BIODIVERSITY

BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY
“The variability of all species of plants, animals &
microorganisms together with the ecosystem in which
they thrive”.

About 1.75 million species have been identified till

date, while many more species are believed to exist.

According to UNEP estimate, approximately 9.0 – 52

million of species exist on Earth

India’s position is 10th in the world & 4th in Asia in

terms of Plant diversity.

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 Levels of Biodiversity

• Genetic diversity
• Species diversity
• Ecosystem diversity

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 Genetic Diversity
• Genetic diversity refers to the variation of
genes within species.
– This covers genetic variation between distinct
populations of the same species.
– It also covers genetic variation within a
population.
• Genetic diversity can be measured using a
variety of DNA-based and other techniques.

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 Species Diversity
• Species diversity is measured in relation to a given
area. It can be assessed in terms of the number of
species or the range of different types of species an
area contains.
• So far, 1.7 million species have been described
worldwide.
• Estimates of the total number of species on Earth range
from 5 to 100 million.

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 Ecosystem Diversity
• Ecosystem diversity encompasses the broad
differences between ecosystem types, and the
diversity of habitats and ecological processes
occurring within each ecosystem type.
• Different physical settings favor very different
communities of species.

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ECOSYSTEM DIVERSITY

Sand Dune

Forest

Mountain Meadow

Coastal ecosystem

Arid ecosystem
Importance of Biodiversity
 Generation of soils and maintenance of soil quality
 Maintenance of air quality
 Maintenance of water quality
 Pest control
 Detoxification and decomposition of wastes
 Pollination and crop production
 Climate stabilization
 Prevention and mitigation of natural disasters
 Provision of food security
 Provision of health care
 Income generation
 Spiritual/cultural value
 VALUES OF BIODIVERSITY
 Consumptive Use – food, clothing, shelter, medicines,
proteins, enzymes, papers, sports goods, musical instruments,
beverages, and trade concern
 Productive Use – domesticated agricultural crops, medicines,
Oxygen, Rainfall, energy, climatic control etc.
 Social Value – Religious and social activities
 Ethical Value – Designs, nests, and duty to preserve and
protecting biodiversity based on high moral principles.
(Cloning, Bio Piracy, Smuggling etc.)
 Aesthetic Value – bird watching, nature photography, national
parks, eco tourism, appreciation of natural beauty
 Optional value – Choice to take varieties of food, discovery of
new species, wealth from waste, recharging of ground water
etc.
 India as a mega diverse nation
• India is home to 33% of the life forms

• 12 mega-diverse countries of the world.

• 2% of the world’s landmass

• 8% of the biodiversity of the world.

• 10 biogeographic zones

• 26 biotic provinces

• 33 Botanical Gardens,

• 89 national parks,

• 275 zoos, 504 sanctuaries and 17 biosphere reserves

• 47,000 species of plants and 81,000 species of animals

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• 60% of this wealth can be found in the Western Ghats
The important features that contribute to India’s rich biodiversity

are

I. Physiography of India

II. Variety in elevation and local climate

III. Wetlands

IV. Forests

V. Marine Environment

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Biogeographic regions of India
 IUCN Red List Categories:
Extinct (EX) - A Species is Extinct when there is no reasonable
doubt that the last individual has died.
Extinct in Wild (EW) - A taxon is Extinct in the wild when it is
known only to survive in cultivation, in captivity or as a
naturalized population (or populations) well outside the past
range.
Critically Endangered (CR) - A taxon is Critically Endangered
when it is facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild
in the immediate future, as defined by any of the criteria.
Endangered (EN) - A taxon is endangered when it is not
Critically Endangered but is facing a very high risk of extinction
in the wild in the near future, as defined by any of the criteria.
Vulnerable (VU
VU) - A taxon is Vulnerable when it is not Critically Endangered
or Endangered but is facing a high risk of extinction in the wild in the
medium-term future, as defined by any of the criteria.
Lower Risk (LR
LR) - A taxon is Lower Risk when it has been evaluated, does
not qualify for any of the threatened categories Critically Endangered,
Endangered or Vulnerable or Data Deficient (LR/nt- near threatened, Lr/lc-
least concerned, LR/cd-conservation dependent).
Near Threatened (NT NT): A taxon is Near Threatened when it has been
evaluated against the criteria but does not qualify for Critically Endangered,
Endangered or Vulnerable now, but is close to qualifying for, or is likely to
qualify for, a threatened category in the near future.
Least Concern (LCLC) A taxon is Least Concern when it has been evaluated
against the criteria and does not qualify for Critically Endangered,
Endangered, Vulnerable or Near Threatened. Widespread and abundant
taxa are included in this category.
Data Deficient (DD) A taxon is Data Deficient when there is
inadequate information to make a direct, or indirect,
assessment of its risk of extinction based on its
distribution and/or population status.
Not Evaluated (NE) A taxon is Not Evaluated when it is has
not yet been assessed against the criteria.
 Endemic Species of India

• Endemics (E) Species restricted to a particular geographical

area or ecosystem. Endemic species is a species native

species available in only one place.

