NATURA MONTENEGRINA, PODGORICA, 4, 2005, 227-234 MAN ...

NATURA MONTENEGRINA, PODGORICA, 4, 2005, 227-234
MAN - THE THREAT TO BIODIVERSITY
R. A. BAKER. 1
SYNOPSIS
The paper describes the threat to biodiversity at two levels, global and regional. The
global extinction by man of icon species is described. The origins of the environmental
movement leading to the protection and conservation of species is then examined in an
historical context. Finally, the lakes in Macedonia are chosen as a regional example of a
fragile environment and a fauna, high in endemism, and threatened by man. For example,
increased human populations especially around Lake Ohrid have caused bacterial and
chemical pollution and shoreline habitat destruction and there has been overharvesting of the
commercial fish populations.
Keywords: extinction, endangered, habitat change, macedonian lakes, Ohrid, Prespa, Dojran.
SINOPSIS
ČOVJEK – PRETNJA BIODIVERZITETU
U radu su opisani načini ugrožavanja biodiverziteta na dva nivoa, globalnom i
regionalnom. Globalno izumiranje reprezentativnih vrsta izazvano djelovanjem čovjeka je
opisano. Porijeklo pokreta za zaštitu životne sredine koji vode zaštiti i održavanju vrsta je
razmatrano u istorijskom kontekstu. Na kraju, jezera u Makedoniji su izabrana kao regionalni
primjer krhkih ekosistema sa faunom, bogatom endemima, i ugroženom djelovanjem čovjeka.
Na primjer, uvećanje ljudske populacije, naročito u priobalju Ohridskog jezera dovodi do
bakterijskog i hemijskog zagađenja, uništavanja obalskih habitata, kao i prekomjernog izlova
komercijalnih populacija riba.
Ključne riječi: izumiranje, ugroženost, promjena habitata, makedonska jezera, Ohrid,
Prespa, Dojran.
1 School of Biology, University of Leeds, Leeds, Ls2 9jt, United Kingdom.

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EXAMPLES OF GLOBAL EXTINCTIONS
Man has been destroying nature since records began. He has collected, hunted, trapped,
shot, over-fished and polluted the environment in the name of progress and for his personal
greed and pleasure. In Roman times, exotic animals were sought, captured and brought back
to the empire to be let loose in amphitheatres for sport and leisure. In 1507 the Dodo, Raphus
cucullatus (L i n n a e u s ,1758) was discovered by europeans on the island of Mauritius but by
1693 it was extinct (B a k e r and B a y l i s s , 2002). Another bird from the Mascerene islands,
the Solitaire of Rodrigues, Pezophaps solitaria (G m e l i n , 1789) was discovered in 1625 and
was extinct by around 1750. The Great Auk, or northern penguin, Pinguinus impennis
(L i n n a e u s , 1758) from the North Atlantic suffered the same fate, the last known adults
were killed for collectors on the island of Eldey, off Iceland in 1844 (B a k e r , 1999). In the
nineteenth century the Passenger Pigeon, Ectopistes migratorius (L i n n a e u s , 1766) was
shot to extinction in the USA; the last captive bird dying in Cincinnati zoo in 1914. Of the
mammals, the icon species is the Tasmanian wolf (Thylacinus cynocephalus H a r r i s , 1808),
which became extinct because it ate sheep - shot before it received protection too late; the last
animal died in Hobart Zoo, Tasmania in 1936. These global examples give some idea of the
destruction by man and subsequent extinction of wild animals in nature. However, hunting
and shooting continue and commercial hunting for ivory, horns, skins, hides and other
products is on the increase.
The main extinctions take place on islands where native populations have been unable
to cope with the changes to the environment following the coming of man and his animals
(dogs, cats, and rats etc). Endemic species confined to remote single islands or small island
groups are especially vulnerable to environmental change when humans destroy or modify the
habitats. The Convention on Biological Diversity estimated in 2001 that 300-350 species of
vertebrate, 400 invertebrates and 650 plants had become extinct in the last four centuries. Of
these, there were roughly 85 mammals over 100 birds and about 80 fish. Within the
invertebrates, the greatest number of extinctions (230) are amongst the molluscs. Around 30
of the extinct birds come from three orders - the parrots, rails and pigeons, which can disperse
easily and are therefore found on islands.
