BIODIVERSITY

Biodiveristy- definition: genetic,

species, and ecosystem diversity

2
• Biodiversity-Life, world, the variation of life for the
entire world

• -consists of many millions of distinct biological

species, the product of evolution of over 3.5 billion
years.

3
In 1986 famous biologist E. O. Wilson, coined the
term with definition

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At present there is a great deal of discussion on
Biodiversity happens because the world evolved,
relatively recently with advanced set of species and
started to lose species and habitats at an ever-
increasing and alarming rate.

The main reason behind the biodiversity loss is due

to the activity of one of the several million species,
ie. Human

5
Figure 1: Timeline of mass extinction events. The five named vertical bars
indicate mass extinction events. Black rectangles (drawn to scale) represent
global reef gaps and brick-pattern shapes show times of prolific reef growth
(Veron 2008). 6
7
Five Extinction events in the world history include:

Cretaceous-Tertiary Extinction Event (75% of all species including the

dinosaurs) about 75 million years ago.

Triassic–Jurassic Extinction Event (60% of all species including most

Achosaurs, Therapsids, and large Amphibians) about 205 million years
ago.

Permian–Triassic Extinction Event (96% of Aquatic Species including

most of the sessile species; and 70% of land species including most
Synapsids) 251 million years ago.

Late Devonian Extinction Event (70% of all species including most

Brachiopods and Trilobites) 360 million years ago.

Ordovician–Silurian Extinction Event (80% of all species, mostly

brachiopods, bivalves, echinoderms, bryozoans, and corals) 450 million
years ago.

8
 Definition of biodiversity or biological diversity?
- the sum of total of life forms at all levels of organization
in biological system.

• Article 2 of the CBD defines “Biological diversity means the

variability among living organisms from all sources
including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic
ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are
part; this includes biological diversity within species and
ecosystems”.

• “Biodiversity includes assemblages of plant, animals and

micro-organisms, their genetic variability expressed and
populations, their habitats, ecosystems and natural areas, the
mosaic of which constitutes the landscape which gives the
richness to the natural environment” (Denny, 1997).
Contd. 9
Biodiversity is defined as “the intrinsically-inbuilt plus the
externally-imposed variability in and among living organisms
existing in terrestrial, marine and other ecosystem at a specific
period of time”.

 Roughly 1.5 million species known to science. But, several species

left undescribed, and hence we estimated 10-30 million species
likely there on earth.

 Of the tens of millions of species believed to be on Earth,

scientists have only given names to about 1.5 million of them, and
even fewer of the species have been studied in depth.

 Currently about 1.9 million species are known, but this is thought
to be a significant underestimate of the total number of species.
 Between 1.4 and 1.8 million species have already been
scientifically identified. 10
 Estimated Number of Described Species
Nematoda Actinopterygii
Other Vertebrata
Bacteria 20,000 (1.1%) 23,712 (1.4%)
27,199 (1.6%)
9,021 (0.5%) Other Eucarya
Archaea
36,702 (2.1%)
259 (0.01%)
Crustacea
38,839 (2.2%)
Other Plantae
49,530 (2.8%)
Arachnida
74,445 (4.3%)
Insecta
827,875 (47.3%)
Other invertebrate
Metazoa
82,047 (4.7%)

Fungi
100,800 (5.8%)
Stramenopiles
105,922 (6.1%)

Mollusca
117,495 (6.7%)
Angiospermae
233,885 (13.4%)

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 Levels of Biodiversity
Biodiversity is usually studied at three levels i.e.
Genetic, Species and Ecosystem levels.

Biodiversity, therefore, is commonly considered at three different

levels:

1. Genetic diversity (Intraspecific); The variation in genotypes

among individuals of a species.

2. Species diversity (interspecific); is measured as a combination of

number and evenness of individual distribution of species.

3. Ecosystem diversity, measured as the number of different species

within a given area. 12
1. Genetic Diversity

• The variety of genes or inheritable characteristics

that are present in a population comprises its genetic
diversity

• Genetic diversity within an interbreeding population

increases the chances that some species will survive
during changing environmental conditions or during
the outbreak of disease.

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2. Species diversity:

• A group of organisms genetically so similar, that they can

interbreed and produce fertile offsprings is called a species.
• The species diversity is usually measured in terms of the total
number of species within discrete geographical boundaries.

