VFSTR UNIT 2

Environmental Science -19HS204

Unit 2 – Ecosystem and Biodiversity
Dr. Chandrasekar Kuppan,
Assoc. Prof., S&H, VFSTR

Ecosystem

Introduction:
The term “Ecosystem” was first coined by A.G.Tansley, an English botanist, in 1935, where
eco refers the ‘environment’, and system implies an ‘interacting and interdependent
behavior’.

“An ecosystem is defined as a community of lifeforms in concurrence with non-living

components, interacting with each other.”

The ecosystem is the structural and functional unit of ecology where the living organisms
interact with each other and the surrounding environment. In other words, an ecosystem is
a chain of interaction between organisms and their environment.

For instance, tropical forests are ecosystems made up of living beings such as trees, plants,
animals, insects and micro-organisms that are in constant interaction between themselves
and that are affected by other physical (sun, temperature) or chemical (oxygen or nutrients)
components.

An ecosystem can also be defined as a self-sustained community of plants and animals

existing in its own environment. An ecosystem may be as small as a drop of pond water
(microecosystem) or as large as ocean. It can be of temporary nature, e.g., a fresh pool or a
field of cultivated crops, or permanent e.g., a forest or an ocean.

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Characteristics of Ecosystem: According to Smith (1966), the ecosystem has the following
general characteristics:

1. Its structure is related to its species diversity; the more complex the ecosystem is
the system has high species diversity and vice versa.
2. Its function is related to energy flow and material cycling through and within the
system.
3. The relative amount of energy needed to maintain an ecosystem depends on its
structure. The more complex the structure, the lesser the energy it needs to
maintain itself.
4. It matures by passing from fewer complexes to more complex states.
1. Early stages of each succession have an excess of potential energy and a
relatively high energy flow per unit biomass.
2. Later (mature) stages have less energy accumulation and its flow through
more diverse components.
5. Both the environment and the energy fixation in any given ecosystem are limited
and cannot exceed without causing serious undesirable effects to the system.
6. Alternations in the environment represent selective pressures upon the population
to which it must adjust. Organisms which are unable to adjust to the changed
environment must necessarily vanish.

Structure of the Ecosystem

The structure of an ecosystem is characterized by the organization of both biotic and abiotic
components. This includes the distribution of energy in our environment. It also includes the
climatic conditions prevailing in that particular environment. The structure of an ecosystem
can be split into two main components, namely:
• Biotic Components
• Abiotic Components
The biotic and abiotic components are interrelated in an ecosystem. It is an open system
where the energy and components can flow throughout the boundaries.

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Biotic Components
• Biotic components refer to all life in an ecosystem.
• Based on nutrition, biotic components can be categorized into
• Autotrophs-Producers
• Heterotrophs – Consumers
• Saprotrophs – Decomposers
Autotrophs: Producers include all autotrophs such as plants. They are called autotrophs as
they can produce food through the process of photosynthesis. Consequently, all other
organisms higher up on the food chain rely on producers for food.

Heterotrophs : Consumers or heterotrophs are organisms that depend on other organisms

for food.
Consumers are further classified into
• Primary consumers are always herbivores that they rely on producers for food.
• Secondary consumers depend on primary consumers for energy. They can
either be a carnivore or an omnivore.
• Tertiary consumers are organisms that depend on secondary consumers for
food. Tertiary consumers can also be an omnivore.
• Quaternary consumers are present in some food chains. These organisms prey
on tertiary consumers for energy. Furthermore, they are usually at the top of
a food chain as they have no natural predators.

Saprotrophs : Decomposers include saprophytes such as fungi and bacteria. They directly
thrive on the dead and decaying organic matter. Decomposers are essential for the
ecosystem as they help in recycling nutrients to be reused by plants.

Abiotic Components
• Abiotic components are the non-living component of an ecosystem.
• It includes air, water, soil, minerals, sunlight, temperature, nutrients, wind, altitude,
turbidity, etc.
• The abiotic factors vary from ecosystem to ecosystem.
• In an aquatic ecosystem, the abiotic factors may include water pH, sunlight,
turbidity, water depth, salinity, available nutrients and dissolved oxygen.
• The abiotic factors in terrestrial ecosystems includes soil, soil types,
temperature, rain, altitude, wind, nutrients, sunlight, etc.

Functions of Ecosystem
1. It regulates the essential ecological processes, supports life systems and renders
stability.
2. It is also responsible for the cycling of nutrients between biotic and abiotic
components.
3. It maintains a balance among the various trophic levels in the ecosystem.
4. It cycles the minerals through the biosphere.
5. The abiotic components help in the synthesis of organic components that involves the
exchange of energy.

