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? By way of example, there are more species of flowering plants in the Fitzgerald River National Park than in the United Kingdom, contributing to the South West of WA being one of only 34 Global Biodiversity Hotspots(and the only in Australia), defined as geographical regions that have at least 1,500 vascular plant species and have lost at least 70% of their original supporting habitat. But with changes to the way we source, produce, use and store energy, just what is in store? There are other good reasons for bringing farmers on board for conservation. SUBTERRANEAN FAUNA CONSERVATION. "Many, many species will be lost." Bringing farmers like Bruce and Mark on board for conservation is a key step in halting biodiversity decline and an important way to link fragmented habitats. In this section, find out everything you need to know about visiting the Australian Museum, how to get here and the extraordinary exhibitions on display. An estimated 10 % of Perths original wetlands remain. When the environment changes down on the plains, it changes uniformly over a bigger area. A new study reveal why this may be the case. Since the arrival of Europeans in Australia, just over 200 years ago, there has been an extraordinary increase in the rate of environmental change and in the loss of biodiversity. Provisions that replace those existing under the Wildlife Act and Sandalwood Act (including threatened species listings and controls over the taking and keeping of native species) and their associated Regulations cannot be brought into effect until the necessary Biodiversity Conservation Regulations have been made. It needs funding, but it could be the most exciting project of this kind in the world in terms of an innovative way to counter the unquestioned threat to the survival of a species through climate change, he says. On 2 December 2016, several parts of the new Act were proclaimed and came into effect on 3 December 2016. Melbourne Universitys Kylie Soanes and Will Sowersby, tag a squirrel glider near Kyeamba, NSW. 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. Australia is the only western country to have large areas of rainforest intact. Donate. Minister backs down in fight to keep WA live sheep exports afloat. There is a similar sort of argument about rewilding bringing the wolves back to Yellowstone Park so that you cull some of the herbivores and allow the balance of nature to come back again. Using his palaeontology background, Mike has devised a bold and potentially controversial plan to save the species. WWF's 2020 Living Planet Report held some alarming news: The world has seen an average 68% drop in mammal, bird, fish, reptile, and amphibian populations since 1970. Australia among seven nations responsible for more than 50 per cent of global biodiversity loss, Catch up with The Loop, your quick wrap of this morning's news. The World Wildlife Fund argues that Perth may be the wildlife capital of the world, with over 2,100 plant species, 15 amphibian species and 156 native birds , with seasonal influxes from visiting seabirds and migrating shorebirds (World Wildlife Fund 2013). Basically we are talking about how to sensibly use a finite resource, the landscape, in support of people. Other, bolder, more aggressive ideas such as relocating species outside their known ranges and co-opting alien species to help battle native declines come from left field. Our efforts to protect individual threatened species seem to be going backwards, he says. Robyn Williams: Richard Fuller is Professor of Biology at the University of Queensland. 200, pp. Well, at the University of Queensland there is a special biodiversity lab, and it is headed by Professor Richard Fuller. Many farmers may be contributing to the landscape without even knowing it. For them, the goal is to leave their land in a much better state than when they inherited it. Richard Fuller: My own conservation philosophy is that the world becomes a poorer place every time we lose a species from it. Such connections are a major focus of some new conservation approaches. We also work extensively across a wide range of environments and climates around the world. Its a refuge where family and friends can come and connect with the environment, says Marcia. Since the arrival of Europeans in Australia, just over 200 years ago, there has been an extraordinary increase in the rate of environmental change and in the loss of biodiversity. E-cigarettes pose a triple threat to the environment, says Clean Up Australia waste report, Australian Geographic Society Expeditions, Entries now open for the Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year competition, Environmentalists, Conservationists and Scientists. A variety of grants are already available as incentives from public and private bodies. The main factor in the loss of biodiversity is the increased rate of population growth. This steep and rocky 20 ha property of apple box and red stringybark woodland is on the western edge of the Snowy Mountains. We really have to aggressively get over our conservatism, because its at the tremendous expense of the survival of species, he says. It helps us fight climate change and adapt to it as well reduce the impact of natural hazards. Robyn Williams: And what else, apart