Introduction to Conservation Biology

I. Issues that Define the Discipline: What Is Conservation Biology?; What Is Biological Diversity?; Where Is the World's Biological Diversity Found?. II. Threats to Biological Diversity: Loss of Biological Diversity; Patterns of Rarity and Abundance; Threats to Biological Diversity: Habitat Destruction, Fragmentation, and Degradation; More Threats to Biological Diversity: Exotic Species, Disease, and Overexploitation; III. The Value of Biological Diversity: Direct Economic Value of Biological Diversity and Natural Resources; Indirect Economic Values; The Ethical Value of Biological Diversity. IV. Conservation at the Population Level: The Problems of Small Populations; Population Biology of Endangered Species. V. Practical Applications: What Can Be Done to Protect Biological Diversity in the Wild?; The Design of Conservation Areas; Managing Protected Areas for Biological Diversity; Preserving Biological Diversity Outside of Protected Areas; ExSitu Conservation Strategies; Establishing New Populations. VI. Conservation and Human Societies: How are Species and Habitats Legally Protected?; International Agreements; International Funding of Conservation Activities; Agenda For the Future.