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 Ecosystem Diversity

• The variety of ecosystems that are present in the

biosphere is called ecosystem diversity.
• An ecosystem is made up of interacting populations
and the abiotic factors that support them.
• All of the ecosystems on Earth support a diverse
collection of organisms.
• Biological communities such as deserts, grasslands,
wetlands, and forest support the continuity of proper
ecosystem functioning by providing ecological
beneficial services to people.
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1. Genetic diversity
 Genetic diversity is the sum total of genetic information,
contained in the genes across individuals of plants, animals
and microorganisms.
 It is needed by any species to maintain reproductive vitality,
resistance to disease and the ability to adapt to changing
conditions.
 It enables a population to adapt to its environment and to
respond to natural selection.
 The amount of genetic variation is the basis of speciation.
 Genetic diversity within a species often increases with
environmental variability.
 Such genetic variability has made it possible to produce
new breed of crops plants and domestic animals, andContd.
in the
world allowed species to adapt to changing conditions. 16
Species diversity

“species are groups of actually or potentially interbreeding natural

populations that are reproductively isolated from other such
groups” (Mayr 1963)

• Species are distinct units of diversity each playing a specific role in

the ecosystem.
• In nature, both the number and kind of species, as well as the
number of individuals per species vary, leading to greater diversity.

The different sample areas showing species richness (sample area 1),
Species evenness (sample area 2) and diversity due to
taxonomically unrelated species (sample area 3)
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Community and ecosystem diversity
• Diversity at the level of
community and ecosystem exists
along 3 levels.

• It could be within-community
diversity (alpha diversity),

• between-communities diversity
(beta diversity) or

• diversity of the habitats over the

Contd.
total landscape or geographical
area (gamma diversity). 18
Alpha, Beta, and Gamma Diversity
Whittaker (1972) described three terms for measuring
biodiversity over spatial scales: alpha, beta, and gamma
diversity.

• Alpha Diversity refers to the diversity within a particular

area or ecosystem, and is usually expressed by the
number of species (i.e., species richness) in that
ecosystem.
• Beta diversity: a comparison of diversity between
ecosystems, usually measured as the amount of species
change between the ecosystems .
• Gamma diversity: a measure of the overall diversity
within a large region. Geographic-scale species diversity
Contd.
according to Hunter (2002:448) 19
20
Bio-geographical classification of
India

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 India’s Biogeographic Zones

1. The cold mountainous snow covered Trans Himalayan region of

Ladakh.

2. The Himalayan ranges and valleys of Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh,

Uttarakhand, Assam and other North Eastern States.

3. The Terai, the lowland where the Himalayan rivers flow into the
plains.

4. The Gangetic and Bhramaputra plains.

5. The Thar Desert of Rajasthan.

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6. The semi arid grassland region of the Deccan plateau
Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil
Nadu.

7. The Northeast States of India,

8. The Western Ghats in Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Tamil

Nadu and Kerala.

9. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

10. The long western and eastern coastal belt with sandy
beaches, forests and mangroves.

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Biogeographic zones in India

• Mountains
• Plateaus
• Rivers
• Forests
• Deserts
• Wet-lands
• Lakes
• Mangroves
• Coral reefs
• Costs and Islands
Values of bio-diversity

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 Values of bio-diversity
• The value of biodiversity depends on how it is defined.

• However defining and estimating is a tough task.

• Biodiversity may not posses a direct price value but it is

invaluable

• life on earth depends on this resources.

• Humans depend largely on biological diversity for most of his

food resources, medicines, clothing, fuel (in regions where it
is available), building materials and for ethical values.

• Different Ecological services

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 Biological Diversity as a Resource

The three main approaches used for determining the value of

biological resources.

Direct use

Consumptive Productive Non-consumptive

use value use value use value

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Consumptive use value: The biological resources are
consumed directly, without passing to the market. Assessing the
value of nature’s products - such as fire wood, fodder, game
meat , etc.

Productive use value: The resources comes through market or

trading. Assessing the value of products that are commercially
harvested, such as timber, fish, game meat sold in a market,
ivory, and medicinal plants.

Non-consumptive use value: (social, ethical, aesthetic and

option values) The resources meant for the future potential uses
of biodiversity (tourism, scientific research) and ecological
balance.
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 Benefits of Biodiversity
• Ecological benefits/services (Indirect values) – Biodiversity supplies the
buffering capacity and stability to life on the planet by maintaining the
interactive dynamics of the ecosystems of the world.

