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Lec 5 Biodiversity PDF
Lec 5 Biodiversity PDF
Importance:
Biodiversity boosts ecosystem productivity where each species,
no matter how small, all have an important role to play.
Human Actions:
• If large areas are modified, entire species may be displaced
• Intentional hunting or harvesting
• Disruption or elimination of habitat
• Introduction of new parasites, predators, or competitors of
a species
• Pollution of the environment
• Humans have become a major force in the premature
extinction of species
The IUCN estimates that 75% of the extinction of birds and mammals
since 1600 were caused by human beings
Hunting caused 42% & 33% of the extinctions of birds and mammals
respectively
During this century human expansion may cause the premature
extinction of up to a quarter of the Earth’s current species
Species : Types
– mutualism
– commensalism
Symbiosis