‘The Unexplored Biosphere Ts 1083 a previousty unknown creature, Nenclaricas myscicus, which smquely ceebler at annbultary pineapple spevies, wer seas aw fay, we ores, and ew ptitum of aia Rae staped, a quater ofa ilimeter lug (oue-bundvedh of it), Seated in aeat Las of sales and spines i poseses 3 out up seat and, when young, a pal of fippets taped Uke peng wings tthe ex. enalorcus nyc ves im the raed aad conse sand 1010 500 ates deep om ocean bottoms around he woe Almost noting i kao abo Ite ecology and bebates, but we ean guest fom the bod Ape and ‘auament a ibe ke a ale in ene of eosepiepey. ‘To place a species so as owe pit, the decision een inthis ease by the Danis 2ooogst Read Kisease, isa bo ep. He san ote oles azeed, that Nevius mys ts anol dsiae nou to deere plaremeetalngide major groupe ru ar the pice Malla, ompesiag al the sols and other mollsts, and plytun Chocdt, onsining ofall the vertebetes and their love clave. eke eaking ‘edeasein with Gevnany, Bhutan wth Cio Kastensen manne the aes war desubed a a ew phylum Laveen, ont the Lani lore (corset) and fee (9 bea). The ‘oust in this case isthe crea teat that eneases most ofthe bods ‘The loviitecas—now a lager stop, since about tity other species lane beea dicovced lathe past decade—live amu best of other tay wie anil found ia spaces bere gi f sand and gravel on the ‘eran bat, The tncide emeheromilde (ised to psi sar k 1969, ces, knoe, and eepioea estes. Ti Lillipatan ‘aun is 50 poorly kuowa that most ofthe species lack a selenite ene They ace aeverheles cosmopolitan and extremely abuadeat And they ace leo alort certioly vial to the belity funeioning of the occas ‘aconment The existence of leltens and tele mibmieesopie asodates 5 eublemadc of how litle we koow of the living world, even the part neces for our ew exteace. Ye del on a largely unespored planet ‘Contec that our cath plane ofa cectan 2, coment ad sae se acaye i such and such away, a all le 6 based na stage the me eae in al of wate Bai i based on enya letes a the univese there aut exit vas aay of ie bearing plants of other ses and geegraphies, and perp dieeat codes wall, eae combiston fining a pariaeLevel of onal Biodvesy Several lines of evidence, inrlading the istry of adapave cada, sues tat eat (a 6 closet ts own partial apace But wt ‘say i that capaci? Mo oe ha the fuer iden it sone of egret saovedpeables of rene, the rain of pie meanuement voetonny biology i Fa bein | the est of he amu selene Cerin uber ae erat ou dary wield coeundecstading af the 12742 lilosetets (7.913 ale. How many sts ave thee in the My Way, an ordiaty pial galao? Approximately 10", 100 billion How taany gener ace thete in a mall visi? Thee ae 10 in 9176 phage) What i the may ofan elton? is 92 10-2 gramme. Aad how aay spevies of organs ae tere ox eat? We dot kuow, not evea 0 the neaest order of magainde. The suber could be lore to 10 lion o¢ 35 igh s# 100 milion. Lge cumbers of ae species cenit totum op vey year And of those alceady dicovered, over 99 peteut ate known uly bya seeatie anne, a aad of pecaens ia a euseun, anda fet cape of aatoical devtption ia reese joummle # i 3 ath that seats Beak ou champagne whea a ne speces Us seoveed. Ow auseuns ave glued wich new species: We dout have time 10 deseibe ‘woreda mall etn of thre pou neat sea Wit the help of eter sytematiss 1 reeatyesimnated the number of aot specier of onpmions, iactuding all plant, animals, and tmireonpniaay, to be 1A eillion. The Sue could ely be off by 2 Inundred thousand, 50 pvody dened are species in some sroups of xgnioas and so ehaowelly ganized isthe hteanxe on divert sa ener Move othe point evoony bilo ate geet sared that this eninae i le tha eu ofthe aber nt actly tive on ath “To see wy dhe iodivesicy and iw fa abot of ceaity, consider the yum Ateped, soc oclader all the inet, apes, eraceany, Cearipedes, and related ornisas vith foited eitiaus exoskeleton About 875,00 attuopod species have beew desetbed oc move than ba vette. What the aan diameter fee ert is the tox forall ognisas sees a parte, with 750,00 species ave, compore the uactallensed dseamy of animals ta the moall to small medium rage on the land, an they have been thus Installed sate tate Cabouiecue tines, nore hn 300 lion pate go. Tse ceil ‘covets nthe plat kingdom fr the pas 150 alo yeas tv been the ion angiomenas, of feweing plats cosiutug about a quater species, 19 percent ofthe fll know for all nga ‘The lamease diversity ofthe tnseets and flowering plans combined is ‘0 aecdeat. Ther eupicee ave united Byte blest. The insect couse every smatomieal past ofthe plats, white dwelling 00 thea ia every ook and eran A lage action of the plat species depend oa ‘uses oc pollination and ceprodtion Ulatey they owe dem thei ‘ey lives, beeaue ince tn the sil anound ther soa aad deeompore ead tse oo che oes cequied fr eontioued govt Se import ae nee aa ote and delingaxteopode th il were © dappeat, bunamty probably cold wot tat ce than fet ‘aout Hox ofthe amphibians, eptile,bics, and monamals would eat te esacton abou the sake tne, Mex would go the blk of the Maweng plants and with deat the pli stuctute of mort forests ad ober teaesiak habits ofthe wena, The la matve wold Uitehy Foe Ae ‘dead vegetation pled up and died ou, lsiag the ehanuels ofthe aunt ‘ees eter complex fos of vegetation would de of, an wit them all bot foe cena of te land vertebrates, The See ig Sung, ater ‘sjyinga popuation explosion of typendous proportions, wou detine preciptouty, and most species would perish The land would certo apotesimately as condon ia ety Paleozae aes, coveted by wats ofInsects aud higher plans dominate the diversity of ting ‘orgasms kxown to dts, but vast arrays of species remain to be discovered inthe bacteria, fang, and other poorly studied ‘ups The 108d 100 m [Number of Living Species of Higher Plans Currently KnownThe plant diversity of the world consi angiosperms (lowering. plats, which in ates and other monorote