• Economical benefits –
a) Food value – providing food to the human population on this earth for
thousands of years.
In the process of development of human civilization, man has unfolded
many plant and animal life forms which are directly or indirectly helpful
for him in solving his food problem.
Due to the scientific advancement many new taxa have been discovered
which are high yielding.

b) Commercial value –timber which is a major component of material

used for providing shelter to man.
Natural fibres like cotton and silk are still used for clothing by human
population.
Contd.
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 c) Medicinal value –Medicines, drugs and pharmaceuticals. Many plant
genetic resources are used from derivation of basic drugs. These plant
resources vary from actinomycetes and fungi to large trees.
Traditional knowledge of indigenous people still keeps an edge over the
scientific knowledge in this field.
This benefit of biodiversity is still unexplored as the scientists could assess a
small fraction of biodiversity for their potential for medicine and agriculture.

• Aesthetic value – Man has always been fascinated by the natural beauty and
nature has inspired him resulting in development of his moral and ethical
values.
This intrinsic value of plants and animals are independent of their economic
and commercial value.
Wonderful plants and animals of this planet not only reflect their aesthetic
value but they can make us think of the creator.
This opens doors for spiritually which envisages to live in harmony with the
nature.
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Biodiversity at global, national and
local level

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COMPARATIVE POSITION: PLANT DIVERSITY IN INDIA
AND THE WORLD

• TAXA INDIA WORLD %

• BACTERIA 850 4000 21.25
• VIRUSES UNKNOWN 4000
• ALGAE 6500 40000 16.25
• FUNGI 14,500 72000 20.14
• LICHENS 2000 17000 11.80
• BRYOPHYTES 2850 16000 17.80
• PTERIDOPHYTES 1100 13000 8.46
• GYMNOSPERMS 64 750 8.53
• ANGIOSPERMS 17500 250000 7.O0
COMPARATIVE POSITION: ANIMAL DIVERSTY IN INDIA
AND THE WORLD
• TAXA INDIA WORLD %
• PROTISTA 2577 31259 8.24
• MOLLUSCA 5070 66535 7.62
• ARTHROPODA 68389 987949 6.90
OTHER INVERTE-
BERATES 8329 87121 9.56
• PROTOCHORDATA 119 2106 5.65
• PISCES 2546 21723 11.72
• AMPHIBIA 209 5150 4.06
• REPTILIA 456 5817 7.84
• AVES 1232 9026 13.66
• MAMMALIA 390 4629 8.42
MICROORGANISMS IN THE WORLD.
(HAWKSWORTH,1994)
DESCRIBED ESTIMATED %
SPECIES SPECIES (PERCENTAGE)
ALGAE 40, 000 60, 000 67 %

BACTERIA 3,000 30,000 10 %

FUNGI 69,000 1,500,000 5%

PROTOZOA 40,000 100,000 40 %

VIRUSES 5000 1,30,000 4%

MICROORGANISMS DESCRIBED IN INDIA

WORLD INDIA PERCENTAGE

ALGAE 40,000 6,500 16 %

BACTERIA 4,000 850 21 .2 %

FUNGI 69,000 14,500 20. 7%

PROTOZOA 40,000 2,577 6.4%

VIRUS 5,000 350 7%

India as mega-diversity nation

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• Among the biologically rich nations, India stands among
the top 10 or 15 countries for its great variety of plants
and animals, many of which are not found elsewhere.
• It is estimated that 18% of Indian plants are
endemic to the country and found nowhere
else in the world.
• India has 350 different mammals (rated eight highest in
the world), 1,200 species of birds (eighth in the world),
453 species of reptiles (fifth in the world) and 45,000
plant species, of which most are angiosperms, (fifteenth
in the world). These include especially high species
diversity of ferns (1022 species) and orchids (1082
species). India has 50,000 known species of insects,
including 13,000 butterflies and moths. 38
• India’s World Number of Ranking

• Mammals 8th 350

• Birds 8th 1200
• Reptiles 5th 453
• Amphibia 15th 182
• Angiosperms 15th-20th 14,500

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Hotspots of biodiversity

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41
Threats to Biodiversity

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 Threats to Biodiversity

Growing human population

- uncontrolled anthropogenic activities that threatened
biodiversity and ecosystems and causes to extinction
of many species.

 hunting/over-exploitation
 Habitat loss/forest degradation/forest fragmentation
 Deforestation
 Invasion of alien species
 Environmental pollution
 Climate change
 Cultural impacts

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 Threat/Loss of biodiversity
• Species are categories into different conservation category i.e. Extinct,
Endangered, Vulnerable and Risk based on the rate of threat that a species
faces.

• Therefore, it is pertinent to protect and conserve the existing biodiversity

for the socio-economic development and ecological balance.

