Biodiversity is the diversity of biological organisation PATTERNS OF BIODIVERSITY

ranging from cellular macromolecules to biomes.

i. Latitudinal gradients
Edward Wilson popularized the term ‘biodiversity’.
- Species diversity decreases from the equator to the poles.
LEVELS OF BIODIVERSITY - Tropics (latitudinal range of 23.5o N to 23.5o S) have more
1. Genetic diversity: Diversity shown by a single species at species than temperate or polar areas.
genetic level. E.g. Rauwolfia vomitoria (Himalaya) shows E.g. Number of bird species in different latitudes:
genetic variation in the potency & concentration of the o Colombia (near equator): about 1400 species.
chemical reserpine. India has more than 50,000 different o India (in tropics): > 1200 species.
strains of rice and 1000 varieties of mango. o New York (41o N): 105 species.
o Greenland (71o N): 56 species.
2. Species diversity: Diversity at species level. E.g. Western
- Tropical forest region like Equador has up to 10 times of
Ghats have greater amphibian species than Eastern Ghats.
vascular plant species as compared to a temperate forest
3. Ecological diversity: Diversity at ecosystem level. region like the Midwest of USA.
E.g. In India, deserts, rain forests, mangroves, coral - Tropical Amazonian rain forest (South America) is the
reefs, wet lands, estuaries & alpine meadows are seen. greatest biodiversity on earth. It contains
NUMBER OF SPECIES ON EARTH o > 40000 species of plants
(GLOBAL SPECIES DIVERSITY) o 3000 species of fishes
o 1300 species of birds
o According to IUCN (2004), more than 1.5 million species
o 427 species of mammals
described so far.
o 427 species of amphibians
o According to Robert May’s Global estimate, about 7
o 378 species of reptiles
million species would have on earth. (He considered the
o > 1,25,000 species of invertebrates
species to be discovered in the tropics. i.e. only 22% of the
- Biodiversity (species richness) is highest in tropics because
total species have been recorded so far).
o Tropics had more evolutionary time.
o Animals are more diverse (above 70%) than plants
o Relatively constant environment (less seasonal).
including Plantae and Fungi (22%). o They receive more solar energy which contributes to
o Among animals, insects are most species rich group (70%, greater productivity.
i.e. out of every 10 animals, 7 are insects).
ii. Species- Area relationship
o Number of fungi species is more than the combined total of
According to the study of Alexander von Humboldt in South
the species of fishes, amphibians, reptiles & mammals.
American jungles, within a region, species richness increases
with increasing explored area, but only up to a limit.
Relation between species richness and area gives a
rectangular hyperbola.
S= CAz
Where,
S= Species richness
A= Area
C= Y-intercept
Z= slope of the line
(regression co-
efficient)

- On a logarithmic scale, the relationship is a straight line

described the equation Log S = log C + Z log A
o India has only 2.4% of world’s land area, but has 8.1% of
- Generally, for small areas, the Z value is 0.1 to 0.2.
the species diversity. India is one of the 12 mega diversity
- But for large areas (e.g. entire continents), slope of the line
countries of the world. Nearly 45,000 plant species and
is steeper (Z value: 0.6 to 1.2).
twice as many of animals have been recorded from India.
- E.g. for frugivorous birds and mammals in the tropical
o Applying May’s global estimates, India would have more
forests of different continents, the Z value is 1.15.
than 1 lakh plant species and 3 lakh animal species.
o Biologists are not sure about total number of prokaryotic IMPORTANCE OF SPECIES DIVERSITY
species because - According to David Tilman, plots with more species
• Conventional taxonomic methods are not suitable for shows less year-to-year variation in total biomass.
identifying microbial species. - Increased diversity contributes to higher productivity. It is
• In laboratory, many species cannot be cultured. essential for ecosystem health and survival of human race.