anda ge varios of dots, fom ‘maguoliae to asters and roses. Most Nowerlag plants lve 0, the land alge (20,900 known species preval is the sa‘Among aninuals known to science, the insets are overwhelming in mumber. Because of this imbalance, most ‘animal species ive on the land; but most phyla (Cehinadermat, ote), the highest unit of claseifiaton, are found in these, Autuopode age thu ll round ws, ie gag, and we have neve ken measure, There ae far moce species than the 875,000 ghven a sciatic ame to date, lu 1952 Cais Sabioky, wotking at the US, Depowtmet of Agicultar,coulectared on the bars of the Mod of aes spevies pouneg coon tro mucus that thee are about 10 elon nds of incets unong a0 uakaowr divest af ater atopede. a 1982 “Teeey Bovin ofthe Haron seu of Hawa Hitocy eased the ane ttvefold, emia that thece a 90 allio species of atop in the tropical forest alone, of sehieh the great ajoity are insets. Hoa ofthe ‘ets he sg (contented inthe cons of rl fore eer. This ayee of leaver and branes, whit conducts mos ofthe potesithese forthe fore, war len hown toe st anal Ast Ye ar been lnecesible because ofthe height of de wees, 30-40 metas the lek sic oh tts lt oper of epi tral re ing tau cliabece at al level To orecome these diticlies, eotomolegis deceloped the “bug bomb, 2 method fr blowiag fogs of a apiy acting asec othe ground Up tothe weetops,eavelopig the atheopods and easing hem out of their iu placer even aris then. The species ace then coleted -arthey ll dying to the goud Th paral fepsug procedre wed by ‘ria and ir ceo tam ia South and Cel Aansiea i conducted ‘wosty at gt. Walkog te the tan Fores im he evening, they select a tee foe sapling and iy outa gd of I-metecside funnels beneath ‘The fumes feed sto bots party fled with 70 pecentseaba, the specimen preserve of ice tn the predson oes next movie whe the wind ia the wetops dies down to a aan, the eee Fores the veticide upward ito the ep on 3 otioue the teatmene foc seve loner. Thea they sand by for fee nous we the dead and diag antvopeds tia down 6 the thousands way fling to the fuels aly, the collected specimens ace thea. sowed, oughly dasled t» wajoc ascuouie group (uel as ats, Lea becles a jamping epider, ad rato petit fr Sather ty ia ire tie the belo the eanopy: Me made oot cout 4 small sample in a Panamanian sain fore, then proteeded by aa aiaeteal progesion to aqive at a guess af the ton auber of aathvopod mecer in tropical foe seotllde sn St etait tat thece axe 163 spedes of beetles Using exclusively lathe eannpies of ene face species, the tineeour Lathes semen. Tete or diven “enmon” They“4: gher plans, 248,400, 5. Protozoa 30,800 6. Potfera (sponge 5,000 7. Caidara and Ctenophora coals, jelifish, cmb jellies, and relatives 9,000 {6 Platyelmiathes(arworms), 12,200, 9. Nematoda (roundwomns), 12,000, 10, Annelida (eartoeorms and elatives) 12,000, 11 Mottusea(aolasi, 59,000, 12. Echinodermata (startsh and relative) 6,100 18 Lasecta, 751,000 123.400 15 Fishes and lower cordate, 18,600, 16. Amphibians, 4,200 17 Reptiles, 6,300 18 leds, 9,000 19, Mammals, 4,000, elie ieee en ‘ce ahout 50,000 topical tree species all 50 that i Laer seemen ‘pial, te total umber of canopy: dwelling wopical bee species is 1,150, 000, Beetes represeat about 40 pecceat of all species af vases, spldes aud other atuopods. I hat propecton aly exists i the epic cp, the umber of acticoped mecer ia the Inia! comer about 20 tulion Thee are about tie a5 many athtopd species tothe eres canopy as on the gud, 5 ha the atl auuber of topical spetes aight well be 39 ition, wits cleats were an importa step foward ia the study of biodiversity: The expec fue he anived at iis, bower, 6 some'snlke aa upside dowa pyranidbalaneed oats poiat. Atay step ‘oa the cod to the al ttl of 30 milion topical Yves atrepods, he faunber of species an be sited dasieally w> ot down by etarging asuuuptions Hf the nue tol is witia 10 millon ofthat auaber eter vail be see ck So ace thece cally uch a seat saber of beetle spedes on each wee species wolldwide? Data ate very spuse, but legumes such a Lueles ‘seenean wight suppott a geater vey of aes than mest her Kids| of tees. Tas could move the ttl specles camber dow by alons of seies. Ate the antuopads found ou a use mecier the mae everybere thar paicuar tee species occu? A sreat deal of evdeace ages the thece i ofa cage i the kinds of beetles found onthe same kindof tue rom one Locality t the et. Thi could move the tot amber Baek wp, Ate 10 peceat of beetle weces found oo a partiar tee species esuited to tha wee? A change ia this pacamees, on whieh lle exe Information ie alable inthe topics, cou ithe ttl rough up of owe, Wigel Stok, by eating Ervin extents and leavening them with ote atom Bonne, gan, and South Ae, could that eto ‘aunber of topeal autxopod species i indeed vey lage, bat kets tbe lover than projected by Erwin, pets anyshece fom Sco 10 alien Kevin Gato interviewed specialise om diferent Kade af aes and found thea tobe conse, als poitingt atta of Sto 10 alien spel‘insion by thee and ther ier tt been oly pata ta a sent we ae back fo se one; the aumber of species of exzairas on eat i nese but sil cannot be placed to the nearer ode of rngnitue The great amualis-aploer Willan Beebe sid of the wloforet canopy i 1917: “Yer anahereowtaent of ite cemaine te be dervece, ‘ot upen te vat, but ove to vo uke fet abave i The subsequent decades have keveled a secoud unexploed continent 1,000 meters aad wore beaeath the sce ofthe oceans, athe loo ofthe deep sea. This ‘rt domi, 300 ailion square kilometer in extet iF ith the posible exception of Aututea® walleye the test hospitable babi oa eth latest co ented by preterm the ste coms above, nd ptt dh exept for tve papas ft om pas hasinseat aegis ilopite of the ety nineteenth centry thought the deep sea to be eles. They were proved rong by dredging operator conducted dig the halenger expedition of 1872-1876, whe aud samples dselosed a ‘wide