Download conservation of biodiversity

INTRODUCTION
The term Biodiversity was first coined by Walter G. Rosen in
1986.
The biosphere comprises of a complex collections of innumerable
organisms, known as the Biodiversity, which constitute the
vital life support for survival of human race.
Biological diversity, abbreviated as biodiversity, represent the
sum total of various life forms such as unicellular fungi,
protozoa, bacteria, and multi cellular organisms such as plants,
fishes, and mammals at various biological levels including
gens, habitats, and ecosystem .
Biodiversity
What does “Bio” means?
Bio =
Biodiversity
What
does
means?
“Diversity”
Diversity = Variety
CONCEPT AND TYPES OF BIODIVERSITY
 Biodiversity is the variety of life forms on earth and the
essential interdependence of all living things.
 As defined in convention on Biological diversity singed at Rio
De Jenerio (Brazil) in 1992 by 154 countries, the Biodiversity
defined as “the variability among living organisms from all
sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other
aquatic eco-systems and the ecological complexes of which
the area part- this include diversity with in species, between
species and of ecosystem.”
 According to IUCN in 1998, “the variety and variability of
species of their population, the variety of species of their life
forms, the diversity of the complex association with species
with their interaction and their ecological process which
influences perform.”
There are three types of biodiversity
 Diversity of Species
 Diversity of Ecosystem
 Diversity of Genes
Species diversity
•The number or variety of
species in a particular region
•Species richness = number of species
•Evenness, or relative abundance = extent to which
numbers of different species are equal or skewed
•Species = a particular type of organism; a
population or group of populations whose
members share certain characteristics and can
freely breed with one another and produce fertile
offspring
Figure 15.2
Ecosystem diversity
•Includes diversity
above the species
level
•Biologists have viewed diversity above the species
level in various ways. Some alternative ways to
categorize it include:
» Community diversity
» Habitat diversity
» Landscape diversity
Figure 15.2
Genetic diversity
Includes the differences
in DNA composition
among individuals
within a given species
•Adaptation to particular environmental conditions
may weed out genetic variants that are not
successful.
•But populations benefit from some genetic
diversity, so as to avoid inbreeding or disease
epidemics.
Figure 15.2
DISTRIBUTION OF BIODIVERSITY
 Flora and fauna diversity
depends on Climate
 Altitude
 Soils
 Presence of other species
 Most of the biodiversity
concentrated in Tropical region.
BIODIVERSITY AND BALANCE OF NATURE
 Tropic Level: Elimination of species from tropic level can
cause destruction of ecosystem as well as biodiversity.
Plants in forest
Deer
Lion
Complex Ecosystem: In a complicated ecosystem having several
tropic levels, loss of one or more spices do not cause any serious
problem because the alternative available.
Keystone Species: Loss or addition of species causes detectable
changes in ecosystem rates i.e. species make unique contribution
to ecosystem functioning.
Niche Complementary: Difference among species in their
requirements for different resources will cause complementary
interaction so that a species could obtain more resources.
Facilitation and Mutualism: Plants may also benefit from
their neighbors through amelioration of the physical
and biotic environment.
Portfolio Effect: Species richness increases the temporal
stability of the entire community while the biomass is
stabilized.
Insurance Hypothesis: Biodiversity buffers ecosystem
against environmental changes such as global
warming.
Benefits of biodiversity
•Preserving biodiversity preserves ecosystem services, and
directly provides things of pragmatic value to us.
– •
Food, fuel, and fiber
