Biodiversity and and human human Biodiversity well- -being being well Patricia Balvanera Balvanera Patricia Center for for Ecosytem Ecosytem Research Research (CIECO) (CIECO) Center National University University of of Mexico Mexico (UNAM) (UNAM) National pbalvanera@cieco.unam.mx pbalvanera@cieco.unam.mx
Our planet planet has has been been Our deeply transformed transformed to to deeply cope with with the the increasing increasing cope demand from from human human demand societies societies
We have crossed various planetary boundaries of unacceptable environmental change Current condition Safe operating space Exceeded boundaries Rockstrom et al. 2009 Nature 461: 472-475
Extinction rates are much higher today than in the past and will increase in the near future Number of extinctions per million years per species Future Similar to 1000 times higher Present rates 10 to 100 Times higher Past rates Pereira et al. 2010. Science DOI science.1196624
This biodiversity biodiversity loss loss is is This likely to to have have negative negative likely consequences on on human human consequences well- -being being well
Biodiversity is linked to human well-being because it affects the ability of ecosystem to provide benefits or services to societies COMPONENTS OF BENEFITS SOCIETIES HUMAN WELL-BEING OBTAIN FROM ECOSYSTEMS BI ODI VERSI TY Millennium Ecosystem Assessment 2005
Biodiversity is the variability among living organisms Diversity at different Different types of diversity levels of organization Number of species Genetic diversity Relative abundance within populations Composition Population diversity within species Range of functional Species diversity traits within communities Spatial distribution Community diversity within landscapes Vertical diversity Biome diversity Díaz et al. 2006 PLOS 4:277
Ecosystem processes and services underpin well-being Ecosystem processes: Ecosystem services: the interactions among abiotic benefits people obtain from and biotic components of ecosystems ecosystem Resources that can be consumed, Basic ecological accounted for processes that underpin ecosystem Processes that functioning and regulate the the ability to variability in deliver ecosystem conditions ecosystem services Benefits that arise from Human-ecosystem relationships Millennium Ecosystem Assessment 2005, Maass et al 2005, Chan et al. prep.
Human well being can be assessed through its constituents The relative importance of these constituents of well-being varies among stakeholders and among societies Millennium Ecosystem Assessment 2005
We will analyze what we know about the links between biodiversity and well-being at various spatial scales REGIONAL LANDSCAPE LOCAL BI ODI VERSI TY HUMAN ECOSYSTEM ECOSYSTEM WELL- PROCESSES SERVICES BEING
The availability of information on the topic is uneven Biodiversity and Biodiversity and ecosystem services Human well-being 800 800 Number of publications 600 600 400 400 200 200 0 0 Local Landscape Regional Local Landscape Regional Only a small fraction of these references provide information relevant to the posed question ISI Web of Knowledge 2010
The links between biodiversity and ecosystem processes is very well know. That for ecosystem services is not so well known LOCAL BI ODI VERSI TY ECOSYSTEM ECOSYSTEM PROCESSES SERVICES
Experimental studies have allowed the exploration of the links between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning There has been an exponential increase in the number of publications from experiments
What is the shape of the relationship? The dominant shape has been the rivet one Cardinale et al. in press American Journal of Botany
What is the direction of the relationship? 103 studies (1954-2004) ca. 450 diversity “effects” r Ecosystem Function Species richness Balvanera, Pfisterer, Buchman, He, Nakashizuka, Rafaeeli, Schmid 2006 Ecology Letters 9: 1146–1156
Response to Ecosystem Ecosystem Number of measurements increasing biodiversity service property 0 80 - 1 1 40 0 - Plants 1 º Producer productivity abundance º Micorrhiza 1ª/2ª/3ª 1 º Consumer abundance º 2 º Consumer abundance º Erosion control Plant root biomass Mycorrhiza abundance Nutrient cycling Decomposer activity Decomposer Plant nutrient concentration Nutrient supply from soil Multitrophic Biological diversity 1º Consumer diversity Regulation of 1° Consumer (Plant disease severity) Decomposer diversity (Invader fitness) 1ª Consumers (Invader diversity) Consumption resistance Stability Invasion resistance Drought resistance Resistance to other disturbances Natural variation Balvanera et al. 2006 Ecology Letters 9: 1146–1156
We found clear positive We found clear positive effects of biodiversity on effects of biodiversity on most ecosystem services most ecosystem services analyzed analyzed These effects effects were were analyzed analyzed These accross multiple multiple ecosystem ecosystem types types, , accross multiple trophic trophic levels levels, , and and multiple multiple functions functions pointing pointing multiple towards consistency consistency towards Yet, little is known for many types of ecosystems, e.g. very diverse systems such as tropical forests
We are analyzing links between biodiversity and ecosystem services for successional tropical forests Aboveground carbon storage Total accum ulated carbon 3.E+ 05 Increasing richness and Old growth-forest magnitude ( Kg/ ha) 2.E+ 05 of service Late along successional succession 1.E+ 05 Early successional Pasture 0.E+ 00 0 20 40 60 80 Cum m ulative species richness Balvanera et al 2005 Ecological Applications 15:360-375, Balvanera et al in prep.
