Biodiversity

By

V. S. Saravana ManiHead & Assistant Professor

Department of ChemistryAnnapoorana Engineering College,

Salem

Biodiversity

Bio =Life

Diversity = Variety

INTRODUCTION

The term Bio-Diversity was first coined by Walter G.

Rosen in 1986.

Biodiversity, refers to the variety of life on Earth. It

includes diversity of ecosystems, species and genes, and

the ecological processes that support them. Basically

BIO means “Life” and Diversity means “Variety” . It

represents the sum total of various life forms such as

unicellular fungi, protozoa, bacteria and multi cellular

organisms such as plants, fishes and animals at various

levels.

Why is biodiversity important?

 Everything that lives in an ecosystem is part of the web of life,

including humans. Each species of vegetation and each creature

has a place on the earth and plays a vital role in the circle of life.

Plant, animal, and insect species interact and depend upon one

another for what each offers, such as food, shelter, oxygen, and

soil enrichment. 

Maintaining a wide diversity of species in each ecosystem is

necessary to preserve the web of life that sustains all living

things. In his 1992 best-seller, "The Diversity of Life," famed

Harvard University biologist Edward O. Wilson -- known as the

"father of biodiversity," -- said, "It is reckless to suppose that

biodiversity can be diminished indefinitely without threatening

humanity itself." 

Species diversity 

is the effective 

number of 

different species 

that are 

represented in a 

collection of 

individuals

Genetic diversity, the level of biodiversity  refers to the total number 

of genetic characteristics in the genetic makeup of a species.

Ecosystem

diversity 

refers to the

diversity of a

place at the

level

of ecosystems.

The term

differs

from biodiversit

y, which refers

to variation in

species rather

than

ecosystems.

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

Ecosystem diversity

Species diversity• 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

› 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

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.

Biogeographical Classification of India

India, being a vast country, shows a great diversity

in climate, topography and geology and hence the

country is very rich in terms of biological diversity.

India's biological diversity is one of the most

significant in the world, since India has only 2% of

the total landmass of the world containing about

6% of the world's known wildlife.

ECOZONE OF INDIA

GEOGRAPHY AND MAJOR BIOMES OF INDIA

India is the seventh largest country in the world and Asia's second largest nation with an area of 3,287,263 sq.km. encompassing a varied landscape rich in natural resources.

India is shielded by the world's highest mountains, the Himalayas, in the north.

The southern part of India takes the shape of a peninsula and divides the Indian Ocean into the Bay of Bengal to the southeast and the Arabian Sea to the southwest.

The southern tip of Kanyakumari is washed by the Indian Ocean. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal and the Lakshadweep group of islands in the Arabian sea are also a part of India.

India has a great diversity of natural ecosystems from 

the cold and high Himalayan ranges to the sea coasts, 

from the wet northeastern green forests to the dry northwestern arid deserts, 

different types of forests,

 wetlands, islands and the oceans. 

India  consists  of  fertile  river  plains  and  high  plateaus  and  several major  rivers, 

including the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Indus. 

The climate of India is determined by the 

southwest monsoon between June and October, 

the northeast monsoon between October and November and 

dry winds from the north between December and February.

 From March to May the climate is dry and hot.

PLANTS IN INDIATotal number of plant species recorded in the world 2,50,000 species

In India 45,000 species 33% of the above are native.

There are 15,000 flowering plant species which is 6% of the world’s total.

Areas rich in endemism are the Northeast, the Western Ghats and the Northwestern and Eastern Himalayas.

Andaman & Nicobar Islands contribute at least 200 endemic species to the endemic flora.

