Biodiversity: Concept, threats and conservation

Abstract

Biodiversity is the variety of different forms of life on earth, including the different plants, animals, micro-organisms, the genes they contain and the ecosystem they form. It refers to genetic variation, ecosystem variation, species variation (number of species) within an area, biome or planet. Relative to the range of habitats, biotic communities and ecological processes in the biosphere, biodiversity is vital in a number of ways including promoting the aesthetic value of the natural environment, contribution to our material well-being through utilitarian values by providing food, fodder, fuel, timber and medicine. Biodiversity is the life support system. Organisms depend on it for the air to breathe, the food to eat, and the water to drink. Wetlands filter pollutants from water, trees and plants reduce global warming by absorbing carbon, and bacteria and fungi break down organic material and fertilize the soil. It has been empirically shown that native species richness is linked to the health of ecosystems, as is the quality of life for humans. The ecosystem services of biodiversity is maintained through formation and protection of soil, conservation and purification of water, maintaining hydrological cycles, regulation of biochemical cycles, absorption and breakdown of pollutants and waste materials through decomposition, determination and regulation of the natural world climate. Despite the benefits from biodiversity, today's threats to species and ecosystems are increasing day by day with alarming rate and virtually all of them are caused by human mismanagement of biological resources often stimulated by imprudent economic policies, pollution and faulty institutions in-addition to climate change. To ensure intra and intergenerational equity, it is important to conserve biodiversity. Some of the existing measures of biodiversity conservation include; reforestation, zoological gardens, botanical gardens, national parks, biosphere reserves, germplasm banks and adoption of breeding techniques, tissue culture techniques, social forestry to minimize stress on the exploitation of forest resources.

Indigenous knowledge and rangelands’ biodiversity conservation in Tanzania: success and failure

“…Based on the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) the term “Biodiversity” refers to variability among living organisms and ecological complexes of which they are integral part of it (CBD 2001 ). The rapid declining in the world biological diversity can be explained by several factors including, habitat destruction, land use changes, overexploitation of biological resources, climate change and invasive species (Rawat and Agrawal 2015 ). Degradation of rangelands due to increasing anthropogenic activities results to loss of habitats for several species.…”

Biodiversity Conservation Friendliness Status of Rural Farmers in Abak Agricultural Zone of Akwa Ibom State

“…Each section had various questions and the score was based on the selected answer. To assess the knowledge of respondents (awareness) on biodiversity conservation practices, every correct answer was scored one (1) and every wrong answer was scored zero (0). To identify the biodiversity conservation information sources of the respondents, A 3-point rating scale of Never=0, rarely = 1, often =2 was used.…”

“…Biodiversity also known as biological diversity refers to the degree to which individual organisms differ from one another. [1] defines biodiversity as a comprehensive umbrella term for the extent of nature's variety or variation within the natural system; both in number and frequency. Biodiversity as a concept was first defined at the United Nations Convention on Biodiversity, 1992 as 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 ecosystems [2].…”

An introduction to contaminants in agriculture and environment

“…For example, in India, the case of house sparrow bird deaths was due to extensive pesticide accumulation in rice crop which declined its significant population in both rural and urban areas (Rawat and Agarwal, 2015). The accumulation of harmful pesticides in rice crop tends to increase the toxicity of early rice grains, which are taken by birds.…”