Biodiversity PDF

GE Elec Environmental Science Prepared by: Erica Paula Yohanon - PCO BIODIVERSITY Biodiversity is all the different kinds of life you’ll find in one area—the variety of animals, plants, fungi, and even microorganisms like bacteria that make up our...

GE Elec Environmental Science Prepared by: Erica Paula Yohanon - PCO BIODIVERSITY Biodiversity is all the different kinds of life you’ll find in one area—the variety of animals, plants, fungi, and even microorganisms like bacteria that make up our natural world. Like an intricate web, these species and organisms work together in ecosystems to maintain balance and support life. Biodiversity supports everything in nature that we need to survive such as food, clean water, medicine, and shelter. The term biodiversity was coined in 1985. As defined in a convention on Biological Diversity signed at Rio De Janeiro (Brazil) in 1992 by 154 countries, Biodiversity is defined as “the variability among living organisms from all sources including, among other things, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic eco-systems and the ecological complexes of which they are part”. This includes diversity within species, between species and of an ecosystem.” In addition, according to IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) 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”. Types of Biodiversity Figure 1 Types of Biodiversity 1. Species diversity – refers to the variety of different types of species found in a particular area. It is the biodiversity at the most basic level. It includes all the species ranging from plants to different microorganisms. Example: monkeys, grasses, trees – they all have different species Page | 1 GE Elec Environmental Science Prepared by: Erica Paula Yohanon - PCO Figure 2 Different species representing species diversity 2. Genetic diversity – Refers to the differences in genetic makeup between distinct species and genetic variations within a single species Example: Dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) – Golden Retriever, Poodle, Great Dane, Chihuahua, Pomeran, etc. Figure 3 Some dog spp. from Canis lupus familiaris Page | 2 GE Elec Environmental Science Prepared by: Erica Paula Yohanon - PCO 3. Ecosystem diversity – the enormous variation of terrestrial and aquatic environments Example: Aquatic Ecosystems – Wetlands, rivers, lakes, coastal estuaries Terrestrial Ecosystems – Tundra, taiga, temperature forests, tropical rainforest, grasslands, deserts Figure 4 Representative ecosystems Page | 3