Asia- Pacific by

Overview

rmcginty16 — 2014-05-19 21:17:25 UTC

- Over 1,600 islands in Asia- Pacific

- Land includes volcanic terrain

- Has over 8,000 species of vascular plants

- 1/2 are native to the region

- Vegetation: tropical and temperate rainforests, wetlands, grasslands and desert shrubs

- Animals - 360 species of birds, 85 species of mammals, 110 species of reptiles, 40 species of amphibian, 50 species of freshwater fish.

Human Impacts

rmcginty16 — 2014-05-19 21:24:58 UTC

- Drop in population numbers due to many different foreign logging companies destroying lowland forests.

- Over the past three decades only 25% of the island is still in good condition.

- Over 70 different languages and a diverse population, difficult for the residents of the area to communicate with one another over important issues

- miscommunications can result in issues that effect the species of the area/ region

- Alien species (ex. cats, pigs) are a problem to this area because they carry different diseases that harm the native animals of the area.

-Alien species disrupt the food chain cycle and disrupt the population of animals.

rmcginty16 — 2014-05-19 21:24:59 UTC

MLA Work Cited

rmcginty16 — 2014-05-19 21:25:15 UTC

A Trip Down Memory Lane. Digital image. A Trip Down Memory Lane. Blogspot, 7 Nov. 2012. Web. 19 May 2014. <http://kwekudee-tripdownmemorylane.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-melanesian-africans-of-solomon.html>.

"Conservation International." Conservation International. Web. 19 May 2014. <http://www.conservation.org/how/pages/hotspots.aspx>.

Digital image. Newmont Mining. Newmont Mining Corporation. Web. 19 May 2014. <http://www.newmont.com>.

Digital image. ABC Radio Australia. ABC Radio Australia. Web. 19 May 2014. <http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/international/>.

Map of Melanesia. Digital image. Peace: Pacific Info. Web. 19 May 2014. <http://www.peace-campaign.net/p/oceania.html>.Digital image. Eco-Business. Eco-Business, 2009. Web. 19 May 2014. <http://www.eco-business.com>.

McGinley, Mark. Map of the East Melanesian Islands. Digital image. The Encyclopedia of Earth. National Council for Science and the Environment, 22 Aug. 2008. Web. 19 May 2014. <http://www.eoearth.org/view/article/51cbed177896bb431f68fa5a/>.

McGinley, Mark. The Claret-breasted Fruit-dove. Digital image. The Encyclopedia of Earth. National Council for Science and the Environment, 22 Aug. 2008. Web. 19 May 2014. <http://www.eoearth.org/view/article/51cbed177896bb431f68fa5a/>.

Stanfield, James L. Aerial View of Melanesian Islands. Digital image. All Posters. Web. 19 May 2014. <http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Aerial-View-of-Melanesian-Islands-Posters_i3897813_.htm>.

Excessive Logging

rmcginty16 — 2014-05-20 00:45:48 UTC

- Past 3 decades close to 75% of the lowland forests have been destroyed due to both humans and other causes

- The clearing of agriculture in this way has put a major threat to population growth to many species in the area

Mining

rmcginty16 — 2014-05-20 00:47:34 UTC

- Poor management of deals with foreign companies

- Foolish governance over the regions natural resources

- Caused unnecessary damage to the area

Unsustainable Farming

rmcginty16 — 2014-05-20 00:51:25 UTC

- Numerous amounts of disease (over 3,000 types)

- spread mostly by species not native to the region

- Adaptive radiation

- Complex geographic placement

- Diverse development of islands.

- Mountain ranges, volcanoes, etc. make agriculture difficult.

- Habitats being poor in speices.

rmcginty16 — 2014-05-20 01:00:20 UTC

rmcginty16 — 2014-05-20 01:29:46 UTC

Conservation Actions

ataylor16 — 2014-05-20 03:06:15 UTC

-Nature conservancy manages marine protected areas

- World Wide fund for nature organizes resource conservation and development projects

- International and local NGDs work to conserve the region

rmcginty16 — 2014-05-20 03:07:49 UTC

Island Isolation

ataylor16 — 2014-05-20 03:14:12 UTC

- Native animals exponentially grew due to isolated islands and adaptive radiation

-No direct land contact with New Guinea, species mixed with long-distance immigrants and native lineages

-Platymantis frog, ancient "monkey faced" fruit bat, and Nesclopeus rail are absent from mainlands (all confined on single islands)

-Tree species absent because of deforestation

Vital Signs

ataylor16 — 2014-05-20 03:33:13 UTC

- Growth of economy and direct impacts on land have caused biodiversity levels to decrease in the East Melanesian Islands