• Every species have its role in the environment.

• "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson (1962).

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 THREAT CATEGORIES

Extinct Extinct (EX)

Extinct in the Wild (EW)

Critical (CR)
Threatened
Endangered (EN)

Vulnerable (VU)

Non-
Conservation Dependent (CD)
threatened

Near-threatened (NT)

Low
Data Deficient Of less concern
ALL Risk
SPECIES (DD) (LR)
Abundant
Not evaluated (EV) 45
IUCN Red List

International Union for Conservation of Nature

Conservation status
by risk of extinction
Extinct
Extinct
Extinct in the Wild
Threatened
Critically Endangered
Endangered
Vulnerable
At lower risk
Conservation Dependent
Near Threatened
Least Concern
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Endangered and Endemic species
of India

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 Threatened species of India
Taxonomic group Number of threatened species
Mammals 86
Birds 70
Reptiles 25
Amphibians 3
Fish 3
Molluscs 2
Other Invertebrates 21
Plants 244
Total 459
Source: IUCN (2000)
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Conservation of Biodiversity

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Terrestrial Biodiversity Management/Land Use

• State-owned Forests
– National parks
– Sanctuaries
– Reserved forests

• Community Conserved Forests

– Community owned areas
– Community reserves
– Sacred groves

• Private/Corporate Forests
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 Biodiversity Conservation through PA Network Planning

Biogeographical Classification of India

10 Biogeographical Zones 27 Biogeographical Provinces

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 2009
Category 1988 2009
Nos. Area (km2) % Nos. Area (km2) %
National Parks 54 21,003 0.64 99 39,155 1.19
Wildlife Sanctuaries 372 88,649 2.70 513 118,417 3.60
Community Reserve - - - 3 17.8 0.005
Conservation Reserve - - - 43 1155 0.035
Protected Areas 426 109,652 3.34 658 158,745 4.83
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 NATIONAL PARKS

Definition:
An area dedicated by statute for all time, to conserve the
scenery and natural and historical objects of national
significance, to conserve wild life therein and to provide
for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by
such means as will leave them unimpaired for the
enjoyment of future generations, with such modifications
a local conditions may demand”. (IBWL 1952)

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 WILD LIFE SANCTUARY

Definition:
It is an area where killing and capturing of any species of
birds or animals is prohibited except under orders of
competent authority and whole boundaries and
characteristics should be sacrosanct (free from outrage)
as far as possible”. (IBWL 1952)

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 Aims of establishment of NP and WLS

The sanctuaries and national parks (Protected areas) are

established with the view to:-
1. Adequate representation of bio-geographic diversity
2. Proper geographic distributions of PAs across
prominent wilderness belts.
3. Setting-up new PAs rationalizing boundaries of existing
ones so as to meet the imperative in the above 1 & 2.
4. Overcoming management deficiencies in PAs.
5. Promoting corridor values (conducive to movement of
major mammals and long terms, long ranging gene-
travel of all species of flora and fauna) through forests
and multiple-use areas that lie between PAs in a given
wilderness belt.
6. Establishing a monitoring mechanism to access the
viability of network of PAs.
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Differences between National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuary

• National park is declared by the state government under

section 35(1) of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972;
whereas sanctuary is declared under section 18(1) of the
Act.
• In NP, the boundary is well-defined and accurate at the
time of its declaration; while the boundary is demarcated
approximately at the time of its declaration in sanctuary.
• The claim of right of land of the people is settled before
its declaration in NP; whereas in case of sanctuary the
same is settled after its declaration.
• No alternation of the boundaries of the NP shall be made
except on a resolution passed by Legislative Assembly
of the State Government; but on contrary, in sanctuary,
such alternation may be done by the order of the state
Government.
56
 Contd.

• In NP grazing is not permissible while in sanctuary

grazing and movement of the cattle may be permitted for
the benefit of wild animals.

• In sanctuary, the Chief Wildlife warden may pass his/her

order after getting concurrence of the state Government
to kill or catch the certain wild animal for the welfare of
wild community and he/she is also empowered to
dismiss the order; but in case of NP, such order is
governed by the state Government itself and then the
Chief Wild Life warden issues the concerned order which
cannot de dismissed by him/her.

The status and degree of permanency and protection is,

therefore, much higher in NP than in a sanctuary.

