Final answer:
A harmful effect that limits a wildlife population, like disease, bad weather, or habitat destruction, is known as a limiting factor. These can be natural, such as weather or fire, or human-induced, such as deforestation and climate change. Human activities often exacerbate natural limiting factors, threatening biodiversity and wildlife population sustainability.
Step-by-step explanation:
Any harmful effect, such as disease, bad weather, or poor habitat, that may cause a wildlife population to be limited is commonly referred to as a limiting factor. Limiting factors are often environmental influences that control the size and growth rate of a population. These factors can be abiotic, such as drought, fire, and other natural disasters, or biotic, such as predation and competition for resources.
Human activities such as habitat destruction, use of pesticides and herbicides, and resource exploitation are significant contributors to the loss of biodiversity and can act as limiting factors. Activities like deforestation and urban development destroy habitats, leading to decreased population sizes and even extinction in extreme cases. The global issue of climate change, driven by human energy needs and fossil fuel consumption, represents another anthropogenic limiting factor affecting wildlife populations.
Therefore, the health and sustainability of wildlife populations depend on a complex interplay between natural environmental factors and human-induced changes, with the latter often exacerbating stress on ecosystems and their resident species.