Classification No. of species

Angiosperms 15,000

Gymnosperms 64

Pteridophytes 1,022

Bryophytes 2,584

Algae 2,500

Fungi 23,000

Bacteria 850

Lichens 1,600

Source: Rao, 1994: BSI, 1992

LARGER ANIMALS NO. OF SPECIES

Mammals 390

Birds 1,232

Reptiles 456

Amphibians 209

Fishes 2,546

Source: Faunal diversity in India, ENVIS Centre, Zoological Survey of India, 1998

ANIMALS IN INDIA

Total animal species recorded In the world 11,96,903 In India 86,874

India possesses little more than 7% of the total animal species of the world. This percentage is higher than that of the plant species. Out of a total of 86,874 animal species, insects alone comprise 68.52% and chordates 5.70%

Among the large animals, 173 species of mammals, 101 of birds, 15 of reptiles, 3 of amphibians and 2 of fishes are considered endangered.

Gharial - present only in the Ganges river

S.No.

Biogeographic zones

Biotic provinces

1. Trans-Himalaya Ladakh mountains, Tibetan plateau

2. HimalayaNorthwest, West, Central and East Himalayas

3. Desert Thar, Kutch4. Semi-arid Punjab plains, Gujarat Rajputana5. Western Ghats Malabar plains, Western Ghats6. Deccan Peninsula Central highlands, Chotta-Nagpur,

Eastern highlands, Central Plateau, Deccan South

7. Gangetic plains Upper and Lower Gangetic plains8. Coast West and East coast, Lakshadweep9. North-East Brahmaputra valley, Northeast hills

10. Islands Andaman and NicobarSource: Wildlife Protected Area Network in India: A Review, Wildlife Institute of India, 2000.

The country has 10 different biogeographic zones and 26 biotic provinces.

1. THE TRANS-HIMALAYAN REGION This area is very cold and arid (4,500 Π6,000 mts. above msl).

The only vegetation is a sparse alpine steppe. Extensive areas consist of bare rock and glaciers.

The faunal groups best represented here are wild sheep and goats (chief ancestral stock), ibex, snow leopard, marbled cat, marmots and black-necked crane.

Marco polo sheep - ratio of horn length to body weight exceeds that of any animal in

the world.

2. THE HIMALAYAN REGION

The fantastic altitude gradient results in the

tremendous biodiversity of the Himalayan region.

Flora and fauna vary according to both altitude and

climatic conditions:

tropical rainforests in the Eastern Himalayas and

dense subtropical and alpine forests in the Central

and Western Himalayas.

The lower levels of the mountain range support

many types of orchids. On the eastern slopes,

rhododendrons grow to tree height.

Monal - bird of nine colours Animals of Himalayas show several behavioural and physiological adaptations.

Sambar and muntjac are found in the subtropical foothills; serow, goral and the Himalayan thar are found in the temperate and subalpine regions; snow leopard and brown bear inhabit the alpine region.

Carnivores are the most elusive of all mammals in the Himalayas. There are a variety of carnivores in the higher mountains, some of which are rare and threatened with extinction.

Last surving Wild Ass

3. THE INDIAN DESERT

The natural vegetation consists of tropical thorn

forests and tropical dry deciduous forests, sandy

deserts with seasonal salt marshes and mangroves

are found in the main estuaries.

Typical shrubs are phog growing on sand dunes.

Sewan grass covers extensive areas called pali.

Thar desert possesses most of the major insect species.

43 reptile species and moderate bird endemism are found here.

No niche of the Thar is devoid of birds.

The black buck was once the dominant mammal of the desert region, now confined only to certain pockets.

The gazelle is the only species of the Indian antelope of which the females have horns.

Nilgai the largest antelope of India and the wild ass, a distinct subspecies, is now confined to the Rann of Kutch which is also the only breeding site in the Indian subcontinent for the flamingoes.

Other species like desert fox, great Indian bustard, chinkara and desert cat are also found.

4. THE SEMI-ARID REGIONThe semi-arid region in the west of India includes the arid desert areas of Thar and Rajasthan extending to the Gulf of Kutch and Cambay and the whole Kathiawar peninsula.

Last surving Asiatic lion.

The natural vegetation consists of tropical thorn forests and tropical dry deciduous forests, moisture forests (extreme north) and mangroves. The sandy plains have a few scattered trees of Acacia and Prosopis. The gravelly plains have Calotropis, Gymnosporia, etc. The rocky habitats are covered by bushes of Euphorbia while species of Salvadora and Tamarix occur mainly near saline depressions. The lion of Gir is the endemic species in this zone.