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Ecosystem is broadly classified into Natural and Artificial (Man made) ecosystem.

1. Types of Natural Ecosystem

a. Terrestrial Ecosystem
b. Aquatic Ecosystem

a. Terrestrial Ecosystem: Terrestrial ecosystems are exclusively land-based ecosystems.

There are different types of terrestrial ecosystems distributed around various geological
zones. They are as follows:
• Forest Ecosystems
• Grassland Ecosystems
• Tundra Ecosystems
• Desert Ecosystem

Forest Ecosystem:
• A forest ecosystem consists of several plants, animals and microorganisms that
live in coordination with the abiotic factors of the environment.
• Forests help in maintaining the temperature of the earth and are the major carbon
sink.

Grassland Ecosystem
• In a grassland ecosystem, the vegetation is dominated by grasses and herbs.
• Temperate grasslands, savanna grasslands are some of the examples of grassland
ecosystems.

Tundra Ecosystem
• Tundra ecosystems are devoid of trees and are found in cold climates or where
rainfall is scarce.
• These are covered with snow for most of the year.
• The ecosystem in the Arctic or mountain tops is tundra type.

Desert Ecosystem
• Deserts are found throughout the world.
• These are regions with very little rainfall.
• The days are hot and the nights are cold.

b. Aquatic Ecosystem
Aquatic ecosystems are ecosystems present in water. These can be further divided into two
types, namely:
1. Freshwater Ecosystem
2. Marine Ecosystem

1. Freshwater Ecosystem
• The freshwater ecosystem is an aquatic ecosystem that includes lakes, ponds,
rivers, streams and wetlands.
• These have no salt content in contrast with the marine ecosystem.

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2. Marine Ecosystem
• The marine ecosystem includes seas and oceans.
• These have a more substantial salt content and greater biodiversity in comparison
to the freshwater ecosystem.
• E.g. Shorelines, barrier islands, coral reefs, open ocean

Artificial (Man - engineered) ecosystems: These are maintained artificially by man whereby
addition of energy and planned manipulation, natural balance is disturbed regularly, e.g.
cropland ecosystem. Similar to Natural ecosystem, artificial ecosystem is also classified into
Terrestrial and Aquatic ecosystem

Terrestrial artificial ecosystems:

1. Greenhouse: Also called as glasshouse is a structure with walls and roof made
mainly of transparent material in which plants requiring regulated climatic
conditions are grown.
2. Agriculture crop field
3. Garden
4. Parks
5. Zoos
6. Terrariums: Glass garden, enclosure with glass sides and sometimes a glass top,
arranged for keeping plants or terrestrial or semi terrestrial animals indoors.
7. Managed forestry: a sustainable forest is a forest that is carefully managed so that,
as trees are felled they are replaced with seedlings that eventually grow into
mature trees.

Aquatic artificial ecosystems:

1. Fish farms
2. Aquarium
3. Dams
4. Hydroponics: it is the method of growing plants without soil, using mineral
nutrient solutions. It links aquatic organisms, micro-organisms, and plants into
an artificial ecosystem.
5. Artificial pond in connection with waste treatment plant
6. Artificial wetlands or constructed wetland: treatment systems that use
rooted wetland plants and shallow flooded or saturated soil to provide
wastewater treatment. Constructed wetlands are designed to take advantage
of the chemical and biological processes of natural wetlands to remove
contaminants from the wastewater.

Energy Flow:
For an ecosystem to survive, the energy in a system must flow over the different
components of the system. In other way, cycling energy and nutrients maintains the
ecosystem.
The chemical energy of food is the main source of energy required by all living organisms.
This energy is transmitted to different trophic levels along the food chain. The energy
flow in the ecosystem is one of the major factors that support the survival of such a great
number of organisms.
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For almost all organisms on earth, the primary source of energy is solar energy. Only less
than 50% of suns effective radiation is utilized on earth, which is mostly used by plants for
photosynthesis. Called as Photosynthetically effective radiation.