nay of previously unkoowa ognisas. Ts waste abyralbeathos| Ascovered the community of eqauimas Ung on ot dove to the otean Foor. a he 19606 efor adrance wor ade by the itoduction ofthe epibeate sed, wie cakes the top lat ofthe floor wth fae mest ets and taps the csi with eesiag dor to preveat the winning and lors of males arzaiar The new sample ilded ana ie dere toa dee beyoad even te boldest imagiaigs of the biologi. From these Collections, and stom photogrptr and move tecent sleeve sampling tuade fom deepsea vehicles. we know dat dhe abyss beats coutas swans of polenee woras, peracid cusaceans, mollis, and ater seins found nowhere ere on eth, Min of he iaseterae nave ainuiule and subse ot low metabolic ees fo fe spans tk enay Last ecades, Bata ave preseat that ean grow and ve ony a cold water under very high peste. The abysalbentor is « subdued cvciatrzed wed. Thee sao way of gues the Full aber of pees preset cecal cnges to she hundreds of thousands and probably beyond. J Fredeek Gale, after veviewing daa on all the samples taken up co 1991, conjeched ta the numberof animal epeier cold cnge inthe ‘eas of lions. The vec of Baten and oer mlerorganisms cannot rea be guessed 0 etd of maga tu a eclagal ses, de ails of ria fvest and the abysslbeathos ‘ceupy opposite eas ofthe ett; oue could ey the they dell on 0 planes Theic eaouments are as physically difeceat as posible, aad theic bios swe wot a sage species of plat ot animal. et all the avery they contua may be dated by that ofthe bnetei,organizas| tot eatuate the nse ese ericonneae and every athe plate oa ath, Ieisa common misperception amore both boli and wonbiologss tae Inaceia ave celtvely well known because they ace se impatant ia ‘wediine, ecology, and molar genetics, The th ie tt the vas aajcty of acetal pes emai completly unknown, with no came aad ‘in ofthe meas oeeded to detect tec, Take a gram of dinar soa lnc eld benceea two fags, and place tn te pal of sou wd. You ce holdiag a ela of quate gras laced with dcasiag exgaaie matter and fee entients, and abot 10 billion bases, Hane samy bee species ate presea? Take oveailioath ofthe pach of soi and sped i vey over uuieats poured ito sada ane dest each ad evryone ofthe bacesia i tis seariavisble oil sample could slaty, we would expet to see over 10,000 line clones growing ou the ameat sue, one Hom ech acts. Bu her cannot, and wee do not. We wll ge oly beeen 10a 100 oto. Some of the atv elle tt fled to copend wee dead at dhe ‘moment of implantation, but ost simply dd weft te coudtons of the cultace ends congenial for dist aad eloayFouuation. Suh species a incommaunicado—they reise respond to the micebiolois io we sanard tehniques The scat the ight terpenes, ac pressure, ‘and coietioa of sags, fats, peeteas aad owas ppcopaat thee _euetally diated etbolie ed Moceaset, ath ofthese eat meter ‘may be sepieseaed i the pinch of ol by a few ar ane otis pet malig To Sind thea, izobiologit rut fer one altace edn ‘and ambient eaviconmeat ater aaothee ntl they bit on exe the ght fobiaaton Then a colony proliferates and enough of the baeeca become avalable t be sorted and analyzed by sanded mleoscops and denial ect que uebiolegistscxely uy to Bad sieut bata, They ae sateested oaly in the select gro ofrecer alveady proved to be of some mesic ot Pratl interes One ofthe mos amour spetes ta the wodd the ealon ete Ascher col, the Key expedameatal opus of ole biology Al bepining biology textbooks celebrate the knowledge won fiom ity shct le ele aad case of culture. But fom aa eolutionny biodata of view, ca i nly vce Lage lene of as one Ht Bp to conve exited ood lame feces. The bacteva poeta, that vast ajo of ober species bloat of epeeseatng te Dillon yens of adaptive aan, cemaias wstdied and eed How aay mecer of bacteria are thete i the werd? Bere’ Mima of| ‘Systenace Beceelegy, the oa guide updated to 1989, Usts about 4000. Thee tev always ben a fein mong mirobologite the tue faunber, cud the undzgnored species, (© eh geate, buat 09 one ould even et by bow auch, Ten snes ate? A tundced? Reece esearch suas thatthe ane ight be atleast a thous times rate, ‘th the toa umber ranging at he elias Josta Goksoy aad Vigds Tuck weat la see of set betel species a a area eazoameat They chose co eu the Gorda knot of ‘oletiveeutriag by separating and comparing the DMA ofthe bate Aece. They took sal quantities of sol ftom a Maeegian Deed foes feat thie laboratory Using a mucesion of steps extraction and ‘eotetgtion, they separated the Bacteria toa the sll and removed aad pied the DIA of these oxganiaar ia a dagle common batch. They femploved exe bish presute eo sbear the double-sided DNA molecules ito Fagen of uifoun size When heated, DIA molecules spe into tir conten! gle rand To divide DITA into single stands means thatthe Lees of the DIA ‘ode, the base pals, have been split apart In mom DIA, the bare pals are aeainehymine and etodae guanine, AT and CG for sho As you proceed dow te DIA heli eof he four Baer can be othe ito (ef in each mudleoude, 10 tee ia vending off the genetic code four peemtatour ane pombe: AT, TA, CG, GC. A typi requence might thea be TA.CG-C6-AT-GG, and 50 0a fc thourndr 0 mllons of sue leeser ell When the DHA helix is spl, tbe two complemeamry sale vill red, for the segment jum ited, TCCA.G and AGGT.C respectively Wien coled to about 25° Belo the melting teperatve, dhe DIA sums ace ey brought together agin ce foam 2 doe bli; hey ave amated” asthe molecular biologists say. The higher the concentration of onpleerary stands na solution the faster the annenig vl occa: thece are mixes of dfecet spies and rains of specie, ke thos in the orcegin ol boetea the contention of complement sgle srands Wl beau Lower th the eae wen DIA fem ey ene epecer te bree; the annealing proces il be slowed to coreronding dete “The cate at whieh aoneaiag ous an be measued ext and ealibated gait sanded consisting of DIA sagle sande fom a bts (he falar Ecol) wth