from birds? Companies; Markets; The economy; . This is a last chance decade for both biodiversity and climate: up to one million species are threatened by extinction . They are missing a poltergeist, if you like; they were there and they should be there. Remaining obstacles include getting legislative approval from parks authorities and finding sponsors to cover the costs of the breeding facilities and enclosures. Land-use change for urbanisation, agricultural, minerals and industrial development. Its better that we try [Mikes] method now, than wish we had in 10 years time. But tell me, without being supercilious, do you have fly spray in your house? By examining extinction rates in the fossil record and Australias relationship to the size of different islands, Mike has calculated that to give all Australian species a good chance of surviving whatever the future throws at them will require a minimum of about 1.5 million sq. We pay our respects to Elders both past and present. The Eastern Curlew pictured here at Roebuck Bay near Broome, Western Australia is critically endangered. The loss of wetlands that began in 1829, and continues into the present day, is a deciding factor in Perth being able to retain its status as a biodiverse city. Thank you for reading. So we are certainly facing enormous challenges, but I am also optimistic, I do see strong responses to that, both at governmental level but really driven by a groundswell of change, and I think that connection between people and nature is really fundamental, and enhancing that connection enables us to articulate more clearly and argue more persuasively for change at the highest level. But its going to really catch up to other farmers who have been flogging the land.. And climate change, which hasn't been the biggest driver of biodiversity loss so far, is expected to take that role in the decades . And we play around with the way the world works at our peril, and we may find ourselves being unable to reverse the situation or control the situation when repeated studies have shown us that we are close to planetary tipping points of human pressure on the environment, whether that's through climate change, through human consumption patterns, through us driving species extinct without any real sense of the role that those species play in our own life-support, let alone the support of the ecological systems on Earth. Many bird species have been lost in Victoria, Queensland, New South Wales, Western Australia and the Mount Lofty Ranges in South Australia. For millennia, humans have been reshaping ecosystems, directly . There is no question that charismatic biodiversity is a great communicator to the public at large about the beauty and the wonder, but I think it's incredible when you start to tell stories of some of our more obscure species on this planet and reveal those stories and tell them in a compelling way, as E. O. Wilson did, for example, with ants, it could really put those things on the map and could really excite people's interest. He is drawn to unusual projects, which he describes as walking out on the edgewhere a lot of the good science is. Their property, which falls within the key Slopes to Summit area of the GER corridor, supports species such as the gang gang cockatoo and agile antechinus. live, learn and work. Developed by a partnership of the UK Business & Biodiversity Forum, IEMA, RSPB, WSP, the Aldersgate Group and . 44-50. 1).It experiences a strongly Mediterranean climate with frequent droughts (Saunders et al., 1993, Hobbs and Cramer, 2003) and is part of the South West Australian Floristic Region, a recognized global biodiversity hotspot (Mittermeier et al . Iain Gordon, a biodiversity expert with the CSIRO in Townsville, says land quality is as important as quantity. White Spider Orchid Lower Swamp (Frog Swamp) North Lake Reserve 2014 We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work. Extinctions of species have been occurring since the first life forms evolved. My guess is that Burramys will find any number of things to eat because theyve always been in lowland rainforest. We have an obligation to look after them and the land looks after us, Bruce says. Come and explore what our researchers, curators and education programs have to offer. Conservation, D. o. The Southwest Australia Ecoregion is a triangular corner of WA, most of which is to the west of a line drawn from Shark Bay to Esperance. 14 million ha in the 280-600 mm rainfall zone of south-western Australia (Fig. Some scientists believe that we are now witnessing the sixth mass extinction, the only mass extinction caused by a single species - humans. The Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions ( DBCA) is the Western Australian government department responsible for managing lands and waters described in the Conservation and Land Management Act 1984, the Rottnest Island Authority Act 1987, the Swan and Canning Rivers Management Act 2006, the Botanic Gardens and Parks Authority The GER will create opportunities for species to move as climate changes. "We found that conservation spending strongly reduced [the biodiversity decline score]," they stated. Established in 2002, we have a proven history in managing and delivering specialist environmental consulting services for . 