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    Subject: Environmental Studies Created By: Dr. Shiv Kumar: JIMS Engineering Management Technical Campus

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    Dipti Bedi
    1. The document discusses biodiversity, summarizing that it describes the combined diversity at all biological levels, including genetic, species, and ecosystem diversity. 2. It provides examples of genetic diversity in plants and species diversity differences between regions. 3. The causes of biodiversity loss are discussed as habitat loss, overexploitation, co-extinctions, and invasive species, providing examples for each. 4. Methods of conserving biodiversity discussed are in situ conservation of ecosystems and biodiversity hotspots, and ex situ conservation in zoos and botanical gardens.

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    Subject: Environmental Studies Created By: Dr. Shiv Kumar: JIMS Engineering Management Technical Campus

    Uploaded by

    Dipti Bedi
    27 views19 pages
    1. The document discusses biodiversity, summarizing that it describes the combined diversity at all biological levels, including genetic, species, and ecosystem diversity. 2. It provides examples of genetic diversity in plants and species diversity differences between regions. 3. The causes of biodiversity loss are discussed as habitat loss, overexploitation, co-extinctions, and invasive species, providing examples for each. 4. Methods of conserving biodiversity discussed are in situ conservation of ecosystems and biodiversity hotspots, and ex situ conservation in zoos and botanical gardens.

    Original Title

    Lecture 3 Major Issues to Biodiversities

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    1. The document discusses biodiversity, summarizing that it describes the combined diversity at all biological levels, including genetic, species, and ecosystem diversity. 2. It provides examples of genetic diversity in plants and species diversity differences between regions. 3. The causes of biodiversity loss are discussed as habitat loss, overexploitation, co-extinctions, and invasive species, providing examples for each. 4. Methods of conserving biodiversity discussed are in situ conservation of ecosystems and biodiversity hotspots, and ex situ conservation in zoos and botanical gardens.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pptx, pdf, or txt
    27 views19 pages

    Subject: Environmental Studies Created By: Dr. Shiv Kumar: JIMS Engineering Management Technical Campus

    Uploaded by

    Dipti Bedi
    1. The document discusses biodiversity, summarizing that it describes the combined diversity at all biological levels, including genetic, species, and ecosystem diversity. 2. It provides examples of genetic diversity in plants and species diversity differences between regions. 3. The causes of biodiversity loss are discussed as habitat loss, overexploitation, co-extinctions, and invasive species, providing examples for each. 4. Methods of conserving biodiversity discussed are in situ conservation of ecosystems and biodiversity hotspots, and ex situ conservation in zoos and botanical gardens.

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    You are on page 1of 19

    Subject: Environmental Studies

    Department: BBA/B.Com (H)


    Created By : Dr. Shiv Kumar

    JIMS Engineering Management Technical Campus


    Affiliated to GGSIPU, New Delhi Approved by AICTE, NCTE & BAR Council of India
    48/4, Knowledge Park III, Greater Noida

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


    Subject: Environmental Studies
    Topic: Biodiversity

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


    Biodiversity

    Biodiversity is the term popularized by the socio-biologist Edward


    Wilson to describe the combined diversity at all the levels of
    biological organization. The most important of them are–

     Genetic diversity: A single species might show high diversity at


    the genetic level over its distributional range. The genetic
    variation shown by the medicinal plant Rauwolfia vomitoria
    growing in different Himalayan ranges might be in terms of the
    potency and concentration of the active chemical (reserpine)
    that the plant produces. India has more than 50,000 genetically
    different strains of rice, and 1,000 varieties of mango.

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


     Species diversity: The diversity at the species level. For
    example, the Western Ghats have a greater amphibian species
    diversity than the Eastern Ghats.

     Ecological diversity: At the ecosystem level, India, for instance,


    with its deserts, rain forests, mangroves, coral reefs,
    wetlands, estuaries, and alpine meadows has a greater
    ecosystem diversity than a Scandinavian country like
    Norway.

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


     According to the International Union of Conservation of
    Nature (IUCN), 2004, the total number of plant and animal
    species described so far is slightly more than 1.5 million, but
    we have no clear idea of how many species are yet to be
    discovered and described.
     Some extreme estimates range from 20 to 50 million, but a
    more conservative and scientifically sound estimate made by
    Robert May places the global species diversity at about 7
    million.