known quar of DIA. Ry thie eas, ie posse Indie to estimate the ove peceeare af mates among the diverse state snd of DIVA tna ei cei comami—that al the oe agape of sll ‘he percenmge of DUA eating can be sed as an inter caeans 0 Calelate the saaber of bactsal mpecee. ln 10 doing, ieobialogite cannot ure the bologieal-specesconepe diets: Iris berond thle power to abserve whch bates ells exchange DILA, a these oxganiows Weve 50 aay beds and ea wees Un the Morregian forest. They ace freed to ely oa the silat a DUA of oue cll the aes. The abtay taadacd imapostl by tae of ein it loin beet eer onsite of ll thor calle howe mileotider ace at east 70 percent ‘deat, aud hence ae at leas 30 peccent difeceat fou the aueleoudes of other specles Tis cat poia is actly conserve, many higher plant and animal species ate separated by fx less than a 30 percent “Aiteone, 1 have provided s» much ecbaeal debil ia otdec co ceveal the ates eed by aieobiolegts and eps why H has taken 50 fone 0 mae lrsade oto acts vert, Hete HF the rest of the Norwegian eseach group: bebe 4.000 and 5,000 bacterial species were found in sage gram of beet forest soil. A salar ube of spel ‘rth line oF mo orp, sae found io gre of selena ln? vor he aca ea “i is obvious” Joweln Gbsoyr ta wten, “thar miabiclogias wil ot run out af work fora couple of ees” IF ver 10,000 mieobil ‘npes es inte paces af sbate fom two Lcalitesta tora, et ‘way moe at dicove tn ote, eal fever babies? Asin, ao ‘he the floes en. sem neiable that ence nee comple of cea awa dover aa the oot of the deep sea, the as of ela fovet oxi, end the aga scum of mount lakes, and soon acon the word in thounads of ster tha eval esepe our uae, Reet Ailing of deep aquifers ia South Gxolinn ceveled lnage aumbecr of pecliae Barts dovin to at lear S00 meter bole ground. Te species ‘longed fom oae satu othe aext Hote than 5,000 forms, all we to selene, were found ia the eaty probes Sill aaothecncited wold of barter and othe tirana existe ‘ and on the bodies of lager oxganiaus. Some ofthe species ace weutal iets, nether tnuig no helping their hoxte Other tee bee howneteed, however, that ast thee hows la geo, exeeio, aadeve the production of ght by lumiaesear ceil eatons itn tee tiny bode. So wrfol—indeed sal—are ny te thet ote neti Specialized calle and tsmes to con them, stile cesrting to elaborate steps paslogy and bear to pass dhe sybontsBeween the sexes ad fom pare ofiprng. The phenomenon (swell asated a the Tuaosmision of baeea and yeasts by the see iaset Resrocccus Kerjites. The icoorgnimar move to the ofipring by a elegy choreographed poe de dew within the developing egg, Rae been escabed bythe gear authouty on sbios, Paul Buehne: edn per of obs nictdeame pla, fing inthe Although tdkeds of such peer partuecstips ve been discovered, they are deseed in the lett ia aly fagmeatay maaaet Very fet ofthe bactval species fave been given 2 sintiic same ot desibed besond adetver such ar“odstaged” “vesicle staped™ To plu the depth of our ignorance, conse tht there ae aliens ot suse species sll washed, most ot all of which txbor speciaized bocteia Tete ee mailioar of aheefavertebete peter, om cra to ‘ostncene te sate, ia alae sate. Canad int each bactictal P, cut pede i we employ the DIA meg cle, cm uit at aor a nae aon souces, se as eent sears fats acd: Most cant ‘et ebolie only one t seven such compounds, Coase futher thar cea cant evolve eapidly to exploit here sources Dilleest sir ad crea species ceally exchange genes, expel ding peiods of food sonage aod oer forme of enrcoamentl acess, Tic geaeraions are ceremely show, alloniag sata selection fo aet 0 new asorments of eaes within days oc evea hous, siting the beet tis way o¢ tht pedapr eesti ae ede Conse, Selly a eater ede path of sil the tea of 2 Sagem at aandoaiy those spt on the fore foo. decaying plate of wood. {slag 0a the sue cousins one seo acetal foun, leached saad gains 2 aillieer aay another Moc, and pecs of humus cater dove yet apthe.llold there ve thousaads of spedes. Mow aseable al ue airfloms aeons a‘The teeming lie of a north American deciduous forest appears to existon a tvo-dimeasonal plane when viewed ina ‘ppiealy human perspective from abowe lee). In thie svvernblage, the ‘thebid ceatipede in the center ie ‘irrounded, from the top clockwise, by a grrenbotle fy, social wasp, ougsnouted acora weevil bess beetle, termite, “rca cect chp tnmanlrg grid barley, iehneumon wasp, aphid, earwig. and barvestman (daddy longlego. When the liter and soil are cut vertically and viewed from the side (righo, 2 ferent dreeimensonal ‘world is revealed The dead leaves piled leosely at the tp peg dey eg open ‘small globular springtalls, tiny turtleshaped oribaia mites, Tarvesonan (feeding ow 2 sua), umping spider, centipede, ‘and ground beetle. A few ceatimeters deeper, in desser and moister Liter ani piles of arthcopod and eatthwoom fecal ‘atte, are seatered more speagtalls aud mites, ppseudoscorpion (laws but no stinger, and te slug shaped. ‘rae fly lve Deeper sill inthe now tightly packed fuanis an soil, 90 earthworm rest inthe burrow i ce by mie forest thea eos all forests and Babies for the eatce wold, and we igi expet te Had may wilioas of hitherto unstuiled species, The cei vat biologi ar the black ole of txonouy. Fer seit have eve ted to dean of how al dt vest ean be asaved and wed As explocaton ofthe aanwal world coaties, we species of even the laxges, most conspicuous oni coutiaue teacup. a Colombia's hoes Reson, embecng the otaou a free see of Hedi ‘nthe plan species emia unegsteced ad af these 2 tage podton sil lacks @ sete same, An average of to mew bi species a year are Ascoveed somevceve i the wodd wy ta remote mous valleys cecemer ofthe lit maviving topical forete Eseu aw Lindr of ‘aac are dstovoee fom tne to time Inthe Baan yar 198 the following noveles were publsed, Taneralls sinha Groptheas ‘exersl), anew lemur stom Mivkyasear the seated genoa Cercopthecss sla), a