5. THE WESTERN GHATSThey cover only 5% of India's land surface but are home to more than about 4,000 of the country's plant species of which 1800 are endemic.

The monsoon forests occur both on the western margins of the Ghats and on the eastern side where there is less rainfall.

This zone displays diversity of forests from evergreen to dry deciduous.

The Nilgiri langur, lion tailed macaque, Nilgiri tahr, Malabar grey hornbill and Most amphibian species are endemic to the Western Ghats.

Tiger - national animal

6. THE DECCAN PENINSULAThe Deccan Peninsula is a large area of raised land covering about 43% of India's total land surface.

It is bound by the Sathpura range on the north, Western Ghats on the west and Eastern Ghats on the east.

The elevation of the plateau varies from 900 mts. in the west to 300 mts. in the east.

There are four major rivers that support the wetlands of this region which have fertile black and red soil.

Asiatic wild buffalo - the most impressive and magnificentanimal in the world today 

Fauna like tiger, sloth bear, wild boar, gaur, sambar and chital are 

found throughout the zone along with small relict populations of 

wild buffaloes, elephants and barasingha.

Large parts are covered by tropical forests.

Tropical dry deciduous forests occur in the

northern, central and southern part of the plateau.

The eastern part of the plateau in Andhra Pradesh,

Madhya Pradesh and Orissa has moist deciduous

forests.

7. THE GANGETIC PLAIN

The Gangetic plain is one of India's most fertile regions.

The soil of this region is formed by the alluvial deposits of the Ganges and its tributaries.  

The  four  important  surface differences recognized in the geomorphology of the plains are

1. Bhabar - pebble studded zone with porous beds2. Terai - marshy tract3. Bhangar - older alluvium of the flood plain4. Khadar -newer alluvium

The Gangetic plains stretching from eastern

Rajasthan through Uttar Pradesh to Bihar and West

Bengal are mostly under agriculture.

The large forest area is under tropical dry deciduous

forest and the southeastern end of the Gangetic plain

merges with the littoral and mangroves regions of the

Sunderbans.

The fauna includes elephants, black buck, gazelle,

rhinoceros, Bengal florican, crocodile, freshwater

turtle and a dense waterfowl community.

8. THE COASTAL REGIONThe natural vegetation consists of mangroves.

Animal species include dugong, dolphins, crocodiles and avifauna.

There are 26 species of fresh water turtles and tortoises in India and 5 species of marine turtles, which inhabit and feed in coastal waters and lay their eggs on suitable beaches.

Tortoise live and breed mainly on the land.

Mangroves

•Over 200,000 Olive Ridley turtles come to Orissa to nest in

the space of three or four nights.

• The highest tiger population is found in the Sunderbans

along the east coast adjoining the Bay of Bengal.

•Lakshadweep consists of 36 major islands - 12 atolls, 3 reefs

and 5 submerged coral banks - make up this group of islands

more than three hundred kilometers to the west of the Kerala

coast.

•The geographical area is 32 sq. km. and the usable land area

is 26.32 sq. km.

•The fauna consists mainly of four species of turtles, 36

species of crabs, 12 bivalves, 41 species of sponges including

typical coral, ornamental fishes and dugongs. A total of 104

scleractinian corals belonging to 37 genera are reported.

9. THE NORTH-EAST•Biological resources are rich in this zone.

•The tropical vegetation of northeast India is rich in evergreen and semievergreen rain forests, moist deciduous monsoon forests, swamps and grasslands.

Mammalian fauna includes 390 species of which 63% are found in Assam. The area is rich in smaller carnivores. The country's highest population of elephants are found here

Great Indian one-horned rhinoceros – largest of all existing rhinoceros

Hoolock gibbon - the only ape found in India 

10. THE INDIAN ISLANDSIt is a group of 325 islands: Andaman to the north and Nicobar to the south.

The two are separated by about 160 kms. by the Ten Degree Channel of the sea.

