Biodiversity is a key measure of the health of any ecosystem, and of our entire planet. Every organism in an ecosystem, or biome, relies on other organisms and the physical environment. For example, plant and animal species need each other for food, and depend on the environment for water and shelter. Biodiversity describes how much variety an ecosystem has, in terms of resources and species, and also genetically within species. A more diverse ecosystem will have more resources to help it recover from famine, drought, disease or even the extinction of a species. There are several levels of biodiversity, each indicating how diverse the genes, species and resources are in a region.
Species Diversity
Every ecosystem contains a unique collection of species, all interacting with each other. Some ecosystems may have many more species than another. In some ecosystems, one species has grown so large that it dominates the natural community. When comparing the biodiversity of ecosystems, an ecosystem that has a large number of species, but no species greatly outnumbering the rest, would be considered to have the most species diversity. A large number of species can help an ecosystem recover from ecological threats, even if some species go extinct.
Genetic Diversity
Genetic diversity describes how closely related the members of one species are in a given ecosystem. In simple terms, if all members have many similar genes, the species has low genetic diversity. Because of their small populations, endangered species may have low genetic diversity due to inbreeding. This can pose a threat to a population if it leads to inheritance of undesirable traits or makes the species more susceptible to disease. Having high genetic diversity helps species adapt to changing environments.
Ecosystem Diversity
A region may have several ecosystems, or it may have one. Wide expanses of oceans or deserts would be examples of regions with low ecological diversity. A mountain area that has lakes, forests and grasslands would have higher biodiversity, in this sense. A region with several ecosystems may be able to provide more resources to help native species survive, especially when one ecosystem is threatened by drought or disease.
Functional Diversity
The way species behave, obtain food and use the natural resources of an ecosystem is known as functional diversity. In general a species-rich ecosystem is presumed to have high functional diversity, because there are many species with many different behaviors. Understanding an ecosystem’s functional diversity can be useful to ecologists trying to conserve or restore damaged it, because knowing the behaviors and roles of species can point to gaps in a food cycle or ecological niches that are lacking species.
Some of the main threats to biodiversity are: 1. Human Activities and Loss of Habitat, 2. Deforestation, 3. Desertification, 4. Marine Environment, 5. Increasing Wildlife Trade and 6. Climate Change.
1. Human Activities and Loss of Habitat:
Human activities are causing a loss of biological diversity among animals and plants globally estimated at 50 to 100 times the average rate of species loss in the absence of human activities. Two most popular species in rich biomes are tropical forests and coral reefs.
Tropical forests are under threat largely from conversion to other land-uses, while coral reefs are experiencing increasing levels of over exploitation and pollution. If current rate of loss of tropical forests continues for the next 30 years (about 1 percent per year), the projected number of species that the remaining forests could support would be reduced by 5 to 10 percent relative to the forest in the absence of human disturbance
The rate of decline would represent 1000 to 10,000 times the expected rate of extinction without deforestation by humans. Some studies suggest that, globally, as many as one half of all mammal and bird species may become extinct within 200 to 300 years.
Biodiversity loss can result from a number of activities, including:
(a) Habitat conversion and destruction;
(b) Over-exploitation of species;
(c) Disconnected patches of original vegetation; and
(d) Air and water pollution.
Over the coming decades, human-inducted climate change increasingly become another major factor in reducing biological/biodiversity. These pressures on biodiversity are, to a large extent, driven by economic development and related demands including the increasing demand for biological resources.
Activities that reduce biodiversity, jeopardize economic development and human health through losses of useful materials, genetic stocks, and the services of intact ecosystems. Material losses include food, wood, and medicines, as well as resources important for recreation and tourism. Losing genetic diversity, like losing species diversity, makes it even more likely that further environmental disturbance will result in serious reductions in goods and services that ecosystems can provide.
Decreased biodiversity also interferes with essential ecological services such as pollination, maintenance of soil fertility, flood controls, water purification, assimilation of wastes and the cycling of carbon and other nutrients.
2. Deforestation:
Forest ecosystems contain as much as 80 percent of the world’s terrestrial biodiversity and provide wood fiber and biomass energy as well as critical components of the global cycles of water, energy and nutrient. Forest ecosystems are being cleared and degraded in many parts of the world.
Current projections suggest that demand for wood will roughly double over the next 50 years, which will make increasing use of sustainable forest practices more difficult. In addition to threats to biodiversity and potential shortages in the supply of forest products, the degradation of forests represents an enormous potential source of green house gas emissions.
Forest ecosystems contain about three times the amount of carbon currently present in the atmosphere and about one-third of this carbon is stored above ground in trees and other vegetation and two-third is stored in the soil. When forests are cleared or burned, much of this carbon is released into the atmosphere. According to current estimates, tropical deforestation and burning account for about one quarter of carbon emissions into the atmosphere from human activities.
3. Desertification:
Desertification and deforestation are the main causes of biodiversity loss. Both processes are decisively influenced by the extension of agriculture. The direct cost of deforestation is reflected in the loss of valuable plants and animal species. Desertification process is the result of poor land management which can be aggravated by climatic variations. Converting wild lands to agriculture often involves ploughing the soils which leads in temperate regions to an average decline in soil organic matter between 25 and 40 per cent over twenty five years.
Decreasing soil organic matter is always a clear indication of soil degradation, and often is accompanied by reductions in water infiltration, fertility, and ability to retain fertilizers. Ploughing also exposes soils to wind and water erosion, resulting in large-scale pollution of freshwater resources.
4. Marine Environment:
Oceans play a vital role in the global environment. Covering 70 per cent of the earth’s surface, they influence global climate, food production and economic activities. Despite these roles, coastal and marine environment are being rapidly degraded in many parts of the globe.
In coastal areas, where human activities are concentrated, pollution, over-exploitation of resources, development of critical habitats such as wetlands, and mangroves, and water-flow from poor land-use practices have led to drastic reductions in near shore fisheries production and aquatic biodiversity.
5. Increasing Wildlife Trade:
According to Nick Barnes, “Trade is another cause of biodiversity depletion that gives rise to conflict between North and South.” Global trade in wildlife is estimated to be over US $ 20 billion annually. Global trade includes at least 40,000 primates, ivory from at least 90,000 African elephants, 1 million orchids, 4 million live birds, 10 million reptile skins, 15 million furs and over 350 million tropical fish.
6. Climate Change:
As climate warms, species will migrate towards higher latitudes and altitudes in both hemisphere. The increase in the amount of CO2 in the air affects the physiological functioning of plant and species composition. Moreover, aquatic ecosystems, particularly coral reefs, mangrove swamps, and coastal wetlands, are vulnerable to changes in climate.
In principle, coral reefs, the most biologically diverse marine systems, are potentially vulnerable to changes in both sea level and ocean temperature. While most coral systems should be able to grow at a sufficient pace to survive a 15 to 95 centimeter sea-level rise over the next century, a sustained increase of several degrees centigrade would threaten the long-term viability of many of these systems.