mookey fom Gabea, etal Aiea aud a wee monk dee fromm the mountains of ween China. kt 1990 9 prevouly uno proat, the Black feed Hoa texan, war discovered on the small coastal saad of Superagu, oly 65 hlometers Sra the ey of S30 Paulo. was, in the woud of Russell Miterneit, “ove of the mos auacug pinatoegica dcoveder of thr cet” Aad caught inde ick ‘of cme, Tight ad Because the specie is cepreseaed by ealy several ooen indies One tne could ace eating the mecer a a ater of das Hot even the onder Cate, coral the Langs ana oa eth, the ‘whaler an porpoises tll know. Bete hn he pele ofthe vcr laages the baleea whales, idudig te blag, ght and bumpback bales, tna ll been desebed by 1678. ma canta, the totied whales, seie ‘udu the gia spec sal, killer wines, and their smaller lates the beaked whales aad pespvses, have couuaued to yield new speies at an average ate of one a decade diag the event century. Hete ae theleven dsovered since 1906, composig 15 pereat oF we of al the liver cetaceans knoe pected apo, Attalocens dpmes( Lai) 1912 Chose herpes veaferle,1919 Longuar tele wink, Mecpbson pax cna ‘um beskedwhs,Tamaen eerie. Ponts pore, Ligne oe Fre 1956 Ginkgotsnted beak whe, Mepis Nakina and ‘aay ofthe salle whales and pospoises ve been econded solely foam i tet cas se mt ‘wom, and thle eur story comnins ats OF the Tasuan beaked we the etaean expert Willa Mszer Bras wee ka 1971:"A eae 6 specimens wasted up beaches of Seat ad, Bank's Festa and ook’s sunt, east coat lew Zealand” OF Hectocs beaked vale, lscoveted ia 1971: “Ogi deribed from thee shale of very iret es amare, pets eon aes, fund a Mew Zeakaad waters. la 1967 the sll of an adult femile oa found in Tasaanin” And of Longin basked stale "Deesibed fron. sll found near Macks, ‘Queenan, Auta In Mate 1968 De Hew Louise Azzaro desided a ‘second hl found 1955 near Mogadscio Somat) which esablistes the eon of separate species” The axty and euseness of hese species ‘st at te onan gir ret eevee of et one Aki nee paces af beaked tale have in fat eon aighted seer tues ia the water of the esteca wopical Fae, but none has bee cape, A lage par of species dest exes usin the Eee but gos uteogued Meesiousy 1 defined sng species af ie or more popalaions productively (ated fiom oue another and yet 50 sitar ia outvard appeacance art be lumped together evea by expect economist Only a ‘ate stay of Hae decals tw aoa, cell suet, biocbemisey, aad bebo brings the dfereaces tol an allows temas to define the species with eaiary. uly a wy cave asa asi of anes, Leoabined all the doveaking ant of eaten thinking tat there seer only evo reproduetvly (slated populations war wong. A second eutomologist, Willam Bure, rook 2 cose look ad broke te stave makers tt ive species, othe bass of al eens ia heic tae pastes, the stapes and coloe of thet bodes, aad the ober specie of ate they kip a aver Thece iit doubt alae ie eproduecely tated populations, eae with a unique genetic‘coups ex, sue asthe prtoze0ns and fu, thar ave fe wth ibn spesies fora purely techie teasoa: thes ave few eutvard tats by “which species ea be spared even sith refined aeroropiealtehniquer. ‘Owing tothe fie ofthe hucnan cemory appara, their species ave hidden, The ceowded diversity of ue groups can be expected to nse stoyply as the DITA sequeaces and payslogal equements af moe and raote specie ate eased spat, iether te tat lover xmas wi ‘hm ase wore ebapeies iat spies When the ext geogmphi its of popudavons ace mapped, any of tore pest taught tobe widely dloubuted species ate ereated to comprise mulple species with excuse ages ‘Most biologieal dvesty, howeves, the oldxbioned way, awa Alscovery by foot et, and sea gear To contont diventy, bali oot. to go ot ofthe Lbocatory and ato the wo They count species tm tee ways, aceon tothe bea ofthe geopaphie area surveyed ‘Alpi eet ste aber of spees at oe abit a ne Toa Two of my covers, Sean Cover and Job Tobia, and I cece st out to beak the wold second for spn dient in ante We got it 275 meses collected a 8 hacer of ra focet seat Putt Aldor, Per. Beta easy, the second mean, if the tate at which the species na lncreasesas ney bits ane aed the Pueto Maldonado sty weve estaded to swamp forest river bans, and gastand paces, ou etal, ‘Would alos ceil eens to over 250. aly, genta diversity ie the tory of spets tn ll hableate eos a broad ea To vey thoroughly al the ants of Pe, valley by valley and acon all the tibuties of the ‘Amazon, ihe easily sed 2000 species Bs zuma dives of couse, shar biologist have asayed with Least pedson. Kowa tis the pres ‘on ioco unexploced mount ides, ve headvaters, aad coal ree: For ‘wos counties in the wrod espedaty the topies, the pmb tae i il Deiag Let out we have no idea where A Will all end The tenarde of physical adventure, the excitement of gay, sveatsnaked exploration io este cece of te eat, sl beckoa in sience Bur nage or a moment tat al the Aves ofthe wotd were oly evened and then descbed, say one page toa species. The desipion ‘would coon the seleatie some, a photgraph o° dosing, a rie “egnoss, and tafostion om whete the species Is found publsted ia omveatinal book fo, wit pages bound tnt oxdaaey thousand gee ‘olues 17 ceataeec wide inside cloth coves, hie Great Earylopedia of Life would ocapy 6D acter of likey self pet alin species I thee e100 alton spedes of ogni on eat, they would extend hough 6 Kulometets of seg, the ae of 2 medua.tzed puble Ube. OF course bodvecnty ster all never rte t0 tht Lane Before al he eies ace Gicoveced oag befve we put aay our butely ote aad plant pres, desesptons wl be electronically eroded so tht the Great Bselopede cn ede on dss placed in Box ot one sie of a oer ei, Fa woe infortion willbe added for ath specie a becomes axle om its gente cde ots cle i eomstems, ad these daa will be weadily avaable tough aetveds anayed atouad iatemtoual aad gional bioaisesty eates. ‘The Great Bngelopedia of Life will vcard add avert in arent ue by Bolo One