Biodiversity- The diversity found among the living beings found on the earth is called biodiversity.

According to the technology assessment report (USA 1987) "the diversity, asymmetry and ecological
complexity found among the biological organisms is called biodiversity."

Levels of biodiversity
*species- A group of organisms whose members are identical in appearance and have the ability to
produce their offspring's by reproduction in natural conditions is called a species.

Species diversity- the total number of different species of organisms found in any specifies area is called
a species.

Genetic diversity- the variation found in different members of the same species due to the genes is
called genetic diversity.

*Ecosystem- the system established by mutual interaction among all the living organisms in a specified
area is called Ecosystem.

Ecosystem diversity-many type of ecosystem have their own geographical and environmental
characteristics due to which they differ in the flora and fauna. Such variation is called as the diversity of
the ecosystem.

Global biodiversity- according to the millennium Ecosystem Assessment, about 50 to 300 million species
of organisms are found on our planet out of which scientists could identify 17 to 20 million species only.

The middle and south-east America and south-east Asia, where the maximum tropical forests on the
earth are found, have very rich floral biodiversity.

Biodiversity in india- india, due to its geographical location, has very rich biodiversity. India accounts for
8 percent of the total biodiversity found throughout the world. India has been included in 17 mega
biodiversity rich countries.

According to the report of the ministry of environment and forest(2009) government of india, 45968
plant specie and 91364 animal species have been indentified in india.

On account of its agricultural diversity, india has been placed on seventh place in the world. About 167
species of food crops are grown in india. About 50,000 varirties of rice and 1000 varieties of mango are
found in our country.

Biodiversity hotspot- A place where a huge biodiversity is found is called as biodiversity hotspot.
This concept was first proposed by the British ecologist Norman Mayer in 1988.
At present, there are 34 biodiversity hotspots in the world. They accounts for 2.3% of the earths area.
These hotspots host more than 50 percent of the world's endemic plant species.

Some of the major biodiversity hotspots in the world are Atlantic Forest, East Malaysian islands,
Mountains of southwest china, Islands of Madagascar, Central America, Colombia, Choco, Central chile,
Eastern Himalayas, Western Ghats, Sri Lanka, Indo-Burma etc.