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- ‘Rivet popper hypothesis’: It is an analogy used to BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION
understand the importance of biodiversity. There are 3 categories of reasons for conservation.
It is proposed by Stanford ecologist Paul Ehrlich.
a. Narrowly utilitarian arguments
In an airplane (ecosystem), all parts are joined with many
rivets (species). If passengers pop a rivet (extinction of a - Human derive economic benefits from nature such as food,
species), it may not affect flight safety (functioning of the firewood, fibre, construction material, industrial products
ecosystem). But as more and more rivets are removed, the (tannins, lubricants, dyes, resins, perfumes) and medicines.
plane becomes dangerously weak. Loss of rivets on the - More than 25% of the drugs are derived from plants.
wings (key species that drive major ecosystem functions) - 25,000 species of plants have medicinal value.
is more dangerous than loss of a few rivets on the seats or b. Broadly utilitarian arguments
windows. Biodiversity has many ecosystem services. E.g.
LOSS OF BIODIVERSITY • Amazon forest (‘lung of the planet’) produces 20% of total
O2 in the earth’s atmosphere.
- IUCN Red List (2004) says that 784 species (338
• Pollination through bees, bumblebees, birds and bats.
vertebrates, 359 invertebrates & 87 plants) were extinct in
• Aesthetic pleasures.
the last 500 years. E.g. Dodo (Mauritius), Quagga (Africa),
Thylacine (Australia), Stellar’s sea cow (Russia) and 3 c. Ethical arguments
subspecies (Bali, Javan, Caspian) of tiger. • Every species has an intrinsic value. We have a moral duty
- 27 species have been disappeared in the last 20 years. to care for their well-being.
- More than 15,500 species are facing threat of extinction. Biodiversity conservation is 2 types: In situ (on site)
- 12% birds, 23% mammals, 32% amphibians, 31% conservation and Ex situ (off site) conservation.
gymnosperm species face the threat of extinction.
a. In situ conservation (on site)
- The current extinction rate is 100 - 1000 times faster than
It is the conservation of genetic resources within natural or
in the pre-human times. If this trend continues, nearly 50%
human-made ecosystems in which they occur. E.g. Protected
species might be extinct within next 100 years.
areas such as National Parks, Sanctuaries, Biosphere
Impacts of Loss of biodiversity reserves, cultural landscapes, natural monuments etc.
o Decline in plant production.
• National Park: Strictly reserved for the welfare of the
o Environmental perturbations such as drought.
wildlife where private ownership, cultivation, grazing etc.
o Increased variability in ecosystem processes such as plant
productivity, water use and pest & disease cycles. are prohibited. E.g. Eravikulam National Park in Kerala.
• Sanctuary: Here, protection is given only to the animals.
Causes of Biodiversity losses (‘The Evil Collection of timbers, minor forest products and private
Quartet’) ownership are allowed so long as they do not harm the
1. Habitat loss and fragmentation: Most important cause. animals. E.g. Periyar wildlife sanctuary in Kerala.
- E.g. Tropical rain forests (loss from 14% to 6%). • Biosphere Reserves: Areas of land or coastal ecosystems
- Thousands of hectares of rain forests are being lost for conservation and sustainable use.
within hours. • Sacred forests (Sacred groves): Forest fragments which
- The Amazon rain forest is being cut for cultivating soya are communally protected based on religious beliefs. E.g.
beans or for conversion of grass lands for cattle. o Sacred groves in Khasi & Jaintia Hills in Meghalaya.
- Fragmentation badly affects animals requiring large o Aravalli Hills of Rajasthan.
territories and migratory animals. o Western Ghat regions of Karnataka & Maharashtra.
2. Over-exploitation: Stellar’s sea cow, Passenger pigeon o Sarguja, Chanda & Bastar areas (Madhya Pradesh).
etc. extinct due to over exploitation. India has 14 Biosphere Reserves, 90 National Parks and
3. Alien species invasions: Alien species cause decline or 448 wildlife sanctuaries.
extinction of indigenous species. E.g.
b. Ex situ conservation (off site)
- Nile Perch introduced in Lake Victoria (East Africa)
caused extinction of more than 200 species of cichlid fish. It is the conservation of organisms outside their habitats. E.g.
- Invasive weed species like Parthenium (carrot grass), genetic resource centres, zoological parks, wildlife safari parks,
Lantana and Eicchornia (water hyacinth) caused botanical gardens, gene banks, cryopreservation etc.
damage to our native species. Hotspots
- Illegal introduction of the African Catfish (Clarias • These are the regions with very high species richness, high
gariepinus) for aquaculture is a threat to the indigenous degree of endemism (species confined only to a specific
catfishes in our rivers. region) but most threatened.
4. Co-extinction: When a species becomes extinct, the • There are 34 hotspots in the world.
species associated with it also extinct. E.g. • 3 hotspots cover India’s biodiversity regions- Western
- Extinction of the parasites when the host is extinct. Ghats & Sri Lanka, Indo-Burma and Himalaya.
- In co-evolved plant-pollinator mutualism, extinction
of one causes the extinction of the other.
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• All hotspots together cover only < 2% of the earth’s land a. Conservation of biodiversity.
area. But the species richness is extremely high. Protection b. Sustainable use of biodiversity.
of hotspots reduced the ongoing extinctions by 30%. c. Sharing of benefits arising from genetic resources.
International Efforts for conserving • The World Summit on Sustainable Development
biodiversity (Johannesburg, South Africa, 2002): 190 countries
pledged to reduce the current rate of biodiversity loss.
• The Earth Summit or Convention on Biological
Diversity (Rio de Jeneiro, 1992) - 3 objectives:

MODEL QUESTIONS
1. There are about 20,000 species of ants 3,00,000 species of beetles and 28,000 species of fishes in the world.
a. Which organization is dealing with the population of organisms in the world?
b. What are the causes of bio-diversity losses?
2. Anil said: “Mosquitoes are harmful, Snakes are poisonous, and Insects damage crops. It is high time to destroy all these
organisms for the welfare of human beings”.
a. Can you agree with this statement?
b. As a biology student, how can you convince this person about the importance of each organism in the
nature?
3. Amazonian rain forests have the greatest biodiversity on earth. Give 3 hypotheses to explain the reason for this.
4. “The biological wealth of our planet has been declining rapidly and the accusing finger is clearly pointing to human
activities.”
a. Mention any two human activities leading to the loss of biodiversity.
b. Mention the different ways to conserve biodiversity.
5. Introduction of exotic species is one of the major threats of biodiversity. Cite any two examples.
6. The given bar diagram shows the population of Asiatic leopard and tiger for the last 50 years in India.

a. Analyse the figure, whether the population of tiger and leopard increasing or decreasing. Find reason.
b. Does the decreasing population of the organisms affect the stability of the ecosystem? If yes state how?
c. Suggest measures for protecting the population of these organisms.
7. Classify the following words into two categories and give suitable titles.
Genetic resource centres, National parks, Botanical gardens, Sanctuaries, Biosphere reserves, Gene banks, Cultural
landscapes, Zoological parks, Natural monuments, Sacred forests.
8. Distinguish between National park and Sanctuary giving one example for each.
9. This is a board seen in front of a national park.

a. Evaluate the quotation in the board and state your opinion.

b. Write any four reasons for extinction of animals.
c. Name three animals extinct recently.
d. What is the significance of IUCN red list?