– •
Shelter and building materials
– •
Air and water purification
– •
Waste decomposition
– •
Climate stabilization and moderation
– •
Nutrient cycling
– •
Soil fertility
– •
Pollination
– •
Pest control
– •
Genetic resources
Benefits of biodiversity: Food
security
Many species not now
commonly used for
food could be.
.Genetic diversity
within crop species
and their relatives
enhances our
agriculture and
provides insurance
against losses of
prevalent strains of
staple crops.
Figure 15.11
Benefits of biodiversity: Medicine
•Many species can
provide novel
medicines; we don’t
want to drive these
extinct without ever
discovering their
uses.
•Ten of our top 25
drugs come directly
from wild plants; the
rest we developed
Figure 15.12
Forest and
their Uses
General
Use
Maintaining the water supply
Maintaining the water supply
Forest:
• Enable water to be collected and stored within
a water catchment
• Eg: Bukit Timah Nature Reserve
• Consists of 4 reservoirs surrounded by forests
Maintaining the water supply
• Forest forms part of the water cycle:
– Process of evapo-transpiration
– Water released into the atmosphere
– Encouraging Cloud formation, condensation and
rain
– Rain falls replenishes the water in rivers and
reservoirs
– Leaves/branches intercept water and water seeps
into the ground as groundwater
– Reducing surface-runoffs
Maintaining water quality
• Supports natural filteration
• Makes its possible for drinking and supporting
life
• As the water flows seeps into the ground, soil
particles trap impurities and filters the water
• Less run-offs reduce erosion of soil and
deposited in reservoirs and rivers
Maintains the
Nutrient cycle
• Keeps the
soil fertile
Replenishing Oxygen and Removing Carbon
Dioxide
• Forest as Green Lungs
of the Earth:
– During photosynthesis,
trees and plants give off
oxygen and take in
carbon dioxide to make
food
– Reduction in carbon
dioxide content prevents
rising global
temperatures
Nutrients on the forest floor
Form of Habitat for People
Pollination and Seed Dispersal
• Many flowering plants
depend on animals for
pollination to produce
food.
• 30% of human crops
depend on free services
of pollinators;
replacement value
estimated billions of
dollars/year in US alone
Source: Spector© AMNHCBC
Source of Inspiration
or Information
• Biomimicry
• Applied Biology
• Medical Models
• Education and
Scientific Research
Source: Brumbaugh © AMNH-CBC
Form of habitat for plants and animal
species
As a Resource
• For timber:
– For industries
Recreation and eco-tourism
Aesthetic Value
Source: Brumbaugh © AMNH-CBC
Camping and hiking
Education
and
Research
Loss of nature – loss of life
-Species go extinct at more than 100 times
the normal rate.
-The average abundance of species has
declined by 40% in thirty years.
-Two of three ecosystem services are
declining
Should we be concerned about
biodiversity?
What we know:
The Earth is losing species at an alarming rate
• Some scientists estimate that as many as 3 species per
hour are going extinct and 20,000 extinctions occur each
year.
• when species of plants and animals go extinct, many
other species are affected.
Bio geographical Classification Of India
The study of biota with regard to their origin,
environmental interrelationships and distribution is called
Biogeography. There are about ten biogeographical areas in
India are as follows:1. Trans–Himalaya
2. Himalaya
3. Desert (Kutch and Thar)
4. Semiarid
5. Western Ghats
6. Deccan Penninsula
7. Gangetic Plains
8. Marine Coast
9. North East
10. Indian Islands
Biological Diversity At National Level
India has a rich biological diversity of flora and fauna.
Over all 6% of the global species are found in India.
India ranks 10th among the plant rich countries of the
world, 11th in terms of number of endemic species of
higher vertebrates and 6th among the centres of
diversity and origin of agricultural crops.
India as a Mega diversity Nation
India is one of the 12 Mega diversity countries in the
