In the ideal world we would all live in harmony with wildlife and nature would thrive as it is intended. Unfortunately, our negative impact on this planet has caused detrimental effects and irreversible changes to the planet. Ecosystems are being destroyed at alarming rates and species are vulnerable to extinction or are already extinct in the wild.
From a conservation point of view, it is very difficult to monitor and manage every aspect of biodiversity, instead shortcut strategies have been put in place to help protect a single species. The ‘species approach’ is one approach to establishing conservation priorities by protecting particular species and in doing so, protecting an entire biological community. A protected area is created in order to protect an individual species of concern, such as a rare species, endangered species, keystone species or an indicator species. This week’s #factfriday will look into the species approach conservation strategy and how it can help with conservation efforts.
‘Protecting umbrella species, like the African elephant, other species are indirectly protected that make up the ecological community‘.
Indicator, flagship, keystone and umbrella species
Using the species approach in conservation can identify ‘focal species’, these are species that provide the impetus to protect an area and entire ecosystems, these include indicator species, flagship species and umbrella species.
An indicator species is a species that provides information on the overall health of an ecosystem. In a previous #factfriday blog post, the Pickersgill’s reed frog is an indicator species because of its sensitivity to slight changes in their ecosystem thus, providing warning signs to scientists of impending ecological shifts.
A flagship species are often large, well-known species that is regarded as one of the ‘charismatic megafauna’. Flagship species act as an ambassador, icon or symbol for a defined habitat, environmental issue or cause and campaign. A flagship species is seen as the species that are more cared about and raising awareness of this species may encourage people to want to help. Flagship species include the Panda, Lion, Elephant and Polar bear, these species have been the focus of many conservation campaigns and documentaries to help raise awareness of environmental issues. The focus is primarily on the socio-economic nature of the concept to support the marketing of conservation efforts to a particular area. The truth is people are more likely to want to help a Lion or Elephant over a small species of Frog like the Pickersgill’s reed frog.
David Attenborough’s interview with the BBC back in 2006 highlighted the issues with conserving a single species.
“I think that the notion that conservation is restricted to single charismatic species is misguided. Our efforts should be turned not to a single species, but entire ecosystems”.
Keystone species are species that plays an essential role in the structure, functioning or productivity of a habitat or ecosystem at a defined level (i.e. habitat, soil, seed dispersal, etc. The African elephant is a keystone species, they have a huge influence on their ecosystem. They are ecosystem engineers, they uproot trees and trample dense grassland, making room for smaller species to co-exist. During times of little rainfall, elephants also dig up dry riverbeds, creating water holes that can be used by other wildlife. They also aid seed dispersal in their dung as they travel vast distances which helps with vegetation growth. Many species would suffer without elephants who are vital for their ecosystem.
Since African elephant’s roam and inhabit large areas, their protection as a flagship and keystone species extends to other species within their range, making them what is known in conservation as an ‘umbrella species’. These ecosystem engineers control resource availability for other species by modifying the physical environment around them by transforming, maintaining and creating habitats for other species. Therefore, by protecting umbrella species, like the African elephant, other species are indirectly protected that make up the ecological community.
Benefits and limitations to the ‘species approach’
By protecting a single species that has been identified as a keystone species, indicator species or umbrella species, other species are indirectly protected and more can be learnt about their ecosystem through studying of the species. By protecting species that are loved and more cared for provides more opportunities for support by stakeholders, more donations and more funding for research.
Many reserves are created for keystone species, providing protection to them and all the species that inhabit the area. Reserves also provide the opportunity of ecotourism, allowing people to see the wildlife in their natural habitat, learning about the species and help fund conservation projects. People are more likely to support species that they can see, understand or relate to. We are shown the detrimental effects poaching has on wildlife; therefore, we are able to learn and understand what needs to be done to help protect the threatened species. Sometimes the effects of pollution or climate change are less obvious, especially the effects it has on smaller vulnerable species.
There are widespread concerns that single species conservation biases the conservation efforts towards iconic, charismatic species at the expense of other more vulnerable or endangered species. Attention is steered towards these more favourable species and even though their protection may help protect other species, people remain unaware of them then the flagship species. Many smaller, less iconic species are going extinct and receive less funding for research then the flagship species that receive more public attention.
Every species plays an important role in their ecosystem, just because they are not identified as a ‘keystone’ species, they should be protected nonetheless. The species approach has many benefits and is an important strategy for conservation of endangered species and their habitat. It holds a invaluable place in conservation but more could be done to achieve greater awareness of other, less favourable species. Awareness is key for the protection of our wildlife and their ecosystems. Conservation is more complex than simply saving African elephants, Lions or Whales it is finding ways to protect a biological community by raising awareness in a way people will listen and want to help.
Come back next Friday for more interesting facts, #factfriday !
Resources
- African Wildlife Foundation. 2020. Elephants Are The Pillars Of Africa’S Ecosystems And They Need Our Support. [online] Available at: <https://www.awf.org/blog/elephants-are-pillars-africas-ecosystems-and-they-need-our-support> [Accessed 3 September 2020].
- Primack, R., 2010. Essentials Of Conservation Biology. 5th ed. Sunderland, Mass.: Sinauer Associates.