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


    More than 70 per cent of all the species recorded are animals,
    while plants (including algae, fungi, bryophytes, gymnosperms
    and angiosperms) comprise not more than 22 per cent of the
    total.

     Among animals, insects are the most species-rich taxonomic


    group, making up more than 70 percent of the total. That means,
    out of every 10 animals on this planet, 7 are insects.

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


    Loss of Biodiversity
     While it is doubtful if any new species are being added
    (through speciation) into the earth’s treasury of species, there
    is no doubt about their continuing losses. The biological
    wealth of our planet has been declining rapidly and the
    accusing finger is clearly pointing to human activities.
     The IUCN Red List (2004) documents the extinction of 784
    species (including 338 vertebrates, 359 invertebrates and 87
    plants) in the last 500 years.

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


    Examples of Extinct Species

     Some examples of recent extinctions include the dodo


    (Mauritius), quagga (Africa), thylacine (Australia), Steller’s
    Sea Cow (Russia) and three subspecies (Bali, Javan, Caspian)
    of tiger.
     The last twenty years alone have witnessed the
    disappearance of 27 species.

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


    Some Extinct Animals

    DODO Quagga Steller’s Sea Cow

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


    Causes of biodiversity losses
    The accelerated rates of species extinctions that the world is facing
    now are largely due to human activities. There are four major
    causes.
    Habitat loss and fragmentation
    This is the most important cause driving animals and plants to
    extinction. The most dramatic examples of habitat loss come from
    tropical rain forests. Once covering more than 14 per cent of the
    earth’s land surface, these rain forests now cover no more than 6
    per cent.

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


    Over-exploitation
     Humans have always depended on nature for food and
    shelter, but when ‘need’ turns to ‘greed’, it leads to over-
    exploitation of natural resources.
     Many species extinctions in the last 500 years (Steller’s sea
    cow, passenger pigeon) were due to overexploitation by
    humans.

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


    Co-extinctions
    When a species becomes extinct, the plant and animal species
    associated with it in an obligatory way also become extinct.
    When a host fish species becomes extinct, its unique assemblage
    of parasites also meets the same fate.
    Another example is the case of a coevolved plant-pollinator
    mutualism where extinction of one invariably leads to the
    extinction of the other.

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


    Alien species invasions
     When alien species are introduced unintentionally or
    deliberately for whatever purpose, some of them turn invasive,
    and cause decline or extinction of indigenous species.
     The Nile perch introduced into Lake Victoria in east Africa led
    eventually to the extinction of an ecologically unique
    assemblage of more than 200 species of cichlid fish in the lake.

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


    Alien species invasions (Continued…..)
     You must be familiar with the environmental damage caused
    and threat posed to our native species by invasive weed species
    like carrot grass (Parthenium), Lantana and water hyacinth
    (Eicchornia).
     The recent illegal introduction of the African catfish Clarias
    gariepinus for aquaculture purposes is posing a threat to the
    indigenous catfishes in our rivers.

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


    How do we conserve Biodiversity?

    When we conserve and protect the whole ecosystem, its


    biodiversity at all levels is protected - we save the entire forest to
    save the tiger. This approach is called in situ (on
    site)conservation. However, when there are situations where an
    animal or plant is endangered or threatened and needs urgent
    measures to save it from extinction, ex situ (off site) conservation
    is the desirable approach.

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


    In situ conservation
     Faced with the conflict between development and conservation,
    many nations find it unrealistic and economically not feasible to
    conserve all their biological wealth.
     Invariably, the number of species waiting to be saved from
    extinction far exceeds the conservation resources available.
     On a global basis, this problem has been addressed by eminent
    conservationists.
     They identified for maximum protection certain ‘biodiversity
    hotspots’ regions with very high levels of species richness and
    high degree of endemism
    Dr. Shiv Kumar
     Ex situ Conservation
     In this approach, threatened animals and plants are taken out
    from their natural habitat and placed in special setting where
    they can be protected and given special care.
     Zoological parks, botanical gardens and wildlife safari parks
    serve this purpose.
     There are many animals that have become extinct in the wild
    but continue to be maintained in zoological parks.

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


    Topic for Next Lecture

    Sustainable Development

    Dr. Shiv Kumar


    Thank You !!

    Dr. Shiv Kumar

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