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Simpson's Diversity Index is a measure of diversity. In ecology, it is often used to quantify the biodiversity of a habitat. It takes into account the number of species present, as well as the abundance of each species.

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species diversity - within a community
genetic diversity - within a population or species
ecosystem diversity - variety of habitats

species richness
relative abundance of species

How many species are described in the literature? About 1.5 million are known to science
How many are thought to exist on earth? Maybe 30 million. Estimates range from 10-100 million

Geographical patterns of species richness

Biogeography

Human activities affecting species - Fig 40.6

Reasons for preserving species

1. biocontrol agentsAbout 80% of people in LDC's rely primarily on traditional medicines, mostly from plants Agricultural importance -

2. soil microorganisms
1. quinine
3. pollinators
4. genes for plant breeding and genetic engineering
5. new food crops

2. taxol
3. digitoxin from
Soil stabilization
Aesthetics
Because its the right thing to do Digitalis

Characters of extinction-prone species

often K-selected species

low reproductive rate
feed at high trophic level
large size
very specialized feeding habits
limited distribution
prey on livestock
migratory species map plane
behavioral patterns

desirable to humans

Conserving species, communities and ecosystems

Genetic problems faced by small populations

loss of genetic diversity - little to fall back on in times of environmental change

increase in harmful homozygous recessives

Northern Aplomado Falcon ( Falco femoralis septentrionalis

Attwaters prairie chicken program

The black rhino Sustaining genetic diversity: Fig. 40.21

flying foxes (a type of bat) Preserving keystone species: Fig 40.22

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species diversity - within a community genetic diversity - within a population or species ecosystem diversity - variety of habitats species richness relative abundance of species How many species are described in the literature? About 1.5 million are known to science How many are thought to exist on earth?

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Irelands plant conservation strategy

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Ecosystem services

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Food miles

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Join an activity with your class and find or create your own quizzes and flashcards.

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Biodiversity

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Join an activity with your class and find or create your own quizzes and flashcards.

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Grazing and meat production

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How much food and space do grazing animals need to survive

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Climate change food calculator: What’s your diet’s carbon footprint?

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Check the environmental impact of what you eat and drink.

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Irish response to sustainability

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Impact of food production

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What is the Environmental Impact of Feeding the World? | California Academy of Sciences

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Headphones required -

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Biodiversity is the variety of life.

It can be studied on many levels. At the highest level, one can look at all the different species on the entire Earth. On a much smaller scale, one can study biodiversity within a pond ecosystem or a neighborhood park. Identifying and understanding the relationships between all the life on Earth are some of the greatest challenges in science.

Most people recognize biodiversity by species-a group of individual living organisms that can interbreed. Examples of species include blue whales, white-tailed deer, white pine trees, sunflowers, and microscopic bacteria that can't even be seen by the naked eye. Biodiversity includes the full range of species that live in an area.

Biodiversity at a Glance

Pretend you're taking a look at the species biodiversity within a local pond. At first glance, we can identify different plants, including cattails and water lilies. If we wait a while, we might be able to spot a garter snake, a bullfrog, or maybe a red-winged blackbird. With a closer look, we can see invertebrates and worms under leaves, on grasses and in the pond water.

Think you're done? You have not even scratched the surface of the biodiversity within the pond. Using a microscope, we would be able to see hundreds or even thousands of different bacteria that inhabit the pond water. They're all part of the species biodiversity of this small ecosystem.

More than Just Species

Species diversity is only one part of biodiversity. To properly catalogue all the life on Earth, we also have to recognize the genetic diversity that exists within species, as well as the diversity of entire habitats and ecosystems.

Genetic biodiversity is the variation in genes that exists within a species. A helpful way to understand genetic diversity is to think about dogs. All dogs are part of the same species, but their genes can dictate whether they are Chihuahua or a Great Dane. There can be a lot of variation in genes-just think about all the colors, sizes, and shapes that make up the genetic diversity of dogs.