The energy flow is based on two different

laws of thermodynamics:
1st law: energy can neither be created nor
destroyed, it can only change from one
form to another.
2nd law: as energy is transferred more and
more of it is wasted.
The change of energy from one form to
another takes place in such a way that a
part of energy assumes waste from.
In this way, after transformation the capacity of energy to perform work is decreased. Thus
energy flows from higher to lower level.
• When the light energy falls on the green surfaces of plants, a part of it is transformed into
chemical energy which is stored in various organic products in the plants.
• When the herbivores consume plants as food and convert chemical energy accumulated
in plant products into kinetic energy, degradation of energy will occur through its
conversion into heat.
• When herbivores are consumed by carnivores of the first order (secondary consumers)
further degradation will occur.
• Similarly, when primary carnivores are consumed by top carnivores, again energy will be
degraded.
• The energy flow in an ecosystem takes places via to process called food chain and food
web.

Food Chain: A food chain may be defined as the transfer of energy and nutrients through a
succession of organisms through repeated process of eating and being eaten.

In general food chain in any ecosystem

runs directly in which green plants are
eaten by herbivores, herbivores are
eaten by carnivores and carnivores are
eaten by top carnivores.

For example, marsh grass is consumed by

grasshopper, the grasshopper is
consumed by a bird and that bird is
consumed by hawk.

The set of organisms that pass energy

from one trophic level to the next is
described as the food chain.

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Food chains are of two basic types

A. Grazing food chain
B. Detritus food chain

Grazing food chain: It starts from a green plant base, goes to grazing herbivores and on to
carnivores.
It can be of two types:
(i) Predator food chain, where the sequence of organisms are generally from
small to big.
(ii) Parasitic food chain, where organisms tend to decrease in size as one goes
higher up the food chain.

Example of a predator food chain:

• Cladonia sp. is a plant species existing in artic
region and exists together with the grasses,
sedges and dwarf willows, which form the diet of
the caribou and of its ecological counterpart, the
reindeer.
• These animals, in turn, are preyed upon by the
wolves and humans.
• Further, the tundra plants are also eaten by
lemmings, ptarmigan (Lagopus lagopus) and
arctic grouse (Lagopus mutus).
• They, in turn, are preyed upon by the arctic white
fox snowy owl and other raptors.

Example of a parasite food chain:

• Roots of vegetable crops are parasitized by nematodes on which may be attached
bacteria or other smaller organism. i.e. Roots of vegetables nematodes → bacteria
• Mammals, birds are parasitized by fleas, which, in turn, have protozoan parasites of
the genus Leptomonas sp. i.e. Mammal, bird → fleas → Leptomonas sp.

Detritus food chain:

Detritus meaning: organic matter produced by the decomposition of organisms. It passes
from dead organic matter to microorganisms and then to detritus feeding organisms
(detritivores) and their predators.

Example of detritus food chain:

• Group of small animals (meiofauna) comprising of only a few species ingest large
quantities of the detritus along with the associated microorganisms and smaller
quantities of algae.
• The meiofauna in estuaries consists of small crabs, shrimps, nematodes, snails, small
bivalves etc.
• The particles ingested by these detritus consumers pass through the guts of many
individual organisms and species in succession (a process of coprophagy) resulting in

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the extraction and reabsorption of organic matter until the substrate has been
exhausted. Small fishes feed upon the detritus consumers and larger fishes, in turn,
upon the smaller ones.

Significance of food chain:

1. The studies of food chain help understand the feeding relationship and the interaction
between organisms in any ecosystem.
2. They also help us to appreciate the energy flow mechanism and matter circulation in
ecosystem and understand the movement of toxic substances in the ecosystem.
3. The study of food chain helps us to understand the problems of bio-magnifications.

Food web:
Many food chains exist in an ecosystem, but as a matter of fact these food chains are not
independent.
In ecosystem, one organism does not
depend wholly on another. The marsh
plants are eaten by variety of insects,
birds, mammals and fishes and some
of the animals are eaten by several
predators. Similarly, in the food chain
grass → mouse → snakes → owls,
sometimes mice are not eaten by
snakes but directly by owls.

In this way, food chains become

interlinked. A complex of interrelated
food chains makes up a food web.
Food web maintains the stability of the
ecosystem. The greater the number of
alternative pathways the more stable
is the community of living things.

Ecological Succession:
“Ecological succession is a series of changes that occur in an ecological community over
time.”
Ecological succession is the process of change in the species structure of an ecological
community over time. The time scale can be decades (for example, after a wildfire), or
even millions of years after a mass extinction. The community begins with relatively few
pioneering plants and animals and develops through increasing complexity until it
becomes stable or self-perpetuating as a climax community
It is a phenomenon or process by which an ecological community undergoes more or less
orderly and predictable changes following a disturbance or the initial colonization of a
new habitat. Ecological succession is the steady and gradual change in a species of a given
area with respect to the changing environment.

