IB Biology SL A4.2 Conservation of biodiversity questions

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Question 1

Multiple choiceMedium1 mark

In one case study, mixed dipterocarp forest in Southeast Asia is cleared for oil-palm plantations. In another, a local wetland is drained for housing as population growth increases demand for land. Which option identifies a direct cause in the forest case and an indirect human driver in the wetland case?

Show answer and explanation

Answer: D. A direct cause is the immediate land-use change; an indirect driver is an underlying human pressure that leads to that change. Clearing the mixed dipterocarp forest for plantations is direct. Population growth raises demand for land, indirectly driving wetland loss through drainage for housing. A: identifies the indirect demand for palm oil rather than the direct forest clearance. B: gives the immediate drainage action for the wetland, not its indirect driver. C: gives an indirect forest pressure and the direct wetland action, reversing both requested categories. Remember: distinguish the land conversion itself from the human pressure that motivates it.

Question 2

Paper 2Hard16 marks

Two case studies of ecosystem loss were investigated: mixed dipterocarp forest in Indonesian Borneo, Southeast Asia, and the wetlands of the Florida Everglades, USA. Field teams mapped the areas of these ecosystems in selected landscape regions in 1990 and 2020. The loss categories in Figure 1 are non-overlapping estimates of areas no longer mapped as the named ecosystem by 2020. All areas are rounded to the nearest 100 km².

In Borneo, roads were opened for timber extraction. Market demand for timber and palm oil encouraged extraction and plantation development. Some areas were burned to clear land.

In the Everglades, canals were built to drain land and alter water supply. Farming and urban areas expanded, increasing demand for land and water.

Mixed dipterocarp forest,Indonesian BorneoWetlands, FloridaEvergladesMapped status ordestination by 2020Mapped status ordestination by 2020Mappedecosystemarea in 199012 000Still mapped as mixeddipterocarp forest:7 200Converted to oil-palmplantation or cropland:2 600Selectively logged;mapped as secondaryvegetation: 1 200Burned in land-clearingfires; mapped as openscrub: 1 000Mappedecosystemarea in 19908 000Still mapped as wetland:5 000Converted to farmland:1 800Converted to urban ortransport land: 800Drained or canalized;mapped as dry or alteredhabitat: 400All values are in km²
(a)

Calculate the percentage of the 1990 ecosystem area that had been lost by 2020 in each case study.

[2]
(b)

Compare the largest category of ecosystem loss in each case study, using Figure 1.

[2]
(c)

Explain a causal chain linking an indirect human pressure to the loss of mixed dipterocarp forest in Indonesian Borneo. Use information from the stem and Figure 1.

[3]
(d)

Explain how drainage or canalization can cause loss of Everglades wetland even where the land is not mapped as farmland or urban land.

[2]
(e)

An adviser claims that preventing direct conversion of the remaining ecosystems to plantations, farms, or urban and transport land would be sufficient to prevent further ecosystem loss in both regions. Evaluate this claim using Figure 1 and the information in the stem.

[3]
(f)

Suggest one action for each case study and explain how each action could address a cause of ecosystem loss that would not necessarily be stopped by drawing a boundary around the remaining ecosystem.

[4]

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