The rainfall is heavy, with both Northeast and Southwest monsoons.

At present, 21 of the 325 islands in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands are inhabited.

Many unique plants and animals are found here. About 2,200 species of higher plants are found here of which 200 are endemic. The Andaman & Nicobar Islands have tropical evergreen forests and tropical semievergreen forests as well as moist deciduous forests, littoral and mangrove forests.

112 endemic species of avifauna, the Andaman water

monitor, giant robber crab, 4 species of turtles, wild boar,

Andaman day gecko and the harmless Andaman water

snake are found only in these islands. The Narcondam

hornbill found only in Narcondam is a large forest bird with

a big beak. Coral reefs are stretched over an area of 11,000

sq.km. in the Andamans and 2,700 sq.km. in Nicobar.

Living corals 

India is known for its rich heritage of biodiversity.India is a Mega-diversity Nation

• India is one of the 17 mega-diverse countries in the world.

• With only 2.4 % of the world’s area, India accounts for 7–8 % of the world’s recorded plant and animal species.

• India’s ten bio-geographic zones possess an exemplary diversity of ecological habitats like alpine forests, grasslands, wetlands, coastal and marine ecosystems, and desert ecosystems.

•Amongst the existing biota, 91,307 species of animals

of which 2,557 Protista, 12,470 general invertebrates,

69,903 arthropods, 4,994 vertebrates, and 45,500

species of plants as well as 5,650 microbial species

have been documented in its 10 bio-geographic

regions.

• India has four out of thirty-four global biodiversity

hotspots, which is an indicator of high degree of

endemism (of species) in India.

• About 5,150 plant species and 1,837 animal species

are endemic to India.

•India’s biodiversity includes wild relatives of

agricultural crops and domesticated animals.

 India has 16 major types and 251 subtypes of forests. 

Indigenous  medicine  systems  utilize  nearly  6,500  native  plants 

for both human and animal healthcare. 

India’s diverse preponderance of native tribal and ethnic groups 

has  contributed  significantly  in  the  conservation  and 

diversification  of  biodiversity.  Its  cultural  and  ethnic  diversity 

includes over 550 tribal communities of 227 ethnic groups spread 

over 5,000 forested villages. India proudly upholds the tradition of 

nature conservation. 

In 252 B.C., the Emperor Asoka established protected

areas (PAs) for mammals, birds, fish and forests through

a proclamation. Jim Corbett National Park covering an

area of 325 sq km came into being as the India’s first

and world’s third National Park in 1936.

India has currently 4.79 % of total geographic area

under an elaborate network of PAs, which includes 99

National Parks, 513 wildlife sanctuaries, 43 conservation

reserves, 4 community reserves and 3 biodiversity

heritage sites.

India has a National Wildlife Action Plan, which

envisages 10 % of the geographical area of the country

under PA coverage.

BENEFITS OF BIODIVERSITY

•Consumptive value:

•Food/Drink

•Fuel

•Medicine

•Batter crop varieties

•Industrial Material

Non-Consumptive Value:

•Recreation

•Education and Research

•Traditional value

Direct values

The direct value include food resources like grains,

vegetables, fruits which are obtained from plant

resources and meat, fish, egg, milk and milk products

from animal resources. These also include other values

like medicine, fuel, timber, fiber, wool, wax, resin, rubber,

silk and decorative items.

The direct values are of two types

(i) Consumptive use value and

(ii) Productive use value.

Consumptive use value:

These are the direct use values where the biodiversity

products can be harvested and consumed directly. Example:

Food, fuel and drugs. These goods are consumed locally and

do no figure in national and international market.

(a)     Food:

(i) Plants: The most fundamental value of biological resources

particularly plants is providing food. Basically three crops i.e.

wheat, maize and rice constitute more than two third of the

food requirement all over the world.

(ii) Fish: Through the development of aquaculture, techniques,

fish and fish products have become the largest source of

protein in the world.

