Extinction is the most irreversible and tragic of all environmental calamities.

With each plant and animal species that disappears, a precious part of creation is callously erased
Michael Soule, 2004

Biodiversity loss

Biodiversity loss
Books: 1.Text book of ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES BY Dr. K. Raghavan Nambiar 2.Environmental Science(9th edition) by Richard T. Wright

Biodiversity loss
What is biodiversity? Components of Biodiversity Number of species on earth Values of biodiversity India as a mega diversity nation Hotspots of biodiversity Threats to biodiversity Extinction of species Conservation of Biodiversity Major problems with biodiversity conservation

What is Biodiversity ?
Biodiversity is variation of life at all levels of biological organization. We are only 200000 years old, but we have changed the face of the world.

Components of biodiversity
Diversity indicates the richness of population. The study of diversity is essential for conservation purpose. It can be understood from the study of: 1.Genetic diversity
The variation of genes in a species is called the genetic diversity.

 Every living being is a big storehouse of genetic information. The number of genes present in one species is very different from that contained in another species. For example, the number of genes in E.coli is about 4000 and in a man the number is 35000 to 45000. The variation can be in shape, size , quality, resistance to diseases and ability to withstand adverse conditions of environment. The capability of a population to adopt to any environment and adjust to it is due to genetic diversity.

2.Species diversity The number of species present in a system is called species diversity. It includes all species in an area from microbes to plants and animals. Each has a role to play and the loss of an entity affects the whole ecosystem.

Species richness is the number of species per unit area.

In area C there are unrelated species such as fish, bird, etc. So the area C is the most diverse one.

3.Ecosystem diversity Ecosystem diversity is the variation in biological communities. In this diversity three types are identified. a) Alpha diversity: this reveals the diversity within the community. b) Beta diversity: it shows the diversity between communities. c) Gamma diversity: It shows the diversity of the habitats over a large geographic area.

Number of species(Flora & Fauna on earth)

 It is hard to say exactly how many species are present in the world. About 1.75 million species have been described and it is estimated that many more than that exist. Scientists know that their work in finding and describing new species is incomplete. Commercially important groups, such as birds, mammals, fish and trees are much more explored and described than insects, fungi and bacteria.

Value of Biodiversity
Ecosystems and the wild species living in them are of enormous value to human kind, providing goods and services that are conservatively estimated to be worth $33 trillion a per year. We must preserve their productivity and maintain their biodiversity.

Biodiversity offers several benefits to us and have many values: 1. Ecological values 2. Agricultural values 3. Pest control values 4. Medicinal value 5. Direct values 6. indirect values

Ecological values
Soil formation, waste disposal, air and water purification, nutrient cycling, solar energy absorption, and food production depend on biodiversity.

Agricultural values
It was less than 10000 years ago agriculture was our first revolution. Most of our food comes from agriculture. Hundreds to thousands of plant species existing in nature, humans have used only 7,000 in all. Only three species namely wheat ,Maize ,and rice fulfill about 60% of global food demands.

 *The winged bean, a native of New Guinea is a veritable(actual) super market, with every part edible : pods(husk), flowers, stems, roots & leaves. In 1975 a study indicated that Indonesia has 250 edible fruits, of which only 43 have been cultivated widely.

Pest control values

This is another area in which biodiversity has instrumental value to humans is pest control.

Medicinal values
The primary forest provide the remedies that cure us. The substances present in these plants can be recognized by our bodies.

 Medicine, an extract from bark of the Pacific yew tree, has proved to be valuable for treating ovarian, and small cell cancer. Six tree of Pacific yew were required to treat one patient for a year. Now it is produced by English yew tree (this tree is easy to maintain).

Picture of yew

Pacific yew

English yew

Roughly 3000 plants have been identified as having anticancer properties. According to WHO,80% of the World people depend on non-western medicine that in turn depends on natural product. But in barely 40 years the worlds largest rainforest, the Amazon, has been reduced by 20%. Soybean farms, 95% of these soybeans are used to feed livestock. So forest is turn into meat.

 Nearly 1 billion people are going hungry. Over 50% of grain traded around the world is used for animal feed or biofuels. Every year 13 millions hectares of forest disappear.

The value of earths biodiversity can be classified into categories: 1.Direct value (consumptive and productive uses) 2. Indirect value (non-consumptive)

Direct value

 Everything on earth is linked, and the earth is linked to the sun, its original energy source. In one hour, the sun gives the earth the same amount of energy as that consumed by all humanity in one year. All we have to do stop drilling earth and start and start looking to the sky.

