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S-SCEN001TP BSA33 Environmental Science - 2nd Semester (SY 2021-2022)

Biodiversity, Ecosystem Stability, and Endangered Species Acts

Understanding Biodiversity
Immersive Reader

What is Biodiversity?

The term biodiversity or biological diversity notably has been defined in many ways, but the two most acceptable
definitions will be presented here accordingly:

1. The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) 1992:

“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 diversity within species,
between species and of ecosystems.”
2. O Wilson 1998:

“The variety of life at every hierarchical level and spatial scale of biological organizations: genes within
populations, population within species, species within communities, communities within landscapes, landscapes
within biomes, and biomes within the biosphere”.
 

Hence, biodiversity encompasses a variety of biological life at more than one scale.

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The different levels of biodiversity are the following:

1. Genetic Diversity – the variety of genetic material within a species or a population

2. Ecosystem Diversity – the variety of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems found in an area or on the earth
3. Species Diversity – the number and abundance of species present in different communities
4. Functional Diversity – the biological and chemical processes such as energy flow and matter recycling needed for
the survival of species, communities, and ecosystems

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