Fuel:

Since ages forests have provided wood

which is used as a fuel. Moreover fossil fuels like

coal, petroleum, natural gas are also product of

biodiversity which are directly consumed by

humans.

Drugs and medicines:

The traditional medical practice like ayurveda

utilizes plants or their extracts directly. In allopathy, the

pharmaceutical industry is much more dependent on

natural products. Many drugs are derived from plants like

Quinine: The famous anti malaria drug is obtained from

cinchona tree.

Penicillin: A famous antibiotic is derived from pencillium,

a fungus.

Tetracycline: It is obtained from bacterium.

Recently vinblastin and vincristine, two anti cancer drugs

have been obtained from catharanthus plant which has anti

cancer alkaloids.

Productive use values:

These are the direct use values where the

product is commercially sold in national and

international market. Many industries are dependent

upon these values.

Example- Textile, leather, silk, paper and pulp

industry etc. Although there is an international ban on

trade of products from endangered species like tusks

of elephants, wool from sheep, fur of many animals

etc. These are traded in market and fetch a booming

business.

Indirect values

Biodiversity provides indirect benefits to human

beings which support the existence of biological life and

other benefits which are difficult to quantify. These

include social and cultural values, ethical values,

aesthetic values, option values and environment service

values.

Social and cultural value:

Many plants and animals are considered holy and

sacred in India and are worshipped like Tulsi, peepal,

cow, snake etc. In Indian society great cultural value is

given to forest and as such tiger, peacock and lotus are

named as the national animal, bird and flower

respectively.

Ethical:

These values are related to conservation of biodiversity

where ethical issue of ‘all life forms must be preserved’ is laid

down. There is an existence value which is attached to each

species because biodiversity is valuable for the survival of

human race. Moreover all species have a moral right to exist

independent of our need for them.

Aesthetic value:

There is a great aesthetic value which is attached to

biodiversity. Natural landscapes at undisturbed places are a

delight to watch and also provide opportunities for recreational

activities like bird watching, photography etc. It promotes eco-

tourism which further generates revenue by designing of

zoological, botanical gardens, national parks, wild life

conservation etc.

Option values:

These values include the unexplored or unknown

potentials of biodiversity.

Environment service values: The most important benefit

of biodiversity is maintenance of environment services which

includes

Carbon dioxide fixation through photosynthesis.

Maintaining of essential nutrients by carbon (C),  oxygen

(O), Nitrogen (N), Sulphur (S), Phosphorus (P) cycles.

Maintaining water cycle and recharging of ground

water.

Soil formation and protection from erosion.

Regulating climate by recycling moisture into the

atmosphere.

Detoxification and decomposition of waste.

Ecological

services: Balance of nature

Biological productivity

Regulation of climate

Degradation of waste

Cleaning of air and water

Cycling of nutrients

Control of potential pest

and disease causing

species

Detoxification of soil and

sediments

Stabilization of land

against erosion

Carbon sequestration

and global climate change

Maintenance of Soil

fertility

Flora and fauna diversity depends on-

• Climate

• Altitude

• Soils

• Presence of other species

Most of the biodiversity concentrated in Tropical

region.

BIODIVERSITY HOTSPOTS:

A region with high biodiversity with most of spices

being Endemic.

India have two Biodiversity Hotspots- East Himalayan

Region and Western Ghat

HOTSPOTS

A biodiversity hotspot is a region with a high

level of endemic species. Hotspots were first named in

1988 by Dr. Sabina Virk. Many hotspots are nearby of

large human populations. While hotspots are spread all

over the world, the majority are forest areas and most

are located in the tropics. The following picture shows

hotspots around the world.

A biodiversity hotspot is a bio-geographic

region that is both a significant reservoir of

biodiversity and is threatened with destruction. The

term biodiversity hotspot specifically refers to 25

biologically rich areas around the world that have

lost at least 70 percent of their original habitat.

What’s a Hotspot?

To qualify as a biodiversity hotspot, a region must meet

two strict criteria:

It must have at least 1,500 vascular plants as

endemics — which is to say, it must have a high percentage

of plant life found nowhere else on the planet. A hotspot, in

other words, is irreplaceable.