seqitabls, o¢ ‘he abundance of species. Up to is point have spoken of te amas ofveasty oly asthe auaber of spies: 50 many beta ia pach of si ro say aot ie asec of ia fove. Wht als nec ety uch the felanse abundance of species Suppose that we encowater a faana of Daatertier consi of 1 ailion ide divided ito 100 species. Say fue of the sects Is extremely abundant, cepeeseated by 990,000 vivid and each ofthe ots species therefore compuises an aveage af sont 100 indvidhade One med species ae presen bi ‘long the face pate and acon the fies, 6 encounter the abundaat bauer lor he ce and each ofthe eer species ony ney, Tie (sa faa of fo equitable. Then In a ae locality we encounter a secoud bute funn, comping the sae 100 species, but ds tne all ‘ae equally abundant cepreveated by 10,000 iadidale each, Tir ir fam of bg equa, nat the highest posible Lamitively wef thatthe high equtabity fama ithe move dive ofthe fe, sae eae bouterty eacouteced in ta is tess pedicable and tetefoe gies us more lafoamatioa on aveage, fst af cach word la a seh vocabulary Ally auployed gives more aformtion To sul a highly dives fu ie be outils iaformed—and therefore pleased ina imme aesthe suse Divesty a tis dimension also bas praeeal importance in eelogy. & faa of hgh eaulbiliy ely co tae avery dierent impact on an corse than one of low equals, seni a large rat of plans ad eer aia dependeat on ‘lologits mean the diveusty ite aot nt by species, but by genes, families, a other higher etepoues of easficaton up to and idan pla and Kgs ch suet higher uit i a lster of spectes that fe oae anther and are thogbt to sxe a common ancesey. In fart, a genus sa group of species placed tage tate asian because they are very salar an of move or fess imme con ances. Say i a group of salar, elated genera ts species overall ce ote diay ated dha thove within a geno; an order i a grou of in, elated fails ands onto the hierarchy of asieaion althe way up to hiagdoms, vee brace plas asa whole aus asa ith placemear of the domes ct Fels domestic: ere in biefert fonm i the complete taxonomic Species domescea Ges ele Fly: Folie “Oxder: Cansvoen ‘hee Maalia Pisum: Chordot. ‘ugdom: Aula ‘Tue tate pines of easteation follow a transparent foie dt ean be mated i a foe words, Fst pile: the qpecer i the pivotal ait Second principle: two defntions are used in setae up the hired lopdeaion, ay fellows. A category iv an abstac Level of asiation ved aicevsly un lastation The eategotes ate the peees, de genus he family, and so on A taxon oo contrat, Is a coneete group of ‘rgd, a patie set of populations gvea the ak of one ofthe tes of the categories, Emamples ofa include the species Fels domesce and the foly Felise, Categories are the abseaction, tsa the celts ‘hie piciple higher ton such ete gem Fels ea goup of pererthat ate all descended fom a single anestal species The speces of a eres son of equal can, sue athe rea cats ofthe gems Pzhere, ‘reall desended fom cnotier ancestral sped. When v0 gente are laced together to orn a ua howeve, nis eae the Feline, they ave onsideed to be descended from an even older anceal meses thi cave progeitr gare cet dhe two more cece acetal specie, whit Fourth prope: ar thes lan examples make cea, the higher categories ‘ce a seal couse invented for coaveaiece. They are bared oa a conception of specter splting ito aw spetes though tne, and eet the beauching pater tht the suceive aplitiogr produce. The consracion of brachig pattenr io asp eoluonnty dinage i clled ess, and the desing of fghereasiations (geaus an up) © noun With the cendte of ladies i called plplegenete systema ‘lasifcations awe expected to be coosteat with phylogeny fa other woud, the fly oe of specie ‘ith aa ual puluipethe exact Lats ofthe higher tua ae arbi: “The species theuelves, the toi wits, ate tal—mote of lene. So ae thei phfogenete Canes tes we have deduced them cated. B the nts of gene, fies, 2d sl hgher ta, those ues dea around clues of spetes, ave arbitaey. This stateweat may seem patadosi because Lut shed saying hat the whole pout of dadsies ito eeate a tual easton tthe level of the genus ad above. Thar much sue ‘ladies does alow ws to fuze whi speis ace mos Wkly to sare a ona ancestor, validating hee placement ia the sae ges oF Euiy oc er acon, What is arbitrary ate the its of eae er taco, ould Fels and touhere be kept as spate gene, oF sould they be uaped tzethe inthe isle gems Fels? Bite casio i conect by the tandacd fears. Agni should the Feline be llored to stand as the only ea family, of should IC be aided tatoo uae, say the Felidae the “true” ens, and Acoonycae, the eet? ladies i eat othe ates ‘Systematts ook atthe eeostucted evolutionary wees They see whet ecier ace dered fom which coro ancestor and cat be bound ‘oto higher ts thas, ate ete lated pede. These eens common sense fr the mos partto deide how to divide the dates ta sales asters. I ‘5 seosible to place theas ina gle gus. Fone species i very feat othe oes, eve itis the sme cee, dhe bet procedure ito ere ‘ts drasngsteton ts unin properties To ecapnce one gem o¢| ‘So, a the age nuaber of bocdesine aes, a judguent al Systewatis| ‘monty steace bat als a bt of at ‘This fz tesoton Is the sgt compromise to eae, The subjective cure of higher txonomieeategates cele the einai ance of eczanke vay from all ohee spees; nil they Become exinet—ae a a Few eases break down the reproductive anes between thea and bybdae, Tas Doowple of solution meme in tn from the intense vrety mide posible by teanangewents i the sequace of aleodde letets of the rut code, The cde contin about millon seid piri artes Aan beeween 1 to 10 blion mete pats ger plants a alas ‘voluon proceeds mostly by te acide substation of ene of more of the mpi ate ety althe tenes, followed by the wiaaowing of dese aurions and ee combinations trough nual seletion Because muons occur ano, and Beenie ant! selection i aterted by losneate canes 1 the eaeooment dat ie om ove place ad Hae fo the