Apart from hunting and killing, there are other more indirect ways in which man has
interfered with nature. Habitat destruction is regarded as one of the main contributors, leading
to the extinction, rarity or endangered status of many species. Deforestation, in order to grow
cash crops or rear cattle for profit, has led to the destruction of tropical rain forests at an
alarming rate. Wood and paper are required so forest destruction continues. A decade ago, 30
million acres a year of tropical rain forest was being destroyed. Alien or introduced species go
unchecked and sometimes explode in numbers. Many are stronger and more aggressive than
their native counterparts. Wilson gives several specific examples and describes "the rising
tide of alien species… in their own native land the immigrant species are held in check by
natural enemies and other population controls. Released from these restraints in the new, host
environment, a few explode in numbers and spread" ( W i l s o n , 2003).
The threat of climate change is one of the main issues of the day with global warming
on the political agenda. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, The
Kyoto Protocol, was adopted in 1992 and has been signed by 88 nations but not by the USA.

BAKER R. A.: Man - the threat to biodiversity
Greenhouse gases, mainly carbon dioxide from car exhaust emissions, continue to threaten the
world. The head of one of the worlds biggest oil companies, Ron Oxburgh, chairman of Shell,
announced in mid June that, climate change makes him, "really very worried for the
planet…no one can be comfortable at the prospect of continuing to pump out the amounts of
carbon dioxide that we are pumping out at present…with consequences that we really can't
predict" (The Guardian Newspaper, UK, 17 June 2004).
We are therefore losing biodiversity at an alarming rate as a result of man's activities
and in many parts of the world there are serious risks to the flora and fauna both in terms of
numbers and of the species themselves. Currently there is an air of crisis which suggests to
many scientists, but not all, that the world is approaching another mass extinction. The "Red
Lists" inform us that thousands of animals and plants are endangered, or at the very least of
vulnerable status. These lists (old name Red Data Books) were the result of at a meeting in
1949 at Lake Success, in the United States. The initial list included 14 mammals and 13 birds.
The first series of Red Data Books appeared in 1962. The lists now contain 18000 species
graded as critically endangered, endangered and vulnerable. Amongst the critically
endangered species there are thought to be about 170 mammals, the same number of birds and
roughly 350 invertebrates. These lists draw attention to the precarious state of our
environment and to the urgent need for conservation.
PROTECTION AND CONSERVATION
Man became aware of the serious nature of his destructive powers over 100 years ago
and of the need to protect the fauna and flora and the environment. Although industrialization
and urbanization led to the destruction of wildlife in cities and towns, wildlife conservation
began in Africa. 'Game' was the free resource to kill in Africa in the nineteenth century and
shooting was unregulated. Ironically many of the people who in their younger days shot
animals for sport became the people who began to protect them. They realised that the
uncontrolled hunting and shooting of 'game' had caused damage and had gone on for too long.
In 1903 the Society for the Preservation of the Wild Fauna of the Empire (now Fauna and
Flora International) was formed. The movement for environmentalism and conservation
gathered pace after World War 2 and led to the foundation of several international
organizations. The International Union for the Protection of Nature was founded in 1948
changing its name to IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) in 1956. The
World Wildlife Fund (WWF) began in 1961 (and became The World Wide Fund for Nature in
1986). In the same year a group of european conservationists met at Morges, Lake Geneva, in
Switzerland and produced what is known today as the Morges Manifesto, which briefly
summarized is as follows - "All over the world today, vast numbers of fine and harmless
creatures are losing their lives…as a result of thoughtless and needless destruction …they are
being shot or trapped out of existence…poisoned by toxic chemicals…killed by poachers for
gain or destroyed in the course of political upheaval".
The Convention on Trade in Endangered species (CITES) attempts to control the export
and import of wild species. According to Adams (2003) conservationists believe that a "great
many species are being pushed rapidly towards extinction because people want to buy them,
or bits of them". The pressures increase as they become rarer but the regulations are
sometimes difficult to implement.
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These organizations seek public support and many, like the WWF and FFI (Fauna and
Flora International), launch appeals for money. "Flagship species" which are critically
endangered globally, such as elephants, rhinoceros, tigers and primates are used to raise
public awareness and money for conservation projects. One example is the Sumatran
Rhinoceros (Asiatic Two-horned rhinoceros). In high demand for its horn and other organs it
is one of the rarest animals in the world. Once widely distributed, the numbers have been
drastically reduced and now only about 300 survive in scattered and isolated populations in
Sumatra, Borneo and neighbouring countries. The "prospects are unpromising…the fatal
pressure is poaching" (Wilson, 2003). Another example is the Siberian tiger from the Russian
Far East where there are less than 400 left in the wild.