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Classification of Ecological Succession:

Two Types: Primary and Secondary succession
Succession that begins in new habitats, uninfluenced by pre-existing communities is called
primary succession, whereas succession that follows disruption of a pre-existing
community is called secondary succession.
If we consider an area where life starts from scratch by the process of succession, it is
known as primary succession. However, if life starts at a place after the area has lost all
the life forms existing there, the process is called secondary succession.
It is obvious that primary succession is a rather slow process as life has to start from
nothing whereas secondary succession is faster because it starts at a place which had
already supported life before.
An example of Secondary Succession by stages:

1. A stable deciduous forest

community
2. A disturbance, such as a wild fire,
destroys the forest.
3. The fire burns the forest to the
ground
4. The fire leaves behind empty, but not destroyed, soil
5. Grasses and other herbaceous plants grow back first
6. Small bushes and trees begin to colonize the area
7. Fast-growing evergreen trees develop to their fullest, while shade-tolerant trees
develop in the understory
8. The short-lived and shade-intolerant evergreen trees die as the larger deciduous trees
overtop them. The ecosystem is now back to a similar state to where it began.

In an area, the sequence of communities that undergo changes is called sere. Thus, each
community that changes is called a seral stage or seral community.

Seral Community:
• “A seral community is an intermediate stage of ecological succession advancing
towards the climax community.”
• A seral community is replaced by the subsequent community.
• It consists of simple food webs and food chains. It exhibits a very low degree of
diversity. The individuals are less in number and the nutrients are also less.

There are seven different types of seres:

Types of Seres Explanation

Hydrosere Succession in aquatic habitat.

Xerosere Succession in dry habitat.

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Lithosere Succession on a bare rock surface.

Psammosere Succession initiating on sandy areas.
Halosere Succession starting in saline soil or water.
Senile Succession of microorganism on dead matter.
Eosere Development of vegetation in an era.

Ecological Pyramid
An ecological pyramid is a graphical representation of the relationship between different
organisms in an ecosystem. It was given by G.Evylen Hutchinson and Raymond Lindeman.
Each of the bars that make up the pyramid represents a different trophic level, and their
order, which is based on who eats whom, represents the flow of energy.

Energy moves up the pyramid, starting

with the primary producers, or
autotrophs, such as plants and algae,
followed by the primary consumers,
which feed on these plants, then
secondary consumers, which feed on the
primary consumers, and so on. The
height of the bars should all be the same,
but the width of each bar is based on the
quantity of the aspect being measured.

Types of Ecological Pyramids:

Pyramid of numbers
This shows the number of organisms in each
trophic level without any consideration for
their size. It is the graphic representation of
number of individuals per unit area of various
trophic levels.
This type of pyramid can be convenient, as
counting is often a simple task and can be done
over the years to observe the changes in a
particular ecosystem.
The shape of the pyramid of numbers varies
from ecosystem to ecosystem.

Mostly the producers tend to take the large part of the pyramid being the base of
organisms to grow. Followed by decreasing number of consumers of different level with
increasing level.

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Upright Pyramid of Numbers

In upright pyramid of numbers, the number of
individuals decreases from the lower level to the
higher level. This type of pyramid is usually found
in the grassland ecosystem and the pond
ecosystem.

The grass in a grassland ecosystem occupies the

lowest trophic level because of its abundance.
Next comes the primary producers – the
herbivores (for example – grasshopper). The
number of grasshoppers is quite less than that of
grass.

Then, there are the primary carnivores, for

example, the rat whose number is far less than
the grasshoppers. The next trophic level is the
secondary consumers such as the snakes who
feed on the rats.

Then, there are the top carnivores such as the hawks who eat snakes and whose number
is less than the snakes.

Inverted Pyramid of Numbers

Here, the number of individuals increase

from the lower level to the higher trophic
level. For example, the tree ecosystem.

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Pyramid of biomass

As the name suggests, the Biomass

Pyramids show the amount of biomass
(living or organic matter present in an
organism) present per unit area at each
trophic level.
The biomass of one trophic level is
calculated by multiplying the number of
individuals in the trophic level by the
average mass of one individual in a
particular area.
This type of ecological pyramid solves
some problems of the pyramid of
numbers, as it shows a more accurate
representation of the amount of energy
contained in each trophic level, but it has
its own limitations.
Usually, this type of pyramid is largest at
the bottom and gets smaller going up,
but exceptions do exist.