aes, aw two species eve follow ext the same pat or wore tan a couple of eps: “The ceal wold, then, consists of speries tht der fem ene anaes in inline erator a fre et me ee ‘lump orto spt thea ito groups exept by tbat the hutan mio nds tal and seta pleasing. ‘These is another consequence of evalulon asexpandiag uvvese that fees the txonomie tank of spetes and thei perceived value © taxuaniy Every species boc, given enough tne to evove and prliiate inte muple species, ica poteatl genus of tvon of il higher ak The longer thie astmblage asses and esos, the mace comer to Aer sevetally fom the remainder of We, Beeme extaction i all Inevitable, the arsemblage odes dialer watt only a few ele Spevies ean. These suvivues age old, uaigue, aad predous Ti of a spesier that tr lived vey og tae. Eder itr ister species hve be supped avy by etinetion, or ele i te sole oeeapaat ofan aneeat line har never plitted ito auluple species a the Hast place. sands alone ov, accowded the rank of zeus, fans, 6 stil shee eaters Ie everver special conde bythe bua sce fr the cy tls, Suc ‘ste sens ofthe gat panda sole member ofthe geausAtirepat; the oetoeat sb Lzinerie cela, most celebrated of Ung oss ad the neta, Sphenodon puns, a wdsike ceptile ated to small Uonds of We Zealnnd and only one of evo members of the ore ‘yachocephata to sive ftom the Mesozte ea The know dvesty of hie har expanded within each Level of the ‘zxonomic hierarchy: 5° amar species pee eum, 50 msn eae per Sails, aad 00 up. Atte vey top, atl of 89 Hig pia ave dnubuted amoag the Kingdoms of ie. Acedia co one widely used but bighly subjective castcation the kingdoms are ie be Arana muRKeDMar sae fem epngeh and To debe vecsty by onan species tt cates accord to howe losely they sesemble one another was a fundueatl advance of ghteutsceauy biolegy A laer and equally sapedtast way of Aesebing divest ie by level of lologien organization. The rpc levels of importance to biological divecaty ae anayed ia ths beet ‘community cuitSpecies ganion “The idea ie est conveyed by a couiete example tht ean be followed down thong he fall stack. The ecample I choose: A gostank Apter _euls hsfor songbuds dough the Black Fores of Gemeny, fe fest ‘nd low aver te fr es sire erection cbranty, I ees c wood! warbler (tose lat) rest one pine brench With few shore winders ‘end long sen gle, tases ons prey ‘The gestak ives wa pater eeogtey, the upland He fvest ofthe Blak Forest The fan is covered by granite soi weathered fom ound low fils, Laced with suena tt fr the Reader of the Dube aad Meekar ivere. The ecmstem constr of thi physical bre pla ll the cxganinas iia in the babes ofthe fore a the 004, the lads, and sell bodes of ftesh wate. The combed phys and bot eee fom rock and seams to tes, aks, and wales, ace igty ound to oe anotec, Eaesy i caed as ia a leaky bucket from one species to the Sood seebr of organs tients ow though the gnniras, si, wate, and ait, and back ia uoendag blogeocheaed fyelee The char of the soil cover and water daiange depende sae the otsnisms agin the foes The Blak Forest econstem \swalque i its particu coabaation of psa easicoument aad temat cxgnimar. We look up aad aoe southern Geumany, a Birape ar a wile, and fimity stound the erice word to measure he avery of ‘costes io exstece, We nd thar the pessbiites ave astnoaical ia ‘aubee—te combiaions of millions of species tht ca ive ial af the singustnble pysical sesags isa umber Beyond peeil aleaton This teapot is tatecesing but aot mporast The real auaber of ‘conten is wt counts. Each ecosystem as tint Yue. Just as a couuty weasues is Bite hide episodes, elaste books, wodks of a, ‘nique and ite eeorstes, esomne toa ease of a an place Within the Black Foces ecorrte, the gosta belongs to a parteuar osu of opis, defined a ll the aperer connected ia the food sve and by any otber act tha influences the fe eles ofthe spetes ‘The fc wee i athe gosta's food web because aoudsbes dhe mot lane nt eed the vogbide tat feed the In. The coraon basa 3 Bwopeanbuteo hat, 16 meatber ofthe me corny By sie of competion and acdeatl guubioss The occasional all Died ils edues the gosta larder. The nest iano and makes aaa to the gst impeoves the bee chaaes of that les secant bid ‘he diversity of commuter ie meanned within patcuaeesersem, ce aca, is subject asad, sac dhe tats of 3 comuenty dou be dea with exactitude. side the community, the gostawck 46a member of a guild, a set of species tt ve ia the same pace and barvest the same food by similar means Suet speaking, the gosta shares is gull with ea one species fa the Black Forest commuty, the probe Uecpiter na). They ae both acites, posessed of stort rounded wigs and fg als: Ther ‘nar sal us by capi evista Might aoUgh the foxes, eeastonally sonces of tational grates, i should lean to earwe itascending to ie! sats above the wees Otter gud of the Black Forest lace the aster ering lowe asec, he warbler, andthe foes dell steers and mall ice Beenre guilds ell us someting about exlogs, they ate ae valle a mena of ivessty within a eeomtemn athe aunber of species Wie are appcoaing the lowest levels of bilogial vests: The ostawk ie a species, a nexus of illdefned Local populations that altogether range fom continental Biropeaecosr Asia to Canada ae the othesn and wertmn Unite Seer Te inet bide comparing It ace the teposontes of genee Aves, the deteees that exit among the cbromosomes a genes and the level belo species dvetsty Ts Us a level most quikly gasped by udag fur examples so hua heed A single gone difecence determiner whether the ent fen ee tong lobe oc sated all he way along its base. Possession ofan ecabe isa lowianat alt eter one ofthe te genes in each ell Ia extobe eur, the petra acaiera fly developed eatobe. Oo both aes ave for the cecenive, lobles coadideu doer the petsoa develop tht atecstive fait The cvlobe genes, the pater pie of gener econ the presente or absence of exlobes, ore at ust one ofthe 200,000 tmove ses