Biodiversity PDF

ENVI-SCI REVIEWER BIODIVERSITY was first coined by Walter G. Rosen (1986).  BIOSPHERE is comprises of a complex collections of innumerable organisms - (BIODIVERSITY) which constitute the vital life support for survival of human race.  BIODIVERSITY “BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY” represent the su...

ENVI-SCI REVIEWER BIODIVERSITY was first coined by Walter G. Rosen (1986).  BIOSPHERE is comprises of a complex collections of innumerable organisms - (BIODIVERSITY) which constitute the vital life support for survival of human race.  BIODIVERSITY “BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY” 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 genes, species, and ecosystem. CONCEPT OF BIODIVERSITY & ITS TYPES BIODIVERSITY is the variety of life on Earth. Types of Biodiversity:  Genetic Diversity,  Species Diversity  Ecosystem Diversity. Animal or plant is not exactly the same ; nor are species or ecosystems.  GENETIC BIODIVERSITY is the total number of genetic characteristics in the genetic makeup of a species, it ranges widely from the number of species to differences within species and can be attributed to the span of survival for a species. Different breeds of dogs as a result of selective breeding is one of the best example of genetic diversity.  SPECIES BIODIVERSITY is simply the number and relative abundance of species found in a given biological organization (population, ecosystem, Earth). Species are the basic units of biological classification and hence, this is the measure most commonly associated with the term 'biodiversity'.  ECOSYSTEM OR HABITAT BIODIVERSITY is the structural and the functional unit of the biosphere. Ecosystem diversity is defined as the aggregation of various habitats, community types and abiotic environment in a given area. DISTRIBUTION OF BIODIVERSITY  Biodiversity is not evenly distributed, rather it varies greatly across the globe as well as within regions.  Terrestrial biodiversity is 25 times greater than ocean biodiversity.  The study of the spatial distribution of organisms, species and ecosystem, is the science of biogeography. THREATS TO BIODIVERSITY (HHPAGOD)  HABITAT DESTRUCTION- Important to protect habitat in order to protect biodiversity within it. Huge pressure from the World's rapidly increasing population.  HABITAT FRAGMENTATION- From human activity. Reduces ability of to species.  POLLUTION- Introduction of pollutants such as nutrient overloading with nitrate fertilizer as well as more immediately harmful chemicals.  ALIEN SPECIES- Introduced by humans to regions where there are no natural predators.  GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE- Change in a biotic elements of ecosystems leading to biotic change.  OVER-EXPLOITATION- This includes the illegal wildlife trade as well as overfishing, logging of tropical hardwoods etc.  DISEASE- Reduction in habitat causing high population densities, encourages spread of diseases.  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 SOLUTIONS FOR THIS  Protecting remaining intact section of natural habitat.  Reduce human population and expansion of urbanization and industries.  Educating the public about the importance 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 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  During the Late Middle Ages 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. MOST OFTEN POACHED SPECIES IN THE PARK  Galax  Black Cohosh  Ginseng RECENT ISSUE ON BIODIVERSITY  Some 75% of the genetic diversity of crop plants been lost in the past century.  Some scientists estimate that as many as 3 species per hour are going extinct and 20,000 extinctions occur each year.  Roughly one-third of the world's coral reef systems have been destroyed or highly degraded.  About 24% of mammals and 12% of bird species are currently considered to be globally threatened.  More than 50% of the world's wetlands have been drained, and populations of inland water and wetland species have declined by 50% between 1970 and 1999. CONSERVATION OF BIODIVERSITY (CCRRIPE)  Controlling Urbanization  Conservation through Biotechnology  Restoration of Biodiversity  Reviewing the agriculture practice  Imparting Environmental Education  Population Control  Enacting, strengthening and enforcing environmental legislation  EVOLUTION the process by different kinds of living organisms thought to have developed and diversified from earlier forms during the history of the earth. TYPES OF FOSSILS (ICTCDV)  IMPRINT FOSSILS are also known as impression fossils. Imprint fossils are formed from an organism moving in some way, leaving behind a trace or track. These tracks are preserved when the clay/silt dries slowly and is covered by other sediment. Plants can also leave imprint fossils when they are covered by sediment.  COMPRESSION FOSSIL is a fossil preserved in sedimentary rock that has undergone physical compression. While it is uncommon to find animals preserved as good compression fossils, it is very common to find plants preserved this way. The reason for this is that physical compression of the rock often leads to distortion of the fossil.  