Biodiversity & its conservation P-2

Number of species on earth

It is difficult to believe that there are

• 20,000 species of orchids,
• 20,000 species of ants
• 28,000 species of fishes and
• about 3,00,000 species of beetles on earth,

According to IUCN

(International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural resources) estimates number of animal and plant species, described so far, is more than 1.5 million.
Due to project ‘Species 2000’ and ‘Global Biodiversity lnformation’, the new species are being discovered faster than ever before. However, the discovery and description of species is more complete in temperate than in tropical countries. A large number of species are waiting to be discovered from tropics.
According to estimates of Robert May

• The global species diversity is about 7 million (1.5 million, i.e. 22% reported till now and 78% are yet to be discovered).
• More than 70% of all the species recorded are animals. Plants are not more than 22% of the total.
• Among animals also, about 70% are insects.
• The Fungi have more species than all the vertebrates species combined.
• In case of vertebrates, the species of fishes are more than that of birds, and of latter, more than reptiles.
• In case of plant species, the species of fungi > species of angiosperms > species of algae.

The all above estimates do not give any idea for the number of species of prokaryotes, whose species diversity may run in millions.
Number of species In India
India is one of the I2 mega diversity country of the world. It has 2.4%, i.e., 1/40 of world land area, but global species diversity is 8.1 %, i.e. l/ 12.
 In India the number of animal and plants species recorded so far is 90,000 and 45,000 respectively.
According to May’s global estimates, about 3,00,000 animal species and 1,00,000 plant species are yet to be discovered.
(A large number of species are facing the threat of extinction even before they are Discovered)

India’s world Ranking

Number of Species in India

Mammals                               8th                                                       350                                   Birds                                        8th                                                      1200                               Reptiles                                   5th                                                       453                                   Amphibia                               15th                                                      182                                 Angiosperms                       15th-20th                                               14,500

• It is estimated that 18% of Indian plants are endemic to the country and found nowhere else in the world.
• Among the plant species the flowering plants have a much higher degree of endemism, a third of these are not found elsewhere in the world.
• Among amphibians found in India, 62% are unique to this country.
• Among lizards, of the 153 species recorded, 50% are endemic.

High endemism has also been recorded for various groups of insects, marine worms, centipede

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Biodiversity and Conservation Notes P - 1 {NEET}

Biodiversity and Conservation

Definition

Biodiversity (Gk, bios-life; diversity-forms) or Biological diversity can be defined as the vast array of species of living organism present on  the earth.

The term, ‘Biodiversity, was coined by WG Rosen (1985), but later Popularised by EO Wilson.

Due to difference in habitat and environment the `biodiversity can studied at global as well as country level.

 In India `maximum species of Arthropods are found (approx  68389) among animals while among plants maximum species 'of angiosperms are found (17500).

Levels of Biodiversity

For the convenience of study, the biodiversity can be categorized in the following three levels of biological organisations

(i) Genetic Diversity (within species diversity)

The diversity in number and types of genes as well as chromosomes present in different species and the variation in the genes and their alleles in same species.

It is useful as it involves the adaptation to change in the environmental conditions and is also essential for healthy breeding.

 It also helps in speciation.

[ii] Species diversity (between species diversity)

It means the species richness in any habitat. Greater the species richness, greater  will be their diversity.

India is among the world’s 15 nation that are exceptionally rich in species diversity.

 Number of individuals of different species represents the species evenness and species equitability.

[iii] Community & Ecosystem Diversity (ecologicai diversity)

 It is the diversity at ecosystem or community level. An ecosystem is Referred to as natural when it is undisturbed by human activities.

Diversity at the  level of community or ecosystem has three

Perspective, i.e., α, β and ϒ (Whittaker1965).

BIOGEOGRAPHIC CLASSIFICATION OF INDIA

Our country can be conveniently divided into ten major regions, based on the geography, climate and pattern of vegetation seen and the communities of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibia, insects and other invertebrates that live in them.

