July 23, 2008 | Environmental Science 1

Reported by: Justin de Guzman and Inah Vinluan

What is
BIODIVERSIT Y?
 Shortened term for Biological Diversity.

 Refers to a variation of life at all levels of biological

organization.

 “Div er sity” i n thes e de fi ni tio n inc lud es div ersit y

withi n a s pec ies an d a mo ng spe cie s, and
co mpa rativ e d iver sity a mon g eco system s.

 The number of species of plants, animals, and

microorganisms, the enormous diversity of genes in these
species, the different ecosystems on the planet, such as
deserts, rainforests and coral reefs are all part of a
biologically diverse earth.
Evolution and M eaning

Biod iv ersity i s a ne ol ogi sm a nd p ortma nt ea u

word, f rom b iol ogy an d div ersit y.

Since 1986 the terms and the concept have achieved

widespread use among biologists, environmentalists, political
leaders, and concerned citizens worldwide.

It is generally used to equate to a concern for the natural

environment and nature conservation. This use has coincided
with the expansion of concern over extinction observed in the
last decades of the 20th century.
 Evolution and M eaning

The Science Division of The Nature Conservancy used the term

"natural diversity" in a 1975 study, "The Preservation of Natural
Diversity." The term biological diversity was used even before
that by conservation scientists like Robert E. Jenkins and
Thomas Lovejoy. The word biodiversity itself may have been
coined by W.G. Rosen in 1985 while planning the National Forum
on Biological Diversity organized by the National Research
Council (NRC) which was to be held in 1986, and first appeared
in a publication in 1988 when entomologist E. O. Wilson used it
as the title of the proceedings of that forum. The word
biodiversity was deemed more effective in terms of
communication than biological diversity.
Why is Biodiv ersit y
Important ?
Biod iv ersit y refle cts t he num be r, v ariet y an d
varia bi li ty of l iv ing or gan isms as w ell a s ho w
thes e c han ge fr om o ne loc at ion to ano the r a nd
ov er tim e.
A diverse ecosystem is important. Ecosystems provide the
basic necessities of life such as food, clean air and water.
They offer protection from natural disasters and disease,
shape human cultures and spiritual beliefs, and maintain the
planet’s essential life processes.

Biod iv ersity a ctu all y bo os ts eco system pr odu ct iv ity

where each species, no matter how small, all have an
imp or tan t r ole to play. It is this combination that enables
the ecosystem to possess the ability to prevent and recover
from a variety of disasters.
Why is Biodiv ersi ty
Importa nt?
“At least 40 percent of the world’s economy and 80 percent
of the needs of the poor are derived from biological
resources. In addition, the richer the diversity of life, the
greater the opportunity for medical discoveries, economic
development, and adaptive responses to such new
challenges as climate change.”

— The Convention about Life on Earth, Convention on Biodiversity web site.

What does a HE ALTHY B iodiversity
offe r?
Ec os ystem s ervic es ,
such as

Protection of water resources

Soils formation and protection
Nutrient storage and recycling
Pollution breakdown and absorption

Contribution to climate stability

Maintenance of ecosystems
Recovery from unpredictable events
What does a HE ALTHY B iodiversity
offe r?
Bi olo gic al re sour ces ,
such as

Food
Medicinal resources and pharmaceutical drugs
Wood products
Ornamental plants
Breeding stocks, population reservoirs
Future resources
Diversity in genes, species and ecosystems
What does a HE ALTHY B iodiversity
offe r?
So cia l ben efi ts ,
such as

Research, education and monitoring

Recreation and tourism
Cultural values
What does a HE ALTHY B iodiversity
offe r?

. Biodiversity loss affects ecosystems, making them

more vulnerable to perturbations and less able to
supply humans with these valuable services. And so,
while we dominate this planet, we still need to
preserve the diversity in wildlife.
Threats on Biological
Di vers ity
Ec os ystems are ind ee d inc redi bl y pr odu ct ive a nd
ef fic ien t—whe n ther e i s su ff ic ie nt b io di versit y. E ac h
fo rm of l if e work s tog eth er w ith the surro und in g
In losing species we lose the productivity and stability of entire ecosystems.
en viron me nt t o h elp re cycl e waste, m ain tain t he
ec osystem , and pr ovid e servic es t hat oth ers—
inc lu din g hu man s—u se a nd be nefi t fr om .

In l osi ng spe cie s w e lo se the pro duc tivit y an d

stabi li ty of ent ire eco system s.
Threats on Biological
Di vers ity
Massi ve Ext inct ions from Hum an
Act ivity
. (August 2, 1999) says that
A report from Environment New Service

“The current extinction rate is now approaching 1,000 times the

background rate and may climb to 10,000 times the background rate
during the next century, if present trends continue. At this rate, one-
third to two-thirds of all species of plants, animals, and other
organisms would be lost during the second half of the next century, a
loss that would easily equal those of past extinctions.”
Threats on Biological
Di vers ity
In a slow extinction, various balancing mechanisms can
develop. No one knows what will be the result of this
extremely rapid extinction rate.
.