TRILOBITE Trilobites were arthropods - small, segmented animals with exoskeletons - that lived in Paleozoic times. Trilobites were marine animals with many legs, their bodies divided into segments (like spiders, scorpions, and caterpillars). The back of a trilobite's body had three sections, or lobes. The word trilobite means "three lobes" in Greek, from tri and lobos. We know a lot about trilobites, especially considering they've been extinct for a long time, because their exoskeletons were easily fossilized. An invertebrate, it lived in a shallow marine environment during Ordovician and Silurian  CRINOIDS are marine animals that make up the class Crinoidea, one of the classes of the phylum Echinodermata, which also includes the starfish, brittle stars, sea urchins and sea cucumbers. Those crinoids which, in their adult form, are attached to the sea bottom by a stalk are commonly called sea lilies, while the unstalked forms are called feather stars or comatulids, being members of the largest crinoid order, Comatulida. Crinoids look like plants but are actually animals related to our modern day starfish. They belong to Phylum Echinodermata  DINOSAUR BONE FOSSILS This may be their preserved remains or other traces, such as marks they made in the ground while they were alive. Fossilized remains - including fossil bones and teeth - are known as body fossils.... Dinosaur trace fossils include footprints, imprints of their skin or feathers, and poo - called coprolites. Dinosaur or giant reptiles ruled the earth during es the Jurassic Period.  VASCULAR PLANT FOSSILS Vascular - From the Latin vasculum meaning a vessel or duct. Vascular plants first appear in the fossil record during the mid-Silurian period, about 410 million years ago. Rhyniophyta is the earliest known division of these plants, represented by several genera. This fossilized leaf is once apart of an early vascular plant during the Carboni- HINT OF EVOLUTION FROM COMPARATIVE ANATOMY COMPARATIVE ANATOMY is the study of similarities and differences in the anatomy of different species. It is closely related to evolutionary biology and phylogeny (the evolution of species). HOMOLOGOUS STRUCTURES are similar physical features in organisms that share a common ancestor, but the features serve completely different functions are derived from convergent evolution. An example of homologous structures are the limbs of humans, cats, whales, and bats. Regardless of whether it is an arm, leg, flipper or wing, these structures are built upon the same bone structure. TRANSCRIPT OF EVIDENCE FROM EMBRYONIC DEVELOPMENT An embryo is an early stage of development in organisms. The embryo of fishes, salamanders, lizards, birds, cats, and humans are similar during the first stage of their embryonic development; and have several homologous structures that are not present when the organisms are adults Embryonic development include stages such as blastula, gastrula, and organogenesis. Studies show that species that are closely related exhibit similar embryonic development. JEAN BAPTISTE DE LAMARCK was a French scientist who developed an alternative theory at the beginning of the 19th century. His theory centred on two ideas:  The law of use and disuse  The law of inheritance of acquired characteristics LAW OF USE AND DISUSE he theorized that individuals lose characteristics they do not require, or use, and develop characteristics that are useful. LAW OF ACQUIRED CHARACTERISTICS Lamarckism (or Lamarckian inheritance) is the idea that an organism can pass on characteristics that it has acquired during its lifetime to its offspring (also known as heritability of acquired characteristics or soft inheritance) CHARLES DARWIN is often cited as the greatest biologist in history. His most famous work, On the Origin of Species, explains the theory of evolution by natural selection, providing numerous supporting examples.  DARWIN'S THEORY OF EVOLUTION AND NATURAL SELECTION Darwin's theory of evolution declared that species survived through a process called "Natural Selection" where those that successfully adapted, or evolved, to meet the changing requirements of their natural habitat thrived, while those that failed to evolve and reproduce died off. Through his observations and studies of birds, plants and fossils, Darwin noticed similarities among species all over the globe, along with variations based on specific locations, leading him to believe that the species we know today had gradually evolved from common ancestors. Darwin's theory of evolution and the process of natural selection later became known simply as "DARWINISM" SCIENTISTS COMBINE SEVERAL WELL-TESTED TECHNIQUES TO FIND OUT THE AGES OF FOSSILS. THE MOST IMPORTANT ARE:  RELATIVE DATING - fossils and layers of rock are placed in order from older to younger  RADIOMETRIC DATING - allows the actual ages of certain types of rock to be calculated. GEOLOGIC TIME SCALE is a system of chronological dating that relates geological strata (stratigraphy) to time. THREE MAJOR CONCEPTS OF COMPARATIVE ANATOMY  HOMOLOGOUS STRUCTURES  ANALOGOUS STRUCTURES - are structures of unrelated species may evolve to look alike. Analogous Structure have similar function but different origin. EVIDENCE FROM EMBRYONIC DEVELOPMENT  COMPARATIVE EMBRYOLOGY Incredible similarities in embryos of different species provides evidence of common ancestor Patterns of embryo development are also important.