Conservation International (CI) identified 25 biodiversity hotspots as areas harboring especially large numbers of
threatened and endangered plant and animal species.
endemic animal species combined with low rates of habitat conversion.
plant and animal species.
endemic plant species combined with high rates of habitat conversion.
Some conservationists have questioned the value of identifying biodiversity hotspots because
using different metrics of biological value leads to a different set of priority locations.
feasibility of successful conservation (for example, due to land costs, rule of law, or government corruption) was not considered.
this approach fails to consider the many services ecosystems (sometimes species-poor ecosystems) deliver to humanity.
of all of the above.
An ecoregion is a large area of land or water that
corresponds to geopolitical boundaries.
is delineated by features such as mountains, canyons, or rivers.
is characterized by a relatively distinct set of environmental conditions and species.
is none of the above.
Conservation planners commonly assume that efforts focused on a subset of well-chosen conservation targets will protect all, or least most, of the biodiversity in the ecoregion. Studies assessing the effectiveness of targeting a small number of species in a conservation plan have shown that
this approach is almost always successful.
targeting flagship species is a consistently better approach than targeting any other kind of indicator species.
targeting specific kinds of species is generally no better than targeting a random selection of species.
targeting butterfly species is sufficient to capture the diversity of plants, birds, and mammals.
The main goal of gap analysis is to identify
the best location for dispersal corridors.
priority areas for protection that harbor large concentrations of relatively unprotected conservation targets.
protected areas of low conservation value that could be traded up.
species that are well represented in current protected areas.
Conservation planners typically use computer algorithms to select a suite of priority sites for protection. These algorithms tend to select sites on the basis of
conservation value, regardless of land area or cost.
efficiency or, in other words, coming as close as possible to the stated conservation goals within a fixed budget of land area or money.
obtaining the largest possible area, given a fixed budget of money.
none of the above.
Conservation planners can incorporate the anticipated effects of climate change by identifying areas that
encompass both the current and the projected future distribution of conservation targets.
capture the entire spectrum of soil types, topographic features, and climatic conditions.
provide for the continuation of key ecosystem processes such as sediment retention along a river.
may achieve any of the above.
Conservation plans that prioritize the continued delivery of ecosystem services to people
may or may not protect large amounts of biodiversity, but opportunities for win-win outcomes exist.
are impossible to design.
also tend, by default, to protect large amounts of biodiversity.
are described by none of the phrases above.
Which of these statements about marine conservation planning is NOT accurate?
Marine ecoregions are distinguished more on the basis of seafloor features, rather than species occurrences.
Incorporating threats emanating from the terrestrial and freshwater environments can cause a major shift in conservation plans.
Conservation planning was initially focused on marine environments and only recently shifted to pay attention to terrestrial environments.