The threats then are many - habitat destruction, invasive species, population growth,
pollution, overharvesting as well as natural phenomenon such as droughts, floods, rising seas,
disease and global warming the result of human activity. Climate change and especially global
warming and their potential effect on wildlife have been highlighted in a recent report
(Thomas et al, 2004) from lead authors Chris Thomas and Alison Cameron (see also Cameron
et al, 2004). This study involved groups of scientists from around the world and used
modelling methods to predict how greenhouse gas emissions could lead to the extinction of
very large numbers of species by 2050.
THE MACEDONIAN LAKES
The lakes referred to here are Ohrid, Prespa (Macro and Micro) and Dojran. These are
contrasting lakes in many ways. Ohrid is oligotrophic, Prespa is becoming mesotrophic and
Dojran is highly eutrophic. Climatic changes, involving long dry periods, together with human
activities are producing harmful chemical and biological changes in these lakes.
Two notable Balkan biologists, S. Stankovic and J. Sapkarev, have laid the foundations
for our present knowledge of the biodiversity and importance of the Ohrid lake fauna and in
1960, Stankovic produced his classic book, "The Balkan Lake Ohrid and its Living World"
(Stankovic, 1960).
The Balkan region in general is now recognised as a region of high endemism and a
'Hot Spot' in terms of global biodiversity. An "endemic" is a species restricted to a particular
region and "endemism" is the percentage of species in a region that occur nowhere else in the
world. According to a recent assessment, the Republic of Macedonia is one of the highest
species rich areas in Europe. (Macedonian Ministry of Environment and Physical Planning,
MoEPP, 2004 and Entwistle, 2004).
Lake Ohrid is rich in species numbers but low in their abundance and contains many
relic and endemic species, many of which are endangered. It is believed that the number of
endemic animal species is as high as 220 (S p i r k o v s k i , 2004).
Speakers and authors at two international conferences held at Ohrid, Macedonia have
drawn attention to the threats to biodiversity in the Balkan lakes. Eutrophication, bacterial
water pollution, human population growth, shoreline habitat destruction and overexploitation

BAKER R. A.: Man - the threat to biodiversity
by commercial fishing are among the most serious threats. Additionally, there is the problem
of shared boundries between nations. At the first conference, BIOECCO 2 (Congress on the
biodiversity, ecology and conservation of the Balkan fauna, 1998), G r i f f i t h s (1998) in his
concluding remarks on 'Conservation and Balkan Biodiversity' ended with the words, "Of
particular importance are trans-border initiatives that facilitate the preservation of
…ecosystems. This is clearly a priority in the case of the protection of ancient lakes such as
Ohrid and Prespa…aquatic ecosystems are always vulnerable to human abuse". Although a
degree of protection has been established, such as the establishment of the Prespa National
Park, recent environmental issues have illustrated the need for continuing vigilance and
international co-operation.
At the recent BALWOIS (Balkan Water Observation and Information Systems, 2004)
conference held at Ohrid, several authors drew attention to the present state of these lakes and
the potential threats to their biodiversity. The work of several of these authors will now be
summarized. Ohrid lake is threatened by a rapidly increasing human population, involving
organic loading from municipal, agricultural and tributary sources, overfishing and habitat
destruction producing a changing ecosystem at risk of major decline. Plankton, benthic
community and macrophytes suggest changes in species composition from oligotrophic to
mesotrophic condition (P u k a et al, 2004). In Ohrid, the presence of certain planktonic
species found normally under meso and eutrophic conditions, indicate changes to this lake .
Fish populations are also changing from trout to species of the carp family, the latter being
able to live in water of poorer quality (S p i r k o v s k i , 2004). The tributaries of Prespa are
under high anthropogenic impact with resulting pollution of the littoral region of the shore in
front of their inflow (J o r d a n o s k i and L o k o s k a , 2004).