anaed ia co along the 46 ehuomosomes. Ott ‘sampler of rnin sation bred on single generac the blood es, the ability to oll the tongue ito arabe, the presence ofa widows peak ia the esting wether the fast segmeat af the thu angles ack: euply when the ham fr sietehed out he condom called "eke ey, ed 2 eysad of heediary denser fom scdecell anemia te albciay, besophila and Boigu’ chorea. Many oer ais, eth as beg, skin ‘lot and peedispestion to bets, at atected by combinations af genes at oan eeomosome sites tat work together, the s-alled posses. By count sich vatatous in outvard teats Koren to aie for ‘autous i gle geaes and polygenes itr pore to ave at age of toa gente dicey The esate, were, sould ll sat by ores of mgd, The ean ete ifereaces among atertive gene the same etvomosoae potion cause difeaeaces ha ae often iassble, they prescibe vratons ia proeas detectable oly by chemical ants Ha the 1940 an adsnnee wae made vo cesving poser sith the aon ot age elecuophoceds, a technique ta allows the rapid puteation aad ‘deoateation of ener When moleetes ate pled na einged eld on wateval ough which dey eam wove, suc as a porous gel they agate at sate proportion other own slectie cage. Ars rent they ace oe like cunnees with vasiag alter Eaymes ace peotia molecules one design, audi tn teste charg, peseibed by genet ren small difeenees ia the genes caused by mutations tase co ‘aviatons inthe eames; ote ut aot aay tasting at derenes 2 elec hge, wich aus te eyes to wave a deer veoetes spate on the ecified gel pater, Geneiists fallow a ‘elgorwaed peocedire to tke adsanage ofthis cain of event: They ‘ast tes oa the gant tobe tule, exact mates contain, enmyues, and place the extras at ome end ofa ge pate They let the ‘eazyues un inthe clei ed for ale, thea sta then with dyes to veal hee positions They couat the ined eacyaner at ave weparted ‘on the plate. They ate the able t determine the tuaber and ect of (he saryaer and Henne infer the cumnber and iat ofthe pressing‘genes By pling mony indus. species and by proceeding oa, fone hid of enzyme to nother—sus from ove set of geues to another ‘they can estimate the ammount of ove enetie det nthe specs: Suess wag elecrophotesis have auged widely over many Kad of cxganions toa Hower plats and ase to fishes, ics and masa Of al te dscoretes ade, one stad othe amount of genetic Aeety revealed is vey lange, auch greaer than ad beea epeced ia pe lecrphoress days when cestarcets celled prinipally ou such isle ite ar sntober and sin esl In order to expres the Alves ara umber, genes use the eoaeept of poytospbinm. A gee ie sid te be potsmorpue went oceus 1 mule forms, or wll alles as they ‘ace ose techeialy called. The over alleles ace oot cowed uals they caced some ssbitnity elected fequeacy, mally 1 peteat of the tot for that pateulaegeoe. In ote sods, only if eatbe alles wece more tas 1 pereer io the buman popuation wuld they be inladed ta the count infact. they ae 45 percent, and only thea would the conti _geue be called polyoaphic it ita disease). The eeeuophocete studies ewe shown tat in the great nsjority of meces,remewtece between 10 and 50 peceat of gees ate polrowpbie tke ge is cougy 25, peceat High lees of pelomodptism pet geae dough the population also rode tigi levels of polmmowpiise within the botes of todd canis: a ea individual oa de average, aga acotlug t species beeeea 3 and 20 peteat of the gener ace polymoephic. Thr maar tht ee oxganin i eteozsgous fr tht numberof guest nan ets means possessing one gene for ealobes aud ane far the Lbeless state ia ‘eh cll, of one for blood expe and ome for B, and son Hough the 200,000 or more genes hat makeup the toa ereiktary composition ofa twa Bea Yet even the uaexpetedly igh elecsophoctic aanbecs av anal ‘smaes and almost cet 109 lo. Sowe enzyme vara have ao pei eletieal eee o¢ elec arangenet BY which they ca be separated, so they aay sleut on the eleciophoree Held. a ode t ake sm est and fal eat of eee deny ele ecesay 30 a the Dring and aight te the genes themelver and lene the seeotde sequent, the Lees ofthe gene code. The tne, ulnaate aeasuce of eae diversity is cleotide divers Mt mut be deteaed base pate by nse pair though a lange part of the euomosoaes, and ia mous ‘individ beloaging tothe same species, Dui the 1990 rapid advncer ete made fn DINA seman, The naan genome peoee a bora, sig at nethig Less than a complete ‘auteatide map of one tua being. sitar pojet i plsaned fr a species of ut My. When sequencing becomes cheap enous and reading eae codes is as cout as coating Feats ad mas cee, we wil be ‘ecieeliy become in al teeter gece tee at vest ext 0 eth Meoatule I il veotuce 9 guess at the Rl outcome: t0 the wees psi, pied oxde of agate, oc power af ea, 10° (100 alli by 10° (billion) aucleoude pir on avenge pet wecer hence att of 1017 100 qsndilion) oudeote pts peta the ll gente aveesty among. species, Nucleoside dvesty, i shoud be noted in paning, ifed toa nou of four Kids of cuceoide per ste od hence does ota as much aan oder of guide ‘Tha fee, 107, i nou suse te oie ety of Me Yet Al owe not eke ato account the dicences among individu Belonging to the same species When tha daension i ale, the potential grows sil mote Consider tht, witha a pial seuallyveproducag specie, two Imuleoider oeeuriag atthe sme ste on dle ehvomosomes ean euerate tree combstions, the leters AT and C6, for exaple, an evezate the coabionons (AT) (AT, (AT) (0), and (CO) (CO. Af ony fue ont of a thoumad ster fad so mich vviantrrowemtece (athe spesis, thea with 10° postions Ga ater words, oneshousandh of 10° postions in se whole genet makeup of te spete thee veut be 10° Pessble combiaaioas for each species. Tis iamense gue is sll an undeceminate. Wistever the ae Agar, 1 eptereat the poten of bodies at the level of the owganisa, the great fel of posible genetic onions Hough whieh ach pees aves with the a ae Dosseses, guided by uaa selection and weve, incest the gone onde of buna