It must have 30% or less of its original natural

vegetation. In other words, it must be threatened.

Around the world, 35 areas qualify as hotspots. They

represent just 2.3% of Earth’s land surface, but they

support more than half of the world’s plant species as

endemics — i.e., species found no place else — and nearly

43% of bird, mammal, reptile and amphibian species as

endemics.

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

Domino effect

Threats to biodiversity

Habitat destruction

Important to protect habitat in order to protect

biodiversity within it. Huge pressure from the World’s

rapidly increasing population.

Global climate change 

Change in a biotic elements of ecosystems leading to

biotic change.

Habitat fragmentation 

From human activity. Reduces ability of habitat to

support species.

Pollution

Introduction of pollutants such as nutrient overloading with

nitrate fertilizer as well as more immediately harmful chemicals.

Over-exploitation

This includes the illegal wildlife trade as well as overfishing,

logging of tropical hardwoods etc.

Alien species

Introduced by humans to regions where there are no natural

predators.

Disease

Reduction in habitat causing high population densities,

encourages spread of diseases.

Habitat loss

Habitat loss:-

Habitat loss can be described when an animal

loses their home. Every animal in the animal kingdom

has a niche, a their in their animal community and

without their habitat they no longer have a niche.

Reasons of habitat loss by humans:

agriculture, farming

harvesting natural resources for personal use

for industrial and urbanization development

Habitat destruction is currently ranked as the primary

causes of species extinction world wide…!!!

Example :

The impact upon china’s panda, ones found across

the nation. Now it’s only found in fragmented and isolated

regions in the south west of the country as a result of wide

spread deforestation in the 20th century.

There are natural causes too..

Habitat destruction through natural processes such

as volcanism, fire and climate change is well documented

in the fossil record. One study shows that fragmentation

of tropical rainforest in euro 3000 million years ago lead

to a great loss of amphibian diversity.

Solutions on for this..

•Protecting remaining intact section of natural habitat.

•Reduce human population and expansion of

urbanisation and industries.

•Educating the public about the importance of natural

habitat and bio diversity.

•Solutions to habitat loss can include planting trees,

planting home gardens so as to reduce need for man to

need large lands for agricultural farms which lead to

habitat loss.

Poaching

Poaching is the hunting and harvesting taking of

wild plants or animals, such as through hunting ,

harvesting, fishing or trapping.

History of poaching

•Millions of years ago, in the Stone Age 

• Followed through the ages, to even the tribal

natives but it was during the Late Middle Ages that

poaching became a punishable offense

Why Poaching is done???

Poaching is done for large profits gained by

the illegal sale or trade of animal parts, meat

and pelts.

Exists because there is a demand for these

products, caused by a lack of education or

disregard for the law amongst the buyers

Many cultures believe that certain animal

parts have medicinal value

Poaching is not limited to animals its also for plants too…………! Three of the most often poached species in the park are galax, black cohosh, and ginseng.

GALAX BLACK COHOSH GINSENG

How does poaching affect the environment?

 •Poaching or illegal hunting causes animals

endangered of being extinct. If more animals

becomes extinct there's a disruption in the food

chain, and that will cause major problems in our

ecosystem, resulting eventually in new adaptations

of animals, and or species beyond human control.

•Poaching results in animals being hunted too soon

for them to have time to reproduce and repopulate.

 

Man- wild conflicts

Man-wildlife conflict

• Any conflict that arises where the behavior of one

(human or wildlife) is unacceptably disadvantageous to other

• Increase in man wildlife conflict is due to resource

limitation like 1. Space 2. Food

3. Shelter

• It is also due to Increasing population of human

beings , Loss of forest, decrease in quality of forest and

development activities.

• Crops like sugarcane and tea estates are reported to

provide excellent cover for wild animals

• There are 661 Protected Areas in the country covering

around 4.8% geographical areas. There are 100 National

Parks, 514 Wildlife Sanctuaries, 43 Conservation Reserves

and 4 Community Reserves in the country

A ‘Conflict’ of Words

• One-sided Reporting Can Harm Wildlife

• The headlines are invariably provocative

– menace, threat, fear, attack and death!

