Question

What is an umbrella species?

Answer 1

When conservation zoologists or individuals that conserve biodiversity in forests are trying to protect a certain ecosystem, they will look for the main cornerstones of that ecosystem first. This will enable them to learn more about how the ecosystem functions and which organisms are the most important for the survival of the ecosystem.

Complete answer:
Conservation biology is an extremely tough subject that needs to be dealt with properly. In order to conserve a particular ecosystem, it is necessary to look at which organisms are the most important or essential for the survival of the system. One way to do this is by conserving the umbrella species that are present in the ecosystem.
There are many different types of species that are found in an ecosystem like keystone species or flagship species. However, one species that is important for conservation is the umbrella species. An umbrella species is one that has a habitat that is important to the survival of many other animals. The giant panda is a great example of a species like this. Instead of trying to protect as many animals as possible, the umbrella species provides an easy way to conserve many different species. By conserving a single species, it is also possible to conserve many other species’ habitats that overlap with the umbrella species.

Note:
In order to conserve an ecosystem, biologists choose umbrella species to protect. When the umbrella species are conserved many other species also get protected and thus the biodiversity of the ecosystem is conserved.