Ecological biodiversity is the diversity of ecosystems, natural communities, and habitats. In essence, it's the variety of ways that species interact with each other and their environment. The forests of Maine differ from the forests of Colorado by the types of species found in both ecosystems, as well as the temperature and rainfall. These two seemingly similar ecosystems have a lot of differences that make them both special.

Five Facts on Biodiversity

1. Researchers have estimated that there are between 3 and 30 million species on Earth, with a few studies predicting that there may be more than 100 million species on Earth.

2. Currently we have identified only 1.7 million species, so we have a long way to go before we can come close to figuring out exactly how many species are on Earth.

3. There is more biodiversity within tropical ecosystems than temperate or boreal ecosystems. In fact, tropical rain forests have the most diversity.

4. The most diverse group of animals are invertebrates. Invertebrates are animals without backbones, including insects, crustaceans, sponges, scorpions, and many other kinds of organisms.

5. Over half of all the animals already identified are invertebrates. Of these, beetles are some of the most numerous species.

Biodiversity's Importance

Biodiversity is extremely important to people and the health of ecosystems. Biodiversity allows us to live healthy and happy lives. It provides us with an array of foods and materials, and it contributes to the economy. Without a diversity of pollinators, plants, and soils, our supermarkets would have a lot less produce.

Most medical discoveries to cure diseases and lengthen life spans were made because of research into plant and animal biology and genetics. Every time a species goes extinct or genetic diversity is lost, we will never know whether research would have given us a new vaccine or drug.

Biodiversity is also an important part of ecological services that make life livable on Earth. They include everything from cleaning water and absorbing chemicals, which wetlands do, to providing oxygen for us to breathe-one of the many things that plants do for people.

Biodiversity allows for ecosystems to adjust to disturbances like fires and floods. Genetic diversity even prevents diseases and helps species adjust to changes in their environment.

Threats to Biodiversity

Extinction is a natural part of life on Earth. Over the history of the planet, most of the species that ever existed evolved and then gradually went extinct. Species go extinct because of natural shifts in the environment that take place over long periods of time, such as ice ages.

Today species are going extinct at an accelerated and dangerous rate because of non-natural environmental changes caused by human activities. Some of the activities have direct effects on species and ecosystems, such as habitat loss and degradation, overexploitation (such as overfishing), and the spread of non-native species and diseases. Some human activities have indirect but wide-reaching effects on biodiversity as well, including climate change and pollution.

All of these threats have put a serious strain on the diversity of species on Earth. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), globally about one third of all known species are threatened with extinction. That includes 29 percent of all amphibians, 21 percent of all mammals, and 12 percent of all birds. If we do not stop the threats to biodiversity, we could be facing another mass extinction with dire consequences to the environment, and human health and livelihood.

Sources
International Union for Conservation of Nature
Comparing and Graphing Nine Environmental Threats, Researchers Find Unexpected Evils, Popular Science
Encyclopedia of Earth: Biodiversity
World of Biology. McGrath, Kimberley A., ed. The Gale Group, Farmington Hills, MI: 1999.
Precious Heritage: The Status of Biodiversity in the United States. Stein, Bruce A., Lynn S. Kutner and Jonathan S. Adams. Oxford University Press, New York: 2000
US Forest Service: Ecoregions of the United States

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Biodiversity | National Wildlife Federation

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Biodiversity is the variety of life. It can be studied on many levels. At the highest level, one can look at all the different species on the entire Earth. On a much smaller scale, one can study biodiversity within a pond ecosystem or a neighborhood park.

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Biodiversity

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Why is biodiversity so important? - Kim Preshoff

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10 ways to protect diversity

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Using different coloured beans to simulate biodiversity of species

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Finding Local Biodiversity

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Students should be able to evaluate how humans can successfully conserve ecological biodiversity and contribute to global food production; appreciate the benefits that people obtain from ecosystems