• Lion-tailed macaque (Macaca silenus)

• Nilgiri leaf monkey (Trachypithecus johni)

• Brown palm civet (Paradoxurus jerdoni)

• Nilgiri tahr (Hemitragus hylocrius)

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 Endangered Species:
 According to The International Union of Conservation of
Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), the species that
considered in imminent danger of extinction and whose
survival is unlikely, if factors causing their decline
continue to operate.
 Out of about 47,000 species of plants in our country, 7000 are
endemic
 India contains 172 species of animals considered globally
threatened by IUCN, or 2.9% of the world’s total number of
threatened species.
 These include 53 species of mammals, 69 birds, 23 reptiles
and 3 amphibians
 As many as 3,000- 4,000 higher plants may be under high
degree of threat in India
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 Exotic Species
• The species which are non native and come to the
other countries by some artificial or natural
mechanism (Dominate the native varieties)
 Hot- spots of Biodiversity
 A biodiversity hotspot is a biogeographic region with a
significant reservoir of biodiversity that is threatened with
destruction.
 An area is designated as a hot spot when it contains at least
0.5% of plant species as endemic.
 There are 25 such hot spots of biodiversity on a global level,
out of which two are present in India.
 These are:
Indo- Burma (earlier The Eastern Himalayas) and
The western Ghats & Sri Lanka..
 These hot spots covering less than 2% of the world’s land area
are found to have about 50% of the terrestrial biodiversity.

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Loss of Biodiversity
Biodiversity 31
Biodiversity 32
Biodiversity 34
Biodiversity 35
Habitat Fragmentation
Biodiversity 38
Biodiversity 39
Biodiversity 40
The two basic approaches to wildlife conservation
in protected habitats are:
1) In- situ conservation and
2) Ex- situ conservation.
In- situ conservation:
 It simply means conservation of species in its natural ecosystem or
even in man made ecosystems.
 This strategy emphasizes protection of total ecosystem through a
network of “protected area”.
 Protected Areas: an area of land and/or sea specially dedicated to
the protection and maintenance of biological diversity and
managed through legal effective means.
 There are different categories of protected areas which are
managed with different objectives. These include; Biosphere
reserves, National parks, Wild Life Sanctuaries etc.
 At present we have 11 major biosphere reserves, 80 National
parks, 420 wildlife sanctuaries in our country covering 4% of the
geographic area.
 The JIM CORBETT National Park was 1st national park
established in India.
Ex- situ conservation:
 It is defined as “the conservation of component of
biological diversity (Sample of genetic diversity, particularly
of endangered species) outside their natural habitats”.
 It involves maintenance and breeding of endangered plant
and animal species under partially or wholly controlled
conditions. E.g. Zoos, Botanical Gardens, Aquaria,
Nurseries, DNA bank, Seed bank, Gene bank etc.
 There are more than 1500 Botanical gardens in the world
containing more than 80,000 species.
 There are more than 800 zoos around the world with about
3,000 species of mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians.
 In India, we have many gene bank. The important
ones are:
 National Bureau of Plant genetic Resources
(NBPGR), New Delhi:
 Agricultural and horticultural crops and their wild
varieties are preserved by cryo-preservation of
seeds (at -196º C in Liquid Nitrogen), pollen etc.
 National Facility for Plant Tissue Culture
Repository (NFPTCR) at NBPGR Campus New
Delhi:
 It has been set up for the development of a facility of
conservation of varieties of crop plants/ trees by
tissue culture.
Rapid Assessment Survey: A detailed survey has to be
carried out in one season of the study area and a list of floral
and faunal species by using the following methodology.
 Survey has to be carried out for core and buffer zones,
habitat wise, forest block wise and species-wise with special
emphasis on endemic, endangered and threatened species.
 Secondary data is also to be collected from the forest
department and local villagers.
 Preparation of species-level exhaustive check list of flora
and fauna.
 Preparation of conservation based action plan for onsite
implementations and for proper management of the species
and habitat.
 Floral study
 Quadrate method will be followed for carrying out the
study of trees, shrubs, herbs and grasses.
 A detailed list of floral species will be prepared for
identifying the endangered, rare and endemic plants if
any.
 The specimens will be identified with the aid of
standard books
 Faunal study
a. Insects:
i. For carryout the study of ground insects, quadrates (10m X
10m) are to be laid in various habitats.
ii. The dragonflies, butterflies, other aquatic and terrestrial
insects will be identified by line transect method (500m X
10m).
The Specimens were identified by using various field guides
and other available literature
b. Herpeto fauna (Amphibians and Reptiles):
Capture – re capture method will be used
Reptile species were identified using “Fauna of British India”
Amphibians were identified based on the keys and
descriptions of available literature
 Faunal study
c. Aves: (Birds)
Bird surveys will be carried out using Point count method
In this method all the birds found near water bodies in every
50m will be listed out.
Identification done by “A pictorial guide to the birds” by Dr.
Salim Ali.
d. Mammals:
Mammalian surveys will be conducted through line transect
method (each transect is 1km each for 5 transects in Core
and 10 transects buffer regions covering all the habitats).
Major mammals will be identified by direct and indirect
evidences (Vocal, Scat & Pugmarks).