2.2 Southwest WA is one of Australia's 15 national biodiversity 'hotspots' and the only biodiversity hotspot located in . These include: A primary cause of biodiversity loss is a general lack of public awareness and appreciation of biodiversity and its values, this disconnect with nature often results in a lack of empathy with our natural heritage, and biodiversity. But we are just one of many species on Earth, and our demand for resources - land, water, food, and shelter - shapes the environment for other wildlife too. "Native biodiversity is definitely improved by removing invasive plants and to a lesser extent invasive species.". Perth also has 71 reptile species and is believed to have more reptiles than any other urban area in the world, including the western swamp tortoise, which is WAs most endangered reptile (World Wildlife Fund 2013). Robyn Williams: Yes, the ants mean lunch and dinner for half the Australian population, including the furry ones. "What we've actually got is empirical proof that it's very easy to predict what is going to happen to your biodiversity based on this balance between the pressures and the money you put in to [limit the impact]," he said. "We can no longer say . [The] challenge is not to prognosticate about the height of the piles of dead species that will litter the wayside of the future if we stick with current strategies. I dont want Australians, particularly the younger generation, to feel so depressed about our current path that they cant be motivated to do things that have the capacity to result in a far brighter future. Biodiversity and Conservation Science staff have expertise in animal biology, animal breeding, aquatic ecology, biological survey, collections . Aborigines arent managing the bush [with fire] as they have done for thousands of years., Nigel Jones, who advises Bruce and Mark on the sustainable management of their land, agrees on the importance of farmland for biodiversity. AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time), abc.net.au/news/australia-biodiversity-loss-conservation/8987696, Your information is being handled in accordance with the, Get breaking news alerts directly to your phone with our app, Help keep family & friends informed by sharing this article, The devastating crime against children that's often facilitated by mothers, In a landmark legal outcome, this unusual and very beautiful evidence was crucial, Labor set a superannuation trap and Dutton immediatelytook the bait, Small businesses could soon be legally obligated to protect your personal details, Here's what the super tax changes will mean for you, British police find remains of baby during search for missing infant, The Loop: Harry and Meghan asked to leave UK home, Ukraine may pull out of Bakhmut, long-lost shipwreck found, 'I never imagined our life to be like this': Despair as tent living on city fringe the best option, One reason Australian wages are depressed? Human population growth is reducing biodiversity in the following ways: Many ecosystems have been lost during the past 200 years. Despite all we know, biodiversity loss is at an all-time high On The Science Show with Robyn Williams Students learn about food webs at school. unsustainable logging, hunting and fishing), pollution (e.g. Further down the line, if the breeding program is successful, the idea is to release them into lowland rainforests. Western Australia's unique biodiversity Western Australia's globally unique biodiversity Western Australia (WA) has a globally unique biodiversity characterised by significant regional endemism, meaning that we have plants and animals that only live in a particular location. It offers the biggest elevation range in Australia from a few hundred metres above sea level to more than 2200 m. It covers an array of environments from slopes and plains to mountain peaks, has some of our richest communities of species and is home to two-thirds of NSWs threatened plants and animals. I think it would be better to pool our diverse strengthsto envision and trial strategies that could turn it all around long before we reach that precipice, he says. "I knew there were a lot of threatened species in Australia, but I didn't realise things were getting worse so quickly.". Alphen, S. V. (2016, February 18). Biodiversity is valued by people for many reasons. During the past 24 million years, close relatives of the mountain pygmy possum have been common throughout Australias lowland rainforests. Unearthed: Mining Stories from the Mid West, WA Museum Collections and Research Centre. 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. 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. Pollution: Garbage dumped into the water supply, chemical runoff from industrial applications, and air pollution from cars and factories all have a negative effect. Australia ranks as the second worst of the group, with a biodiversity loss of 5-10%. (Nigel Jackett), How tsunami have impacted Australias east coast and a new approach to limit the threat, Politicians unfairly maligned Robin Batterham, Submerged mats could dissipate energy of tsunami, Autonomous minibus and predicting the behaviour of pedestrians, Harry Butler honoured and how a scientist fell in love with a fossil, A tour of the antimatter factory and John Wheeler remembered. 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