What is known, for sure, is that the world ecological

system has been kept in balance through a very complex
and multifacetted interaction between a huge number of
species. This rapid extinction is therefore likely to
precitate collapses of ecolosystems at a global scale.
This is predicted to create large -s ca le a gric ul tural
pr ob le ms, threatening food supplies to hundreds of
millions of people.
Threats on Biological
Di vers ity
Factors contributing to loss of biodiversity include:

 Ov er pop ul atio n and Pol lut ion

 Ha bit at De struct ion .
 In vas ive s pec ies
 Ov er exp loi tat ion (D ef or estat ion an d
Ov er fi shin g)
 Gl oba l W ar min g o r C li ma te c ha nge .

These factors, mostly driven by human activity, which stems from

overpopulation, produce a cumulative impact upon biodiversity.
 Threats on Biological
Di vers ity
Hab ita t Des truct ion

 Most of the species extinctions from 1000 AD to 2000 AD

are due to human activities, in particular destruction of plant
.
and animal habitats.
 While most of the species that are becoming extinct are
not food species, their biomass is converted into human
food when their habitat is transformed into pasture,
cropland, and orchards.

It is estimated that more than 40% of the Earth's biomass is tied up in

only the few species that represent humans, livestock and crops.
 Threats on Biological
Di vers ity
In vasi ve S pe ci es

 Th e ric h d ive rsity o f un iq ue spe cie s a cros s ma ny

par ts of t he world e xis t onl. y b eca us e t hey a re
sepa rate d b y b arrie rs, par ticu lar ly l arge r ivers, sea s,
oce an s, m ou ntai ns and d eser ts fr om ot her s pec ies of
othe r l and ma sses , p artic ul arly the hi gh ly fe cun d,
ult ra-c omp et it ive, g ene ral ist "sup er-s peci es “.

 Ho wever hum an s h ave in vent ed ship s an d ai rpla ne s,

and no w h av e the po wer to brin g i nt o c ont act spec ie s
that ne ver h av e me t in t hei r ev olu tion ary his tory.
 Threats on Biological
Di vers ity
In vasi ve S pe ci es

 Th e wid es pr ead in trod uct.ion o f ex otic s pe ci es b y

hu man s is a pot ent thr ea t t o bi od iv er sity. Whe n exo tic
spec ie s ar e i ntro duc ed to ec osystem s an d esta bli sh
self- sust ai ni ng po pul at ions , t he end em ic spe cie s i n
that ec osy st em , tha t ha ve not ev olved t o co pe wit h
the ex ot ic s peci es , may n ot surviv e. Th e e xo tic
or ga ni sms m ay be ei ther pr eda tors, par asit es, or
sim ply agg res sive spec ie s tha t de pr ive i nd ige no us
spec ie s of nut rien ts, w ater and l igh t.
 Threats on Biological
Di vers ity
In vasi ve S pe ci es

 If hu man s con tinu e t o com bin e s pec ies fr om di ffe rent

.
ec oreg ion s, ther e i s the p ote ntia l t hat the wor ld' s
ec osystem s wil l end u p dom in ated by rel ativ ely a fe w,
ag gres sive, co smo pol itan "sup er-sp eci es “.
 Threats on Biological
Di vers ity
Over exp loi tati on
a. Ov erfi shi ng -- Dw in dl in g F ish St ock s
.
 In du stria li ze d fi shin g ha s co ntri but ed imp or tan tly
to m as s ext inc tion d ue to repe at edly fai led at temp ts
at l im itin g the fi shi ng .

 A n ew g lo ba l s tudy c on clu de s th at 90 per cent of a ll

lar ge fi she s ha ve dis app ear ed fr om the wor ld’ s
oc ean s in t he p as t hal f ce nt ury, t he de vastat ing
resul t o f in dus trial fis hing . Th e study too k 1 0 year s to
co mpl ete an d w as p ubl is hed in the i nter nat ion al
jou rna l N at ure.
 Threats on Biological
Di vers ity
Ov er exp loi tat ion ( Overfishing -- Dwindling Fish Stocks)

 Anot her ca use fo r e xte nsiv e fis h ex tin ct ion is the

des truct ion of c or al r eef s. .Th is is ca used by a
com bi nat ion of cau ses , in cl udi ng war min g o f oc ea ns,
dam ag e fr om fi shin g tool s a nd a h ar mfu l in fe ct ion of
cor al orga ni sms p rom oted by oc ea n p ol lut ion .