Limitations:
• For example, the time of year when the data are gathered is very important, since
different species have different breeding seasons.
• Also, since it’s usually impossible to measure the mass of every single organism, only
a sample is taken, possibly leading to inaccuracies.

Upright Pyramid of Biomass

• Ecosystems found on land mostly have pyramids of biomass with large base of primary
producers with smaller trophic level perched on top, hence the upright pyramid of
biomass.
• The biomass of autotrophs or producers is at the maximum.
• The biomass of next trophic level, i.e. primary consumers is less than the producers.
• Similarly, the other consumers such as secondary and tertiary consumers are
comparatively less than its lower level respectively.
• The top of the pyramid has very less amount of biomass.

Inverted Pyramid of Biomass

• Inverted pyramidal structure is found mostly in aquatic ecosystems.
• In a water body, the producers are tiny phytoplankton which are mostly microscopic,
single-celled photosynthetic organisms that live suspended in water that grow and
reproduce rapidly.
• In this condition, the pyramid of biomass has a small base, with the producer biomass
at the base providing support to consumer biomass of large weight.
• Hence, it assumes an inverted shape.

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Pyramid of productivity or Energy:

The pyramid of productivity looks at the
total amount of energy present at each
trophic level, as well as the loss of
energy between trophic levels.
Pyramid of energy is more accurate
than the other two pyramids.
This idea is based on Lindeman’s Ten
Percent Law, which states that only
about 10% of the energy in a trophic
level will go towards creating biomass.
The rest is used in respiration, hunting,
and other activities, or is lost to the
surroundings as heat.

Energy decreases as one moves through the trophic levels from the bottom to the top of the
pyramid.
What’s interesting, however, is that toxins are passed up the pyramid very efficiently, which
means that as we go up the ecological pyramid, the amount of harmful chemicals is more and
more concentrated in the organisms’ bodies. This is called as biomagnification.

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Aquatic Ecosystem:
Aquatic ecosystem is a water based
environment wherein living organisms
interact with both physical and
chemical features of the environment.
The organism's requirements like food,
shelter, reproduction and other
activities totally depend on the water
based environment. Some of the active
aquatic ecosystems are lake, oceans,
ponds rivers, swamps, coral reefs,
wetlands etc.

Types of aquatic ecosystem: Two types marine and freshwater ecosystems, which are further
divided under different aquatic ecosystems.
Marine water ecosystem: 70% of the earths total surface with more concentrated in
terms of salinity. The organisms adapted to saline conditions find it challenging to adapt
in fresh water. The following are the different categories in marine ecosystem.
Ocean Ecosystem: The oceans serve as home to aquatic organisms like turtles,
crustaceans, plankton, corals, shellfish, blue whale, shark, tube worms, reptiles,
etc..
Estuaries: they are meeting point of a sea and rivers, which makes the water
slightly more saline when compared to freshwater and more diluted when
compared to the marine ecosystems. Estuaries are considered to be productive as
it stimulate primary production and trap plant nutrients. Some examples include
tidal marshes, river-mouth and coastal bay.
Coral reefs: They are referred as the rain forest of oceans as they harbour a wide
diversity of aquatic flora and fauna.
Coastal Ecosystem: it is the major aquatic ecosystem and is quite distinct in terms
of structure and diversity. It is formed by the union of land and water. This serves
has home to snails, shrimps, crabs, lobsters and fishes.
Fresh water ecosystem: This is less than 1% on earth’s surface and is broadly divided into
wetlands, lentic and lotic ecosystems. Swamps and wetlands are marshy areas often
covered in water and harbor a variety of flora and fauna. Wetlands are known to be a
home of water lilies, marshes, swamps, northern pikes, dragonflies, green heron, etc.
Lotic ecosystems: These are characterized by rapid flowing water moving in one
direction. They are a hub of a wide variety of insects like beetles, mayflies and
stoneflies among others. Also it harbors species like river dolphins, beavers, otters
eel, minnow and trout.
Lentic Ecosystems: They include all standing water habitats. Moreover, lakes and
ponds are the primary examples of the Lentic Ecosystem. Also, these ecosystems
contain algae, crabs, shrimps, and amphibians such as frogs and salamanders.

Functions of aquatic ecosystem:

• Facilitates recycling of nutrients,
• Helps to purify water
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• recharges groundwater
• Is a habitat for aquatic flora and fauna
• Mitigates food.