world.
Hot Spots Of Biodiversity
Areas which exhibit high species richnees as well as high
species endemism are termed as hot spots of biodiversity.
The term was introduced by Myers(1988). There are 25 hot
spots of biodiversity on a global level out of which 2 are
present in India, namely the Eastern Himalayas and
Western Ghats. An area is designated as a hot spot when it
contains at least 0.5% of the plant species as endemics.
Conservation approaches:
Biodiversity hotspots
•Global map of biodiversity hotspots, as
determined by Conservation International
Figure 15.19
Global hot spots of Biodiversity
1. Tropical Andes
2. Mesoamerican forests
3. Caribbean
4. Brazil's Atlantic Forest
5. Darien of Panama Western Ecuador
6. Central Chile
7.Brazil's Cerrado
8. Madagascar
9.California Floristic Province
10. Eastern Arc and Coastal Forest of Tanzania/Kenya
11.Western African Forests
12. Cape Floristic Province
13. Succulent Karoo
14. Mediterranean Basin
15. Caucasus
16. Sundaland
17. Wallacea
18. Philippines
19. Indo- Berma Eastern Himalayas
20. South- central China
21. Western- Ghats Sri Lanka
22. South- western Australia
23. New Caledonia
24. New Zealand
25. Polynesia/Micronesia
•Endangered golden lion
tamarin, endemic to Brazil’s
Atlantic rainforest, which
has been almost totally
destroyed
Figure 15.18
THREATS TO BIODIVERSITY
Natural causes:
 Narrow geographical area
 Low population
 Low breeding rate
 Natural disasters
Anthropogenic causes:
 Habitat modification
 Overexploitation of selected
species
 Innovation by exotic species
 Pollution
 Hunting
 Global warming and climate
change
 Agriculture
Causes of species extinction
•Primary causes spell “HIPPO”:
–•
Habitat alteration
–•
Invasive species
–•
Pollution
–•
Population growth
–•
Overexploitation
“HIPPO”: Habitat alteration
•The greatest cause of extinction today
•Accounts for 85% of population declines of birds
and mammals
•Habitat change hurts most organisms because they
are adapted to an existing habitat.
•Alteration due to:
•
Forest clearing, Urban development
•
Agriculture, Global climate change
etc….
“HIPPO”: Invasive species
•Accidental or intentional introduction of exotic
species to new areas
•Most do not establish or expand, but some do—
likely because they are “released” from limitations
imposed by their native predators, parasites, and
competitors.
•In today’s globalizing world,
• invasive species have become perhaps the secondworst threat to native biota.
“HIPPO”: Invasive species
•Examples:
–• Mosquito fish
–• Zebra mussel
–• Kudzu
–• Asian longhorned beetle
–• Rosy wolfsnail
–• Cane toad
–• Bullfrog
• Gypsy moth
• European
starling
• Indian
mongoose
• Caulerpa
algae
• Cheatgrass
• Brown tree
snake
Figure 15.10
“HIPPO”: Pollution
•Air and water pollution; agricultural runoff,
industrial chemicals, etc.
•Pollution does serious and widespread harm, but is
not as threatening as the other elements of HIPPO.
“HIPPO”: Population growth
•Human population growth exacerbates every other
environmental problem.
•Magnifies effects of the other elements of HIPPO:
• More people means more habitat change, more invasive
species, more pollution, more overexploitation.
•Along with increased resource consumption, it is
the ultimate reason behind proximate threats to
biodiversity.
“HIPPO”: Overexploitation
•Two meanings:
•
Overharvesting of species from the wild
•
(too much hunting, fishing…)
•
Overconsumption of resources
•
(too much timber cutting, fossil fuel use…)
•Usually overexploitation is not the sole cause of
extinction, but it often contributes in tandem with
other causes.
Illegal Killing and Trading of
Wildlife
• Poaching endangers many larger animals, rare
plants
• Over two-thirds die in transit
• Illegal trade $6–$10 billion per year
• Wild species depleted by pet trade
• Exotic plants often illegally gathered
Elephant is poached
for teeth
White Rhinoceros
Poached for Its Horn
CONSERVATION OF BIODIVERSITY


