Conservation Paleoecology: Utilizing records of past ecosystems to inform modern management6/14/2017
Scientists can study the fossil record to learn about past ecosystems and to better inform decisions about management for the future. Conservation paleobiology is an emerging field that integrates paleontological data with current data in order to better understand how ecosystems change, including how they respond to human impacts. Paleobiological data are useful for defining the range of natural variability within ecosystems that existed prior to widespread human activity. We explored several drivers of ecosystem change and the ways in which conservation paleobiology can be utilized in understanding and responding to these changes. This week we explored the utility of conservation palaeobiology by focusing on a paper by Dietl et al. 2015 that outlines five processes that affect ecosystems and can be studied within the paleoecological record: habitat change, climate change, overexploitation, invasive species, and biogeochemical changes. For modern ecologists, it can be incredibly expensive and logistically challenging to conduct large studies for any period of time lasting longer than a year. Most graduate programs are only 4-6 years, and most grant cycles for research funds are 2-5 years with few exceptions. The palaeontological record therefore offers the advantage of observing ecosystems across longer time scales, including:
Another strength of accessing the paleontological record is that it allows for comparison with the rare but powerful long-term monitoring studies conducted by modern ecologists to put the observation of current changes in context. Furthermore, integrating paleoecological studies with studies of paleoclimate and paleoceanography (like those discussed in our other blog posts!) gives us context for the magnitude and rate of change occurring in modern ecological and climate systems. The fossil record can help us understand the timing of events, including biotic changes (e.g. the spread of invasive species), as well as abiotic factors (e.g. volcanic eruptions and gas emissions). The examination of past environmental change also allows us to separate “natural” states of climate change from human-induced environmental changes (e.g. past ocean acidification events are usually much slower than today). We developed the chart below to summarize our discussions of how studying ecosystem processes through the lens of paleoecology and paleoclimate can produce deliverable results that inform policy and management. The columns represent the major processes driving modern ecosystem change as defined by Dietl et al. 2015, and the blue boxes list the ways in which understanding these processes through the lens of paleoecology can be utilized to inform policy. To further explore this topic and to see specific examples of how paleoecological studies can provide management deliverables, see Dietl et al. 2015. To understand how long term, geologic information might be incorporated into marine conservation and management, we contacted Cyndi Dawson, at the California Ocean Protection Council, who noted, “Understanding both our recent and far past gives us the ability to understand current changes in context. We can see that the rate and magnitude of some changes we are seeing now is very different than what we have seen before. This can help us understand the drivers of change and allow us to think about ways to create informed policy that can help mitigate negative impacts to our environment.“
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ArchiveSea Levels: Past, Present and Future
How has El Niño changed in the past? Lessons from paleoclimate archives Paleoclimate into Policy: is there a bright future for learning from the past AuthorsWritten by the members of UC Davis GEL 232: K. Barclay, R. Banker, P. Edwards, C. Fish, K. Hewett, T. Hill, G. Hollyday, C. Livsey, H. Palmer, P. Shukla, D. Vasey. Categories
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