatening biodiversity in Australia. At the University of Queenslands Fuller Biodiversity Lab, Richard Fuller, with colleagues and students studies the connection between people and nature. Biodiversity loss disrupts many ecosystem processes, such as community structure and interactions, and can cause ecosystem malfunctioning, ranging from reduced biomass productivity to weakening ecosystem resilience (1, 2).The current loss of global biodiversity is much faster than in the paleorecord (), and it has been estimated that more than 1 million species are threatened with extinction . Mark lived overseas for five years and found his way from London and Paris to the base camp of Mt Everest. For millennia, humans have been reshaping ecosystems, directly . The impact of current threatsis predicted to increase with loss of snow cover from global warming., In what Mike describes as a delicious irony, the species was only known in fossil form until 1966, when visitors to a Mount Hotham ski lodge spied a weird little animal running around a kitchen. For them, the goal is to leave their land in a much better state than when they inherited it. A key part of their approach has been to plant silver wattles and other trees that provide important habitat for gliders and threatened species such as migratory swift parrots, known to visit a neighbouring property. Robyn Williams: Apart from noisy miners, what sort of research are you doing at your lab? It is already threatened by feral cats, foxes, development and shrinking supplies of bogong moths one of its major food sources. But tell me, without being supercilious, do you have fly spray in your house? Red Sea and northern Australia. Did megafauna that used to roam Australia become extinct because of climate change or because of hunting? Did megafauna, such as Procoptodon (the giant short-faced kangaroo) or Diprotodon (the giant wombat-like marsupial), that used to roam Australia, become extinct because of climate change or because of hunting? Clearly, too many of our existing management practices for endangered species arent working. Some scientists believe that we are now witnessing the sixth mass extinction, the only mass extinction caused by a single species - humans. This is needed not only to provide the animals for the experiment but also to provide an insurance policy against sudden catastrophic wild declines; theyll also need to demonstrate that Burramys can breed in lowland rainforest conditions., Trevor Evans, of Secret Creek Sanctuary, says that current systems of saving endangered species need to be addressed, and thinks that Mikes left-field suggestion is a step in the right direction. Richard Fuller: I think there's no question that we've messed up almost every one of the Earth's planetary systems that govern the way nature works, and that means that intervention by us is often needed to keep things on an even keel or to return them to some kind of functional state. unsustainable logging, hunting and fishing), pollution (e.g. Contrast that with Southwest Australia, which harbours an astonishing 7,239 vascular plant species, almost 80% of which are found nowhere else in the world(Alphen, 2016). The landholders are Wayne Stokes and his partner Marcia Macartney, former public servants who moved here from Canberra almost two decades ago. Since living organisms interact in dynamic ecosystems, the disappearance of one species can have a far-reaching impact on the food chain. Conservation, D. o. I'm really interested in conservation, and conservation ultimately depends on repairing the broken relationship between people and biodiversity. Biodiversity is valued by people for many reasons. Get incredible stories of extraordinary wildlife, enlightening discoveries and stunning destinations, delivered to your inbox. Biological diversity or biodiversity is the term given to the variety of life on Earth. Biodiversity loss is the result of complex interactions between humans and nature, . All content copyright Government of Western Australia, All rights reserved. Write an article and join a growing community of more. An estimated 10 % of Perths original wetlands remain. We hope that we are leading by example in the way that we are managing it.. On Monday the papers carried a Reuters report on destruction in the Amazon. And so biodiversity and looking after the range of animals and plants and God knows what else is looking at a whole pattern. 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