A major impact on Ohrid and Prespa lakes is eutrophication or nutrient enrichment,
which leads to reduced biodiversity. It is essential to reduce the phosphorus load in lake Ohrid
which is slowly moving to a mesotrophic state (P a t c e v a , 2004). A two fold increase in
carbon and nitrogen and similar increases in phosphorus have taken place over the past 50
years (M a t z i n g e r et al, 2004). Although phosphorus levels suggest Lake Ohrid is still an
oligotrophic lake, indicator species characteristic of a nutrient rich environment are
appearing.
W a t z i n et al (2002, 2003) have produced their report, "Lake Ohrid and its Watershed,
State of the Environment Report". The report again draws attention to this fragile and
changing ecosystem which is at risk of serious decline.
ENDANGERED FISH AND THEIR PARASITES
With regard to the endemic Ohrid trout, Salmo letnica K a r a m a n , 1924 and the
Belvica, Acantholingua ohridana Steind in Ohrid lake, Spirkovski and Ilic-Boeva
(2004) have described the declining population of both species and the negative impacts
which have produced changes in the food web and in the populations of other fish.
Commercial fish have been harvested at unsustainable levels. The declining salmonid fish
populations are due to both overfishing as well as to the damage to spawning and
overwintering grounds, the result of human activities at or near the shoreline. Native fish are
also becoming threatened by the introduction of alien species like the Rainbow trout.
However, overharvesting appears to be the major cause of the decline and at present there is a
moratorium on commercial fishing in Lake Ohrid. Restrictions are required on the numbers
and size of the fish caught and this has become an urgent management priority.
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There is a growing realisation that if a species becomes extinct, it takes with it one or
more dependent or "affiliated" species. This can apply to any close association between
two animals or between an animal and a plant. A species of parasite uniquely adapted to a
threatened host is therefore co-endangered and will become extinct if the host follows this
path. H r i s t o v s k i and S t o j a n o v s k i and their co-workers (2001, 2003, 2004a, 2004b)
have described the numbers, type and populations of parasites in cyprinid and salmonid fish in
the Macedonian lakes. It follows that if the endangered Ohrid trout and other endangered fish
species become extinct, a whole population of parasites some new and undescribed, others
endemic will also be lost.
In unpolluted waters, fish can withstand the pressures of parasite infestation but "Heavy
forms of infestations are very often a sign for unpleasant impacts of the environment, which
should be established and corrected promptly" (S t o j a n o v s k i , 2004b).
DOJRAN LAKE - A SPECIAL CASE FOR BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION
Dojran is a shallow, highly eutrophic lake, low in species numbers but high in their
abundance. Man-made changes have occurred in recent years due mainly to the use of lake
water for agriculture but also to the hot dry summers and this has led to a dramatic fall in the
water level. This has had a marked effect on populations especially shoreline species. There is
growing evidence that populations of some invertebrates have undergone rapid changes over
the past 30 years (G r i f f i t h s et al, 2002) leading to an increase in ostracods and nematodes
and decreases in nematocera and oligochaetes. Some species are or may have become extinct.
R y a n and G r i f f i t h s ( 2001), for example, believe that the gastropod Graecoanaticola
macedonica R a d a m a n and S t a n k o v i c , already recorded as a rare species by
S t a n k o v i c (1985), has become extinct. Geopolitical problems in addition to the biological
ones mean that an urgent management strategy is required for this lake.
B a k e r et al (2004) has described some recent examples of international and regional
co-operation in studies on the Macedonian lakes. These include work on fish parasites and
their populations, biodiversity conservation in the Prespa lakes and the special needs for Lake
Dojran. On the positive side, some efforts are being made to co-operate in transboundary
environmental management (A v r a m o s k i , in press) in the Ohrid and Prespa regions. A new
pipeline is being laid in the town of Ohrid to take solid waste-water to a treatment works at
Struga and to pipe surface water separately to the lake. Monitoring of lake Ohrid, using
sophisticated biochemical and biophysical equipment, continues to take place (M i t i c , 2004).
There are grounds therefore for some optimism but international co-operation and funding are
required. Public awareness, through education, of the issues involved in the regional threats to
biodiversity is also required. It is clear that immediate, co-ordinated and long term action is
required in order to protect biodiversity in the southern Balkan lakes.
Acknowledgements
The author would like to thank the following people - Nikola Hristovski, Eric Lees,
Vladimir Pesic and Stojmir Stojanovski.

BAKER R. A.: Man - the threat to biodiversity
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