•
•

Biodiversity inventories
Conserving Biodiversity in protected HabitatsIn situ conservation
Ex situ conservation
Seed Bank, Gene Bank, Pollen Bank, DNA
Bank
Gene Bank
zoo
Bandhavgarh National Park
 Restoration of Biodiversity
 Imparting Environmental Education
 Enacting, strengthening and enforcing Environmental
Legislation
 Population Control
 Reviewing the agriculture practice
 Controlling Urbanization
 Conservation through Biotechnology
Biodiversity
Conservation
In situ
Sacred
groves ad
lakes
Terrestrial
Biosphere
Reserves
Ex situ
National
parks, wildlife
sanctuaries
Sacred plant home
garden
Seed Bank, Gene
bank,
Cryopreservation
Marine
Botanical garden,
Zoological garden,
Aquaria
Conservation approaches
• In-situ
• Involves protection of
natural areas with high
biodiversity.
www.indiantiger.org
• Ex-situ
• here we conserve
biodiversity in an
artificial setting.
www.plantlife.org
Insitu conservation
• At present we have 8 major Biosphere reserves, 88 National
parks , 490 sanctuaries .
• The Biosphere reserves conserve some representative ecosystems
as a whole for long- term in –situ conservation. Within the
Biosphere reserves we may have one or more National parks.
•EX. Nilgiri Biosphere reserve has two National parks Bandipur and
Nagarhole National Park. Few Examples of Biosphere reserves
Nilgiri
Nanda Devi
Nokrerk
Manas
Sunderbans
Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka
Uttaranchal
Meghalaya
Assam
West Bengal
The national parks and sanctuaries
A National Park is an area dedicated for the conservation of
wildlife along with its environment. A national park has a
defined boundary, through which no person can get into the
park without an approval. Only an approved person can enter
into a national park, either via paying a visitor ticket or an
approved letter from the governing body .
EX. Gir National Park , Gujarat (Indian Lion)
Bandipur National Park , Karnataka (Elephant)
Kanha National Park , M.P. (Tiger)
A wildlife sanctuary is a declared protected area, where
killing, shooting, hunting or capturing of animals is
completely. The ownership of this type of protected area
could lie in the hands of either a government or in any private
organization or person, provided the regulations are governed
by the government. However, it is not physically fenced to
restrict the public from entering and roaming inside a wildlife
sanctuary for research, educational, inspirational, and
recreational purposes.
EX. Ghana Bird Sanctuary ,Rajasthan. (Major wild life –birds)
Mudamalai Wild life Sanctuary, Tamil Nadu. (Tiger,
elephant, Leopard)
Jaldapara Wild life Sanctuary, W.Bengal.
(Rhinoceros, Tiger, elephant)
Introduction to ex-situ conservation

Involves taking an animal or plant out of its
habitat and placing it in human care

This term covers old methods such as zoos, as
well as new methods such as seed banks and
gene banks

Ex-situ conservation may not be the ideal method
but often the only answer
The sides to ex-situ conservation

Zoos, parks and botanical gardens

Seed banks

Gene banks

NBAGR (National Bureau of Animal
Genetic Resources, located at
Karnal,Haryana)

NBPGR (National Bureau of Plant
Genetic Resources, located in New
Delhi)
Seed Bank
Cryopreservation
 Rapid progress made
Great potential for
conservation
Using liquid Nitrogen at
-1960C
BIODIVERSITY IN INDIA
Categories
No. of Indian
Species
% of Indian species
Evaluated
Species Threatened
In India
Mammals
386
59
41%
Birds
1219
_
7%
Reptiles
495
73
46%
Amphibians
207
79
57%
Freshwater Fish
700
46
70%
Source- Based on Kumar et.al 2000
CONCLUSION
Biodiversity is our life. If the Biodiversity got lost at
this rate then in near future, the survival of human
being will be threatened. So, it is our moral duty to
conserve Biodiversity as well our Environment. Longterm maintenance of species and their management
requires co-operative efforts across entire landscapes.
Biodiversity should be dealt with at scale of habitats or
ecosystems rather than at species level.