Desert Ecosystem:
Desert is any large which is extremely dry with sparse vegetation. According to some
definitions, any environment that is almost completely free of plants is considered desert,
including regions too cold to support vegetation.
It is one of Earth’s major types of ecosystems, supporting a community of distinctive plants
and animals specially adapted to the harsh environment. Deserts occupy one-fifth of the
Earth's land surface and occur in two belts: between 15° and 35° latitude in both the southern
and northern hemispheres.
Extreme aridity renders some deserts virtually devoid of plants. However, this barrenness is
believed to be due in part to the effects of human disturbance, such as heavy grazing of cattle,
on an already stressed environment.

Many desert ecosystems are limited by available water levels, rather than rates of radiation
or temperature. Deserts support diverse communities of plant and animals that have evolved
resistance, and circumventing methods of extreme temperatures and arid conditions. For
example, desert grasslands are more humid and slightly cooler than its surrounding
ecosystems.
Many animals obtain energy by eating the surrounding vegetation, however, desert plants
are much more difficult for organisms to consume. To avoid intense temperatures, the
majority of small desert mammals are nocturnal, living in burrows to avoid the intense desert
sun during the daytime. These burrows prevent overheating and dehydration as they
maintain an optimal temperature for the mammal. Desert ecology is characterized by dry,
alkaline soils, low net production and opportunistic feeding patterns by herbivores and
carnivores.
Although deserts have severe climates, some plants still manage to grow. Plants that can
survive in arid deserts are called xerophytes, meaning they are able to survive long dry
periods.

Deserts experience a wide range of temperatures and weather conditions, and can be
classified into four types: hot, semiarid, coastal, and cold.
Hot deserts experience warm temperatures year around, and low annual precipitation.
Low levels of humidity in hot deserts contribute to high daytime temperatures, and
extensive nighttime heat loss. The average annual temperature in hot deserts is
approximately 20 to 25 °C, however, extreme weather conditions can lead to
temperatures ranging from -18 to 49 °C.

Semiarid deserts experience similar conditions to hot deserts, however, the maximum
and minimum temperatures tend to be less extreme, and generally range from 10 to
38 °C.

Coastal deserts are cooler than hot and semiarid deserts, with average summer
temperatures ranging between 13 and 24 °C. They also feature higher total rainfall
values.
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Cold deserts are similar in temperature to coastal deserts, however, they receive more
annual precipitation in the form of snowfall.

Grassland Ecosystem
Grasslands are grassy windy partly dry biome. The principal grasslands include the prairies of
Canada and the USA, the pampas of South America, the steppes of Europe and the veldts of
Africa. Following are the characteristic features of the grass land.
1. Rain fall: It receive 500-900mm per year.
2. Grasses are dominant form of plant life in the ecosystem with varying size from 2.1m
tall with roots extending down into the soil 1.8m, to the short grasses growing to the
height of only 0.20-0.25m tall. These short grasses can have roots that extend up to
1m deep.
3. Temperature is often extreme.

Types of Grass lands

Tropical grass lands: These are called as Savannahs. These are grassy windy semidry
biome. Climate never gets very warm and most of the time is doesn’t change below
freezing
Temperate grass lands: Temperate grass lands have cold winters with hot and dry
summers. These are located in north of the tropical cancer and south of the tropic of the
Capricorn.
Polar grasslands: These are also called Tundra. Tundra means barren or treeless land. It
is the coldest and driest of all the biomes

Biodiversity:
Biodiversity is defined 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 of
ecosystems.”
• Biodiversity is a term used to describe the enormous variety of life on Earth.
• It can be used more specifically to refer to all the species in one region or ecosystem.
• Biodiversity refers to every living thing, including plants, bacteria, animals, and
humans.
The term “Biodiversity” refers to the heterogeneity present in the world, ranging from
macromolecules within the cells to biome.
Biodiversity comprises:
• Species diversity: Variety of species and abundance of species
• Genetic diversity: Genetic variability present within the species
• Ecological diversity: Ecosystem variety present within a geographical area

Species Diversity: Species diversity is defined as the number of different species present in
an ecosystem and relative abundance of each of those species.
There are two constituents of species diversity:
• Species richness: Number of different species present in an ecosystem.
• Species evenness: Relative abundance of individuals of each of those species.