Indirect values
Carbon fixing through photosynthesis. Pollination, gene flow etc. Maintaining water cycle, recharging ground water protecting watersheds and buffering extreme conditions such as flood & drought. Soil formation and protection from erosion .

Maintaining essential nutrient cycles.

 Absorbing & decomposing pollutants, decomposing organic waste. The wetlands represent 6% of the surface of the planet. Where plants and micro-organisms filter the water and digest all the pollution. They are sponges that regulate the flow of water.

 5000 people a day die because of dirty drinking water. 1 billion people have no access to safe drinking water. Regulating climate at both macro and micro levels

India as Mega diversity Nation

Due to wild plants and animals India is a Mega biodiversity nation Global share of India is 8.6 % of wild plant and animal species. India is tenth among the plant and mammals rich countries of the world and fourth among the Asian countries. Out of 34 hot Spots identified in the World, India has four. These are Eastern Himalaya, North East India, Western Ghats and Andaman & Nicobar Islands.

Hot spots of Biodiversity

Hot spot region must have two strict criteria: First,1,500 species of vascular plants as endemics (Local, common) Second, it has lost at least 70 % of its original habitat. Hot spots are the area that are severely threatened by human activities.

Biodiversity hotspots of the World

Threats to biodiversity
The rate at which Species are disappearing has increased dramatically over the last 150 years. It means that if present trends continue, some where between one-third or twothird of all current species could be extinct by the middle of the 21st century.

 A British tourist was rescued by three dolphins from sharks. A ship captain had stopped his boat so several passengers could watch dolphins playing. Three of the passengers decided to swim with them, and one stayed a little longer than the others. To his horror, he was bitten by a shark and more were coming. Suddenly, three dolphins placed themselves between the tourist and the sharks, smacking the water with tails and flippers, and drove the sharks off so the man could be rescued. Dolphins are social Intelligent

Dolphins Saving Humans

Extinction of species
Extinction, or elimination of the species, is a normal process of the natural World. Species die out and are replaced by others. In undisturbed ecosystem, the rate of extinction appears to be about one species every decade. Studies of the fossil records suggest that more than 99% of all species that ever existed are now extinct.

Extinct species

Reasons for Extinction

Habitat loss: habitat loss can occur due to several reasons. a) Conversion: Natural areas are converted into: 1. Farms 2. Housing plots 3. Shopping malls 4. Industrial centres. When a forest is cleared, it is not just the trees that are destroyed, animals that occupy the tree are destroyed.

 Simplification: Human use of habitats often simplifies them. We remove dead trees from forest for fuel thus diminishing an important microhabitat on which several species depend. Population: Explosion of the human population is the main cause of biodiversity loss. Because of the population problem Africa and Asia have lost almost two-third of their original natural habitats. Pollution: Another major factor causing loss of biodiversity is pollution, which can directly kill many kinds of plants and animals.

 Every oil spill kills seabirds and often sea mammals.

Recent decline in population of frogs, turtles, alligators, and fish is due to presence of chlorine compounds, plastics and pesticides.

Hunting and Fishing: Overhunting is responsible for depletion or extinction of many species. Three-quarters of fishing grounds are exhausted, depleted, or in danger of decline. Overuse: It is obvious that killing fish faster than they can reproduce will lead to the ultimate extinction of the species.

Conservation of Biodiversity
In order to maintain and conserve biodiversity, the Ministry of Environment & Forests , Government of India has taken several steps to manage wild life ,The objective of which are : Protection of natural habitats Maintenance of viable number of species in protected areas such as national parks Establish and improve sanctuaries and national parks Implement strict restriction of export of rare plants and animals. Educate the public on these through Government agencies and NGO.

 The first natural parks were created just over a century ago. They cover over 13% of the continents.

 Costa Rica has made a choice between military spending and land conservation. The country no longer has an army. It prefers to devote its resources to education, ecotourism and the protection of its primary forest.

Ways of conservation of Biodiversity

Conservation of Biodiversity

In situ conservation

Ex Situ conservation

Major problems with Biodiversity conservation

Low priority for conservation of living natural resources. Exploitation of living natural resources for monetary gain. Unplanned urbanization and uncontrolled industrialization

Some famous wild life sanctuaries & national park of India

Corbett National Park (Uttarakhand) Ranthambore National Park (Rajasthan) Sariska Wildlife Sanctuary (Rajasthan) Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary (Rajashtan) Kaziranga National Park (Assam) Manas National Park (Assam) Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary (Kerala) Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary (Kerala) Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary (Kerala) Sunderban Tiger Reserve (West Bengal) Bandhavgarh National Park (Madhya Pradesh) Kanha National Park (Madhya Pradesh) Panna National Park (Madhya Pradesh)