• In 99.9 per cent of these cases (with the

exception of deliberate stalking and

predation on humans by big cats), it’s

never an aggressive attack by the animal.

The animal gets cornered, surrounded by

people (big cats) or faces an abrupt

encounter at short range because of its

poor senses (elephants, bear) and then

attacks out of fear.

• reporters and sub editors should avoid

biased or sensationalized reports

In India, wild elephants probably

kill far more people than tiger,

leopard or lion.

Damage to agricultural crops

and property, killing of livestock

and human beings are some of

the worst forms of man-animal

conflict.

Farmers sometimes poison and

shoot wild animals as they

damage their crops, but this

can be prevented by taking

certain measures.

2006-07 / 31 / 342

2007-08 / 34 / 241

2008-09 / 46 / 726

2010-11 / 52 / 689

Governments is working on improvement of habitat to augment food and water availability and to reduce movement of animals from the forests to the habitations.

Training forest staff and police to tackle these situations and creating awareness among the people about the Do’s and Don’ts to minimize conflicts .

construction of boundary walls and solar fences around the sensitive areas to prevent the wild animal attacks.

Some devices of Information Technology, viz., radio collars with Very High Frequency, Global Positioning System and Satellite uplink facilities can be used to track the movements of wild animals .

Ways to reduce the conflicts

Species and taxonomy

Each species is classified within a 

hierarchy reflecting evolutionary 

relationships.

Two related species might be in 

the same genus; two related 

genera in the same family, etc.

Threatened endangered species In India

Diversity of subspecies

Within species, diversity exists in subspecies, or geographic variations.

The tiger, Panthera tigris, had 8 subspecies.5 persist today, including Panthera tigris altaica, the Siberian tiger.

Endangered golden lion tamarin, endemic to Brazil’s Atlantic rainforest, which has been almost totally destroyed.

CONSERVATION OF

BIODIVERSITY

Biodiversity Conservation

In situ Sacred groves and lakes

Biosphere 

Reserves

Terrestrial

Marine

National 

parks, wildlife sanctuaries

Ex situ

Sacred plant  home garden

Seed Bank, Gene bank, 

Cryopreservation

Botanical garden, Zoological garden, 

Aquaria

Biodiversity loss and species extinction

• Extinction = last member of a species dies and the species vanishes forever from Earth

• Extirpation = disappearance of a particular population, but not the entire species globally

• These are natural processes.On average one species goes extinct

naturally every 500–1,000 years—this is the background rate of extinction.

• 99% of all species that ever lived are now extinct.

Benefits of biodiversity: Biophilia

Biophilia = human love for and attachment to other

living things; “the connections that human beings

subconsciously seek out with the rest of life”:

• Affinity for parks and wildlife

• Keeping of pets

• Valuing real estate with landscape views

• Interest in escaping cities to go hiking,

birding, fishing, hunting, backpacking, etc.

TERMS RELATED TO BIODIVERSITY

• Endemic species- Plant and animal species confined to a

particular geographical area are called endemic species.

• Extinct species- Species that no longer exist anywhere on the

Earth are called extinct species.

• Endangered species- Species that are at a high risk of getting

extinct in their habitat are called endangered species.

• Ecosystem- An ecosystem is a community of living organisms

(plants, animals and microbes) in conjunction with

the nonliving components of their environment (things like air,

water and mineral soil), interacting as a system.

DISTIBUTION OF BIODIVERSITY

• Biodiversity is not evenly distributed, rather it varies greatly

across the globe as well as within regions. Among other

factors, the diversity of all living things depends on

temperature, precipitation, altitude, soils, geography and

the presence of other species. The study of the spatial

distribution of organisms, species and ecosystems is the

science of biogeography.

• Flora diversity also depends on factors like climate, altitude,

soil and presence of other species.

• Most of the biodiversity is concentrated in the tropical

region.