Know it to protect it: To protect biodiversity, managers must first know it: which species and habitats are where, how many there are, and which are in trouble. That knowledge is needed at two scales: global and regional.
The points to remember
- Global knowledge shows where species are richest, most endemic and most threatened, so effort goes there first.
- Regional and local knowledge shows which species live in a place, how many, and whether they are declining.
- It identifies endangered species and priority habitats, and what threatens them.
- It sets a baseline, so change can be measured and management can be judged.
- Without it, management can miss species or even make things worse.
Global
- The IUCN Red List: over 150 000 species assessed for extinction risk.
Regional
- A national survey of every breeding bird, repeated every few years.
Local
- Volunteers counting the plants and insects of one nature reserve.
Why some regions matter most
- Many endemic species, found nowhere else.
- Very high species richness: a large share of the world's biodiversity.
- Under high threat from logging, farming, hunting or building.
- Many ecosystems in one region.
- Natural capital and ecosystem services: tourism, food, carbon storage, flood control.
- Intrinsic value: its species have a right to exist.
Real example: about 90% of Madagascar's plants and animals, such as its lemurs, are endemic, and much of its forest has been cleared, so it is a top priority for conservation money.
Too vague to score: 'Ethical reasons' alone is too vague. 'Beautiful' counts only with a use, such as tourism. 'It has endangered species' or 'it is large' is not enough on its own.
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Knowledge of biodiversity is gathered by many people, not only professional scientists.
Who gathers it
- Citizen scientists: volunteers who record what they see, often with an app.
- Government-funded agencies: national park staff and national surveys, often required by law.
- Voluntary organisations: charities such as the WWF and local wildlife trusts run surveys and projects.
- Indigenous people and parabiologists: local people trained to find, record and identify species.
- International networks share data across borders, because species migrate and threats spread.
Real example: in the Christmas Bird Count, tens of thousands of volunteers across the Americas count birds each winter. The results show which species are declining.
Local knowledge plus science: Local and Indigenous people notice changes first and know why they happen. Real example: Indigenous rangers in Australia use traditional skills, such as tracking, to find and protect endangered species.
Law
- Many countries require a biodiversity survey before a new road or mine is allowed.
- Agencies must monitor protected species by law.
Ethics
- Whose knowledge counts: scientists' or local people's?
- Indigenous knowledge should be used only with the community's consent.
Remember it as: Volunteers, agencies, charities, local experts, and the whole world sharing data.
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Is it really there?: To confirm that a species is present, use a monitoring method: one that finds the animal or its traces.
Ways to confirm a species is there
- Camera traps: photos or video, without disturbing the animal.
- Field signs: tracks, droppings, hair, scratch marks, burrows.
- eDNA: DNA the species leaves in water, soil or snow.
- Sound recorders: for species with calls you can recognise.
- Live trapping and tagging (radio or GPS collars), by trained teams.
- Reports from rangers, local people or citizen scientists, checked by experts.
Real example: snow leopards are almost never seen, so researchers in Mongolia's mountains set camera traps along ridges; each leopard's spot pattern identifies it.
What citizen scientists use
- Keys and apps to identify species, with photos or sound recordings.
- Transects, quadrats, pitfall traps and kick sampling in rivers.
- Organised bird counts, nest monitoring and camera traps.
- Not tools that only measure abiotic factors (such as water acidity), and not questionnaires.
Monitor, not protect: Fences, guards and corridors protect a species; they do not confirm it is there. For [2], give two different methods, one sentence each.
Citizen science brings huge numbers of people into research. Real example: in the RSPB's Big Garden Birdwatch, hundreds of thousands of people in the UK count their garden birds for one hour each January, every year since 1979.
Strengths
- Many more people: far more data, over large areas and many years.
- Shows trends, such as a species declining or an invader spreading.
- Volunteers, so costs are low.
- Local people know where to look.
- Raises public awareness of local issues.
Limits
- Weak methods can cause errors, bias or disturbance.
- Many record only interesting or rare species.
- Popular places are surveyed far more.
- Limited knowledge: species misidentified.
- Irregular days and times; motivation fades.
- Managing the data needs experts and money.
Reading the chart: 78% search wetlands often, but only 18% search urban parks often. Rarer species, the wish to support conservation and more to learn draw volunteers to wetlands; parks hold mostly common species.
The verdict: Citizen science gives far more data than scientists could collect alone, but the data can be biased. It works best when an NGO or a government agency organises it, trains the volunteers and checks the records.
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Monitoring turns knowledge into numbers. Two calculations come up: a percentage change over time, and a region's percentage share of the species.
The formulas: Percentage change = (new − old) ÷ old × 100
Percentage share = part ÷ whole × 100
Four steps
- Write the formula first.
- Change: take the old number from the new one, then divide by the old number.
- Share: divide the part by the whole.
- Multiply by 100, add the % sign, and round only at the end.
Worked examples: Change: condors rose from 27 in 1987 to 561 in 2022. (561 − 27) ÷ 27 × 100 = 534 ÷ 27 × 100 = 1978%.
Share: 6 of the world's 7 sea turtle species are threatened. 6 ÷ 7 × 100 = 85.7%.
The most common slip is dividing by the new number. For a change, always divide by the old number.
How this comes up: Identify why a region matters for conservation [2]; outline how survey data could be used [1]; calculate a percentage change or share [1]; read a survey of citizen scientists and evaluate citizen science [1-4].
A city council asks residents to record the wildlife they see in their gardens with a phone app.
Evaluate the use of citizen science for collecting and monitoring biodiversity data in the city.
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See the mark-by-mark plan — for / against / judgement, with marking guidance — in study mode.
Evaluate means both sides: Give strengths and limits, then a judgement. Three strengths and no limit cannot reach full marks.