For a long period of human history, man lived in a hunter-gatherer society, relying mainly on wildlife for nutrition. However, as agriculture and manufacturing grew in importance, the emphasis on biodiversity waned. Indeed, in both wild and domesticated forms, biodiversity provides most of humanity’s food, medicine, clothing, shelter and most of it’s cultural diversity and intellectual and spiritual inspiration.
Conservation
The protection, preservation, management or restoration of animals and natural resources such as forests and water is considered conservation. The existence of many species and habitats threatened by human activity can be secured through biodiversity conservation. Other motivations for biodiversity conservation include preserving valuable natural resources for future generations and ensuring the health of the ecosystem functioning.
Off-Site conservation definition
Ex-situ conservation means “off-site conservation.” It is the process of saving an endangered plant or animal by removing a portion of the population from a threatened environment and relocating it to a new location, which could be in the wild or under human care. While ex-situ conservation includes some of the oldest and most well-known conservation techniques, it also includes newer, sometimes contentious laboratory techniques. Ex-situ conservation is accomplished by establishing gene banks, including genetic resource centres, zoos, botanical gardens, cultural collections, etc.
Ex-situ or off-site conservation example
Many different types of infrastructure aid in the preservation of ex situ populations. Some of the most frequent are zoos and aquaria for animals and botanical gardens and seed banks for plants.
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Zoo: Zoos, zoological gardens, or zoological parks in which animals are contained within cages or semi-natural and open spaces, are on show to the public, and can reproduce. They are regarded as key means of protecting biodiversity by universalists and environmentalists. Many endangered species are bred in zoos to improve their numbers. Captive breeding in zoos has assisted in preventing the extinction of various species.
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Captive breeding: Captive breeding is an essential component of a species’ overall conservation action plan since it helps prevent the extinction of a species, subspecies or population. It is a comprehensive management strategy for threatened individuals, populations, and species due to anthropogenic and natural influences.
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Aquarium: An aquarium is a man-made environment for aquatic species. Hobbyists use aquariums to enjoy at home, as public exhibits and provide enormous amounts of human food and animal fodder.
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Botanical gardens: Botanical gardens comprise living plants that are grown outside or under glass in greenhouses and conservatories. They are generally used to grow and showcase plants for scientific and educational objectives. Botanical gardens allow for the cultivation of arable plants under substantially changed environmental conditions.
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Gene banks: Another management strategy used for biodiversity protection is genome resource banking. Depending on the materials conserved, many types of gene banks have been formed to preserve biodiversity.
Advantages of off-site conservation
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Organisms are safe from predators and poachers.
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Individuals’ health can be monitored and medical provided as needed.
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In calamities, populations can be more successfully regulated and divided.
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The population’s genetic diversity can be measured.
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Selective breeding programmes can be implemented.
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Modern reproductive technology has the potential to increase the likelihood of reproductive success.
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If a study on the reproductive physiology, lifestyle, and ecology of an endangered species is conducted, animals and plants can be bred to enhance their numbers. Their conservation sites can be utilised as fundraisers for future conservation efforts.
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Conservation areas can be used for educational purposes.
Disadvantages of off-site conservation
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Genetic diversity in captive populations is restricted.
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Animals can be exposed to a wide range of diseases while living outside of their natural habitat. Nutritional difficulties may occur.
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Animals may not behave normally, making reproduction problematic.
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Correct survival environmental conditions may be difficult to attain.
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Animals that are expensive to keep may not survive reintroduction into the wild. There may be issues with acceptance by the species’ existing wild members.
Conclusion
Ex-situ conservation, as previously stated, is the practice of conserving all levels of biological diversity outside of their native habitats through methods such as zoos, captive breeding, aquariums, botanical gardens and gene banks. It is critical in conveying issues, generating awareness and securing widespread public and political support for conservation measures and captive breeding of endangered species for reintroduction. Endangered plants and animals can find the conditions required to live longer lives with captive breeding and genetic techniques to create healthier and more productive species.