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Conservation
biology is an interdisciplinary field which studies the limiting biological
factors that govern the fates of species. It is a wide ranging topic
- strongly tied to population biology, population genetics, and landscape
ecology, while also touching on philosophy, ethics, law, economics,
and geography. It has been characterized as a 'crisis-driven, mission
oriented' discipline. It's purpose is to develop the knowledge needed
to sustain and save as much of the earth's biodiversity as possible.
This pathfinder is intended as a helpful starting point for library
research in this area.
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Background
Information
Reference books are generally a good place to
go for background information. Since this is a relatively new
field, you are unlikely to find very many encyclopedia articles
about the field of conservation biology. However, there are
good reference books that can provide comprehensive information
about certain aspects. For general background information, textbooks
are recommended. (see section on classifications).
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Ehrenfeld, David. " Conservation Biology", In: Conservation
and environmentalism: an encyclopedia, p.147-148. (GE
10 .C68 1995 - shelved in 5th floor Reference area)
This
article gives a brief but comprehensive description of the
development of conservation biology as a field of study.
It mentions the most important scientists who have made
contributions in this area. There are suggestions for further
reading as well as cross-references to other helpful articles
in this volume.
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Beacham's
guide to international endangered species
(QL82 .B435 1998 - Shelved in 5th floor workroom, request
at Reference desk)
This
guide provides data and photographs of all mammalian species
that have been listed as threatened or endangered by the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from 1970 to July 1997. There
are 351 entries in two volumes. Also included are species
considered to be 'at risk' by The World Conservation Union
(IUCN) and The Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).. The guide is indexed
by scientific and common names, by country and by taxon.
Each entry is two to eight pages in length.
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Encyclopedia
of endangered species (QH75 .A1 E53 - Shelved in 5th floor
workroom, request at Reference desk)
Similar
to Beacham's guide in terms of the sources used for data
(USFWS, IUCN, CITES), this volume also contains entries
for non-mammalian species. It has a species index, (common
and scientific names), and a geographic index. It also contains
a lengthy list of wildlife and conservation organizations
and their addresses.
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Oregon's
living landscape : strategies and opportunities to conserve
biodiversity (QH76.5 .O7 O78 1998 (Shelved in 5th floor
workroom, request at Reference desk)
This
book describes the work of the Oregon Biodiversity project.
Its goal is to present a statewide overview of biodiversity
conservation in Oregon. It begins with a section on basic
concepts followed by discussion of strategies for conservation.
Descriptions of methodologies for assessing and classifying
the conservation lands in Oregon are given and the sources
for data used are explained. The state is divided into ten
'ecoregions' and 'conservation opportunitiy area' for each
region are presented.
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Databases
and Indexes
Magazine, periodical and journal articles provide
information on current developments, research trends, experiments
and hot topics in a discipline. For every discipline, there are
specific databases or indexes that provide article level information.
Once articles are identified through the database or index search,
look up the source journal in Vikat,
PSU Library's online catalog, to locate them in the library.
When using bibliographic databases, you will need
to figure out which 'keywords' work best for your topic. You might
start by using some of the subject headings given
below. Once you find a few good articles, see which keywords
are used to describe them and then modify your search strategy,
if needed.
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Academic
Search Premier
MasterFile
Premier
Because
conservation biology is 'hot topic', you are likely to find
magazine articles about it in MasterFile Premier. Some scholarly
articles will also be found in Academic Search Premier.
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Environmental
Abstracts
This
is the best database to use for environmental topics. Most
of the articles retrieved will be academic in nature. Coverage
is from 1980-present. There is also a link from this database
in to 'Environmental Routenet' which is a reference guide
to environmental information on the Internet.
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Periodicals of interest in this subject
area
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Subject Headings
Subject headings allow you to search library catalogs for materials
on a particular topic. Often subject heading searching can be
more productive than searching by simple keywords. Copies of the
complete set of the Library of Congress Subject Headings are available
at the reference desks throughout the library.
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The most useful subject headings for this topic are: |
| conservation
biology |
biological
diversity conservation |
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subject headings that you might want to consider are: |
| Endangered
species Extinction (biology) |
Population
biology |
| Nature
conservation |
Fishery
conservation |
| Wetland
conservation |
Wildlife
conservation |
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Call Numbers
Browsing the library shelves by call number ranges is another
strategy for locating informaiton on a topic; call numbers can
help you get to the "right neighborhood" in the library
stacks. Because this topic overlaps with several subjects, the
books and journals will not all be found in one place. The following
classifications are 'neighborhoods' where you will likely find
material on this topic:
| QH
75-78 |
Natural
history: nature conservation, endangered species, extinction;
most of the basic textbooks will be found at QH 75 |
| QH
541.5 |
biology:
ecology by environment |
| QL
82 |
zoology:
wildlife conservation |
| QL
752 |
zoology:
animal populations |
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Organizations
Often the best way to find information on a topic
is to look for material published by a professional society
or an organization.
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The
Society for Conservation Biology (SCB): [http://conbio.rice.edu/scb/]
"The Society is...an international professional organization
dedicated to promoting the scientific study of the phenomena
that affect the maintenance, loss, and restoration of biological
diversity. The Society's membership comprises a wide range of
people interested in the conservation and study of biological
diversity: resource managers, educators, government and private
conservation workers, and students. The Society was formed ...to
help develop the scientific and technical means for the protection,
maintenance, and restoration of life on this planet - its species,
its ecological and evolutionary processes, and its particular
and total environment." |
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Conservation
Biology Institute: [http://www.consbio.org]
"The Conservation Biology Institute (CBI) is a non-profit
501(c)(3) founded in 1997. With its main office in Corvallis,
Oregon and new office in San Diego, California, the mission
of CBI is to help save the diversity of life on this planet
in two primary ways: applied conservation research and education.
Through our research - alone or in collaboration with others
- CBI actively seeks creative new ways to address a wide range
of ecological problems from endangered species to regional
conservation planning. The objective of our research is to
develop better conservation tools, techniques, and analyses
that can be used to stop what has been called the sixth great
extinction episode on Earth. Our education mission is focused
on taking what we and others have learned and transferring
that knowledge to the broader conservation community as quickly
and as efficiently as possible. In both the research and education
components of CBI, we welcome and encourage collaboration
at every level." |
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Important Resources
Government Publications
There are also several federal agencies that publish
numerous reports in this area. Some of these will be found in
the same call number ranges as the books, while others will be
found in the documents section of the library in the basement.
Most of these agencies also have websites for which the URLs are
given.
Department
of Agriculture U.S. Forest Service [http://www.fs.fed.us/] The
U.S. Congress also publishes documents on this subject. Look for
these for records and reports about legislative issues.
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