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If the number of individuals within a species is fairly constant across communities, it is said to
have a high evenness. If the number of individuals varies from species to species, it is said to
have low evenness. High evenness leads to greater specific diversity

For example:
• In a forest, there may have a large number of different species (high species richness) but
have only a few members of each species (low species evenness)
• In a forest, there may be only a few plant species (low species richness) but a large number
of each species (high species evenness)

Importance of Species Diversity:

In order to make a more efficient, productive and sustainable ecosystem, it is important to
maintain high species diversity.
• More diverse ecosystem tend to be more productive. E.g. the ecosystem with a great
variety of producer species will produce large biomass to support a greater variety of
consumer species.
• Greater species richness and productivity makes an ecosystem more sustainable and
stable
• More diverse the ecosystem, greater is the ability to withstand environmental stresses
like drought or invasive infestations
• Species richness makes an ecosystem able to respond to any catastrophe

Species can be broadly divided into generalist and specialist species.

Generalist species: They have broad functions. These can live in many places and can eat a
variety of foods. They can thrive in rapidly changing environmental conditions. E.g.
cockroaches, rats, mice, flies, white-tailed deer, raccoons, humans, etc.

Specialist species: They have a narrow niche. They are found in only one type of habitat and
feed on a few types of food. They are more prone to disturbances in the environmental
condition and cannot tolerate the change and environmental stress. E.g. Tiger salamanders
breed in fishless ponds, shorebirds that feed on crustaceans tend to live on sandy beaches
and adjoining coastal wetlands.

Examples of the ecosystem with high Species Diversity

Tropical Rainforests:
• They contain half of the world’s species.
• There are about 5-10 million insect species present.
• 40% of the world’s 2,75,000 species of flowering plants are present in the tropical
regions.
• 30% of total bird species are present in tropical forests.
• The species richness of tropical forests is mostly due to relatively constant
environmental conditions.
Examples of the ecosystem with high Species Diversity
Coral Reefs:
• Colonies of tiny coral animals build the large coral reefs ecosystem.
• The clarity of the water in the coral reef systems allow the sunlight to penetrate deep,
resulting in the high level of photosynthesis in the algae present inside the coral.
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• Adaptation to various disturbances and niche specialization gives rise to species

richness.

Genetic Diversity:
Each individual has a unique genetic architecture, which is determined by the hereditary
material- DNA. Genetic diversity is one of the driving forces of evolution and the main
criteria for natural selection which leads to survival of the fittest. Genetic diversity is defined
as genetic variability present within species.
Genetic diversity is the product of recombination of genetic material in the process of
inheritance. It changes with time and space. Reproduction is important in maintaining
genetic diversity as it gives unique offspring by combining genes of parents. Mutation of
genes, genetic drift and gene flow are also responsible for genetic diversity.

Importance of Genetic Diversity

• Genetic diversity gives rise to different physical attributes to the individual and
capacity to adapt to stress, diseases and unfavorable environmental conditions.
• Genetic diversity is important for a healthy population by maintaining different
varieties of genes that might be resistant to pests, diseases or other conditions.
• New varieties of plants can be grown by cross-breeding different genetic variants and
produce plants with desirable traits like disease resistance, increased tolerance to
stress.
• Genetic diversity reduces the recurrence of undesirable inherited traits.

Genetic Diversity Examples

• Different breeds of dogs. Dogs are selectively bred to get the desired traits.
• Different varieties of rose flower, wheat, etc.
• There are more than 50,000 varieties of rice and more than a thousand varieties of
mangoes found in India.
• Different varieties of medicinal plant Rauvolfia vomitoria present in different
Himalayan ranges differ in the amount of chemical reserpine produced by them.

Ecosystem Diversity
Ecosystem diversity deals with the variations in ecosystems within a geographical location.
Ecosystem biodiversity refers to the number of ecosystems in a certain area.
Ecosystem diversity addresses the combined characteristics of biotic properties
(biodiversity) and abiotic properties (geodiversity). It is the variation in the ecosystems
found in a region or the variation in ecosystems over the whole planet.
An example of ecological diversity on a global scale would be the variation in ecosystems,
such as deserts, forests, grasslands, wetlands and oceans. The variations in biological
communities in which species live are called community diversity.

Biogeographical regions of India:

Biogeographic classification of India is the division of India according to biogeographic
characteristics. Biogeography is the study of the distribution of species (biology),
organisms, and ecosystems in geographic space and through geological time.

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India is a megadiverse country, with only 2.4 per cent of the total land area of the world,
the known biological diversity of India contributes 8 per cent to the known global
biological diversity.