Much less is known for the links to well-being at the local scale How different components of well-being are related to biodiversity? LOCAL BI ODI VERSI TY ? HUMAN ECOSYSTEM ECOSYSTEM WELL- PROCESSES SERVICES BEING
Little is known on the links between biodiversity, ecosystem services and well-being at landscape scales LANDSCAPE BI ODI VERSI TY HUMAN ECOSYSTEM ECOSYSTEM WELL- PROCESSES SERVICES BEING
Biodiversity within mangroves provides human well-being Coastal protection Mangroves provide habitat for fisheries Decreasing shrimp farming Profit as mangrove area increases Barbier et al. Science 319: 321
Biodiversity is a direct source of food, fuel, medicine for rural populations of the world EXAMPLE NUMBER OF NUMBER OF EXAMPLE NUMBER OF NUMBER OF NON- -TIMBER TIMBER PEOPLE NON PEOPLE FOREST BENEFITED FOREST BENEFITED PRODUCTS PRODUCTS Various components San Lorenzo San Lorenzo 397 397 200 200 Of well-being Pá P ápalo palo Basic materials Mexico Ca 7,000 7,000 22,000,000 Mexico Ca 22,000,000 Health Security Good social-relations World 300,000,000 World 300,000,000 Solís 2006 MSc Thesis, Balvanera et al. 2009 Capital Natural de México
Biodiversity within Satoyama and Sataoumi is important for human well-being High species diversity Multiple Wide components variety of Satoyama of Well- Sataoumi ecosystem being services Basic materials High diversity of Health communities/ Security Good social-relations ecosystems Japan Satoyama Sataoumi Assessment 2010
Biodiversity is is important important Biodiversity to services services and and well well- -being being to at landscape landscape scales scales, , at though the the patterns patterns are are though not simple simple not
Some studies have analyzed the link between biodiversity, ecosystem services and well-being at regional scales REGI ONAL BI ODI VERSI TY HUMAN ECOSYSTEM ECOSYSTEM WELL- PROCESSES SERVICES BEING
The higher the biodiversity the lower the disease incidence Bacteria Tick Borrelia burgdorferi White-footed mouse Ostfeld & Keesing. 2000. Conservation Biology 14: 722–728 ( Peromyscus leucopus )
Many studies have now confirmed the links between biodiversity loss and increased disease transmission A- host/vector abundance B- host/vector/parasite behaviour Kessing et al. 2010 Nature 468:647-652
Many studies to date have mapped biodiversity and delivery of multiple ecosystem services
Patterns of corrrelations between biodiversity and ecosystem services are not clear cut Low overall correlation between biodiversity and services- California Chan et al 2006 PLOS 4 e379
Only services Both High spatial variance in concordance or discordance Only biodiversity Turner et al 2007 BioScience 57: 868-873
100Km 2 100Km 2 Recreation Carbon Agriculture Value 4Km 2 Spatial co-variance among services change with resolution and service - UK Anderson et al 2009 J Appl Ecol 46 888–896
Future scenarios for biodiversity and for ecosystem services have been developped to inform decision making Nelson et al 2009 Front Ecol Environ 7: 4–11
Yet models that predict impacts on ecosystem services based on changes in biodiversity are not yet available Pereira et al. 2010. Science DOI science.1196624
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