A res ear ch a rtic le in th e j our nal , Sc ien ce , w arned

co mme rci al fi sh and s eafoo d spec ie s ma y a ll cr as h
by 2 04 8.
 Threats on Biological
Di vers ity
Over exp loi tati on
b. Defo restat ion

 A rep or t fr om the Wo rld .Com mis sion on F ores ts

and Sus taina bl e D evel op men t su gge sts tha t t he
fo rest s o f the w orld ha ve b ee n e xp lo ited t o the
poi nt of cr isis an d t hat m aj or c ha nge s i n g lo ba l
fo rest man age me nt strateg ie s wou ld be ne ed ed to
avoi d the de vastat ion.

 Wha t a ls o ma kes thi s a pr oble m is t hat ma ny o f

the en dan ge red spec ie s ar e o nl y fou nd in sma ll
area s of la nd, oft en withi n t he bor der s of a s in gl e
cou nt ry. Ne w s pe ci es of an im al s an d pla nts are still
bei ng di scov ered .
 Threats on Biological
Di vers ity
Over exp loi tati on (D efor estati on)

In Papua New Guinea, 44 new species of animals were discovered

recently in the forests. Logging may affect
. these animals' habitats,
though. The loss of rainforests around the world, where many species
of life are found could be lost.

Brazil which is estimated to have around 55,000 species of flora,

amounting to some 22% of the world’s total and India which has about
46,000 and some 81,000 animal species (amounting to some 8% of the
world’s biodiversity), are also under various pressures, from corporate
globalization and deforestation.

So too are many other biodiverse regions, such as Indonesia, parts of

Africa, and other tropical regions.
Hindrances
Hu man Di men sion - Go ver nanc e, A war ene ss an d
Po li tic al Wil l

 Ris ing po ver ty, in crea sin g pop ul atio ns,

.
al ien atio n fr om the la nd
 Po or ca pa cit y fo r m an age men t a nd la ck of
resou rce s
Fu nds
 La ck of Po lit ica l W il l, an d O ce ans Go verna nc e

 Hu man s hav e ge ner all y ex pa nde d and d evel op ed

thei r t erritor y thr ough ou t hi stor y. An ac tiv e
ap proa ch is the on ly w ay t o ha lt the ex pan sio n b ut
this of ten r equ ires fu nd s or wis e stew ards hip .
Curr en tly the Un ite d S tat es E nv iron men tal
Pr otec tion A genc y h as a n ann ua l bud get of $ 7. 3
bi lli on (2 00 7) .
Hindrances
Pr eser va tion o f inv erteb rat e an d p la nt spec ie s

 Biod iv ersit y is m os t w ell kn ow n t o the pu bl ic as

a l os s of a nim al s wit h a ba . ckb on e, whe n in fa ct
ther e e xis t 20 tim es that num be r o f ins ect s and
fi ve time s as ma ny fl owe ring p lan ts. W hi le ma ny o f
thes e sp eci es may be hi gh ly v alu abl e to t he hum an
race f or the ab ove rea sons , the vast m aj orit y are
oft en co mpl et ely unk now n t o an yon e but
spec ia lis ts. I n fa ct it i s o ft en estim at ed t hat l es s
than h alf and pe rha ps l es s tha n t wo-th irds of e ar th
orga ni sms h av e ev en bee n i de nt ifi ed .
What w e can do?...

 As in di vidu al s, w e a ll ha ve a n essen tia l p ar t to p la y

in pr om ot ing bi odi ver sity c ons ervatio n an d s ustain ab le
use. We c an de ma nd ac tion fr om al l le vels of
.
gov ernme nt . M or eov er, i n ou r ev eryday ch oic es , we al l
can ha ve di rect po sitiv e im pa cts o n bi odi ver si ty an d
the state of our pl ane t’s ec os ystems, for ins tance b y
supp orti ng sus ta ina ble c on sump tio n a nd was te
redu ct io n.
References
Green Facts. Facts on Heal and the Environment. “Scientific Facts on
Biodiversity (A Global Outlook)” Last Modified: June 11, 2008.
http://www.greenfacts.org/en/global-biodiversity-outlook/
index.htm#il1
.
Shah, Anup. Global Issues. “Biodiversity”. Last Modified: June 14, 2008
http://www.globalissues.org/Env Issues/Biodiversity.asp

United Nations System-Wide Earthwatch. “Biodiversity Assessment”

1996-2007. http://earthwatch.unep.net/emergingissues/
biodiversity/assessment.php

Wikipedia. “Biodiversity”. Last Modified: July 2, 2008

http://en.wikipedia.org/Biodiversity