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 BIOSPHERE RESERVES

Biosphere reserves are areas of terrestrial and coastal

ecosystems promoting solutions to reconcile the
conservation of biodiversity with its sustainable use.
They are internationally recognized, nominated by national
governments and remain under sovereign jurisdiction of
the states where they are located.
Biosphere reserves serve in some ways as 'living
laboratories' for testing out and demonstrating integrated
management of land, water and biodiversity.
Collectively, biosphere reserves form a World Network.
Within this network, exchanges of information,
experience and personnel are facilitated.
There are over 480 biosphere reserves in over 100
countries.
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• To prevent loss of biodiversity, the Government of
India is setting up 17 biosphere reserves in different
parts of the country. (Ministry of Environment and
Forests: "Annual Report 2010-2011")

• These are multipurpose protected areas to preserve

the genetic diversity in different ecosystems.

• Seven of the seventeen biosphere reserves are a

part of the World Network of Biosphere reserves,
based on the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere
(MAB) Programme list. Namely, Nilgiri, Gulf of
Mannar, Sundrbans, Nanda Devi, Nokrek,
Pachmarhi, and Similipal Biosphere Reserves

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 Functions of biosphere reserves
Each biosphere reserve is intended to fulfil 3 basic
functions, which are complementary and mutually
reinforcing:
• a conservation function - to contribute to the
conservation of landscapes, ecosystems, species and
genetic variation;
• a development function - to foster economic and
human development which is socio-culturally and
ecologically sustainable;
• a logistic function - to provide support for research,
monitoring, education and information exchange
related to local, national and global issues of
conservation and development.

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 Sacred grove
 Sacred groves are the tract of virgin forest harbouring rich
biodiversity, protected by the local people based on the ground of
beliefs of culture, religion and taboos of indigenous people.
 They are the repositories of rare and endemic species and can easily be
thought of as remnants of primary forest left untouched by the local
inhabitants and protected by them due to the consideration that deities
resides in these forests.
 It is one of the oldest form of conservation of nature, practiced by the
indigenous communities and rural people.
 The inextricable link between present society to the past in terms of
biodiversity, culture, religious and ethnic heritage has been found in
sacred groves.
 It is believed that sacred virgin forest dates back to several thousands of
years when human society was in the primitive state.
 Historical links of the sacred groves has been traced from pre-
agricultural, hunting and gathering stage of societies and believed to be
pre-Vedic in origin.
61
61
The groves have evolved under different socio-ecological and
cultural situations. Every sacred grove carries its own legends, lore
and myths which form the integral part of the oral traditions of
local people.

This unique community-linked forest conservation concept is still

followed in many tribal and agrarian regions of the world. For example,
a number of human societies in Asia, Africa, Europe, America and
Australia had long preservation sections of their natural environment as
sacred groves.
 The protection and conservation of groves depends entirely on
the control of the community over the forest and the people.
 They have been survived for many hundreds of years and today
they serve as reservoir of much local biodiversity. Groves provides
many ecological, environmental and socio-cultural functions to the
society.
 In the context of the recent concern over the high rates of
deforestation and natural resource use, the sacred groves offer a
potential tool and model to revisit and explore the possibilities of
conservation of biological diversity.
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Sacred grove (Meghalaya)

Konthoujam Lairembi sacred grove (Manipur)

Sacred stone of Ebudhou Marjing in

Sacred grove (Kerala)
Heingang Marjing sacred grove (Manipur) 63
 Conservation of Biodiversity

• Conservation of biodiversity is essential for the human survival, notably

through health, food and industry.

• All forms of life-human, animal and plants, are so closely interlinked that
disturbance in one gives rise to imbalance in the others. If species of plants
and animals become endangered they signify degradation in the
environment, which may threaten man’s own existence.

• The maintenance of biodiversity at all levels is fundamentally the

maintenance of viable population of species or identifiable populations.

• Approaches of biodiversity conservation should be concise with due

consideration of national problems.

• Priority should be given first to conserve those species which have vital
resource which benefit to mankind at shorter duration and also to conserve
threatened, endangered and rare species of the nation. Contd.
64
• In situ and ex situ conservation of biodiversity should be done for those
species which are threatened, rare, endangered as well as species
expenditure.

• Extraction of timber from the forest areas should be based on ecological

planning by taking into the consideration of stability of ecosystem.

• The scientific knowledge of biodiversity conservation should not be

restricted on paper that should be spread among the people through the
mass communication, training, awareness programmes at the grassroots
level.

• An approaches of sustainable harvest or exploitation of the species will be

helpful for the conservation of biodiversity, offering all the basic necessities
for the subsistence of man's life.

• Therefore, Sustainable use of resources and sustainable development are

highly needed in order to save the loss of biodiversity.
65