Each of these regions contains a variety of ecosystems such as forests, grasslands, lakes, rivers, wetlands, mountains and hills, which have specific plant and animal species.

 India’s Biogeographic Zones

1. The cold mountainous snow covered Trans Himalayan region of Ladakh.
2. The Himalayan ranges and valleys of Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Assam and other North Eastern States.
3. The Terai, the lowland where the Himalayan rivers flow into the plain
4. The Gangetic and Bhramaputra plains.
5. The Thar Desert of Rajasthan.
6. The semi arid grassland region of the Deccan plateau Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
7. The Northeast States of India,
8. The Western Ghats in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala.
9. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
10. The long western and eastern coastal belt with sandy beaches, forests and mangroves

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Biodiversity & it's conservation Quiz 1

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Ecology Quiz 2

Ecology Quiz 2

Topic Contains NCERT based questions.
Ecosystem

1. The species that invade a bare area are called

Keystone
Extinct
Pioneer
Rare


2. PAR is

Photoperiod Active Radiation
Photoperiod Active Resources
Photosynthetically Active Radiation
Photosynthetically Active Resources


3. In Nature, the cleaners are

Decomposers
Carnivores
Consumers
Producers


4. Most Stable ecosystem is

Forest
Grassland
Ocean
Desert


5. Which is not a part of decomposition process

Humification
Fragmentation
Leaching
Leaf Fall


6. Who are the Pioneers in a xerach

Insects
Mosses
Lichens
All of these


7. What percentage of carbon dissolved in oceans.

81 %
71 %
79 %
68 %


8. Zooplanktonic forms are

Carnivores
Pri. Poducers
Pri. Consumers
Sec. Consumers


9. Which one has maximum biomass

Pond ecosystem
Lake ecosystem
Forest
Grassland


10. The limiting factor in soil nitrification is

soil PH
light
air
Temperature

Best Of Luck..

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Ecology Quiz 1

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Ecology McQ Questions

Ecology : Definition

is a branch of science which deals with the interactions among organism and their environment.
Some of the important ecological terms coined by Scientist:-

      Terms                        Scientist

     Ecology                       Ernst Haeckel
     Ecosystem                  Tansley
     Biodiversity               W.G. Rosen

Multiple Choice Questions

1. The ‘Red Data Book’ is the documention of rare and endangered species of :
    1. Animals
    2. Plants
    3. Fungi
[A]Only 1
[B]1 and 2
[C]2 and 3
[D]1, 2 and 3.                                         

2. The ‘thickness’ of Stratospheric Ozone layer is measured in/on:
[A]Sieverts
[B]Dobson units
[C]Melson units
[D]Beaufort Scale .                                    (B)

3. Littoral zone is located along the
[A]High mountains
[B]Sea
[C]Rivers
[D]Desert.                                                   (B)           

4. Niche is defined as the
[A]Position of species in a community in relation to other species
[B]Place where organism lives
[C]Place where organism lives and performs its duty
[D]Place where population perform their duties

5. The rate of formation of new organic matter by rabbit in a grassland, is called
[A]Net productivity
[B]Secondary productivity
[C]Net primary productivity
[D]Gross primary productivity .             (B)

6. In a lake, phytoplankton grow in abundance in
[A]Littoral zone
[B]Limnetic zone
[C]Profundal zone
[D]Benthic region .                                  (B)


7. Actively moving organism in aquatic ecosystem
[A]Benthos
[B]Phytoplankton
[C]Zoo plankton
[D]None.                                                     (D)

8. Which of the following is primary consumer?
[A]Produce
[B]Carnivore
[C]Top carnivore
[D]Herbivor .                                            (D)

9. Symbiosis is shown by
[A] E.coli
[B] Cuscuta
[C] Rafflesia
[D] Monotropa


10. When both partners are affected negatively the nature of interaction is
[A] commensalism
[B] competition
[C] predation
[D] amensalism

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