10 biogeographic Regions in India

Trans Himalayan Region:

• It constitutes 5.6 per cent of the total geographical area, includes the high altitude,
cold and arid mountain areas of Ladakh, Jammu & Kashmir, North Sikkim, Lahaul
and Spiti areas of Himachal Pradesh.
• The cold dry desert of this zone represents an extremely fragile ecosystem.
• This zone is estimated to be around 1,86,200 km2.
• The mountains of this region have the richest wild sheep and goat community in
the worlds with eight distinct species and subspecies.

Himalayan Zone
• It constitutes 6.4 per cent of the total geographical area includes some of the
highest peaks in the world.
• The Himalayan zone makes India one of the richest areas in terms of habitats and
species.
• The Himalayas consist of the youngest mountain chains in the world.
• The forests are very dense with extensive growth of grass and evergreen tall trees.

Indian Desert Zone

• Indian Desert Zone, constituting 6.6 per cent of the total geographical area,
includes the Thar and the Kutch deserts and has large expanses of grassland that
supports several endangered species of mammals.
• The climate is characterized by very hot, dry summer and cold winter.
• Rainfall is less than 70 cm.
• The plants are mostly xerophytic.

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• Indian Bustard, a highly endangered bird is found here. Camels, wild asses, foxes,
and snakes are found in hot and arid deserts.

Semi Arid Region

• Semi-Arid Region, constituting 16.6 per cent of the total geographical area, is a
transition zone between the desert and the dense forests of Western Ghats.
• This semi-arid region also has several artificial and natural lakes and marshy lands.
• The dominant grass and palatable shrub layer in this zone supports the highest
wildlife biomass.
• The natural vegetation is thorn forest. Thorny shrubs, grasses and some bamboos
are present in some regions.

Western Ghats
• Constitutes 4.0 per cent of the total geographical area.
• It is one of the major tropical evergreen forest regions in India and represents one
of the two biodiversity ‘hot spots’.
• This zone extends from Kanyakumari in south to Tapti river in north. The ghat is
situated on 2700 m elevation from sea level.
• The zone is rich in evergreen forest. It has 4000 species of higher plants, which
account of 27% of India’s 15000 species. There are 1800 endemic species in the
region.
• The rainfall is heavy about 2000 mm.

Deccan Plateau
• Deccan Plateau is India’s largest biogeographic region making 42 per cent of the
total geographical area.
• It’s a semi-arid region that falls in the rain shadow area of the Western Ghats.
• This bio-geographic zone of peninsular India is by far the most extensive zone,
covering India’s finest forests, particularly in the States of Madhya Pradesh,
Maharashtra and Odisha.
• Majority of the forests are deciduous in nature but there are regions of greater
biological diversity in the hill ranges. The zone comprising of deciduous forests,
thorn forests and degraded scrubland support diverse wildlife species.
• Most wild life species are widespread throughout the zone, e.g. Chital ,sambhar,
Nilgai, Chowsingha, Elephant.
•
Gangetic Plain
• Gangetic plain constitutes around 10.8 per cent of the total geographical area.
• The characteristic fauna of this region includes Rhino (Rhinoceros unicornis),
Elephant (Elephas maximus), Buffalo (Bubalus bubalis), Swamp Deer (Cervus
duvauceli), Hog-Deer (Axis porcinus) and Hispid Hare (Carprolagus bispidus).
• Ganga is the main river after which this plain is named.
• This is divided in to Three zone-
▪ Upper plain of Ganga (from Delhi to Allahabad)
▪ Middle plain of Ganga (from Allahabad to Bihar)
▪ Lower plain of Ganga ( in West Bengal)

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• This is one of the most fertile area, with an length of 2400km and 240-32 km in
width. The trees belonging to these forests are Teak, Sal, Shisham, Mahua, Khair
etc.

Coastal Region
• Coastal region constitutes 2.5 per cent of the total geographical area with sandy
beaches, mangroves, mud flats, coral reefs and marine angiosperm pastures make
them the wealth and health zones of India.
• A total of 25 islets constitute the Lakshadweep, which are of coral origin, and have
a typical reef lagoon system, rich in biodiversity.
• The West coast is narrow and extending from Gulf of Cambay to South. The West
coast is 50-65 km. wide.
• The Eastern coast is extending from Bay of Bengal to South with Eastern ghat. The
east coast is 450-750 km. wide.

Andaman and Nicobar Islands

• This constitutes 0.3 per cent of the total geographical area are one of the three
tropical moist evergreen forests zones in India.
• The islands house an array of flora and fauna not found elsewhere.
• These islands are centers of high endemism and contain some of India’s finest
evergreen forests and support a wide diversity of corals.
• Andaman and Nicobar island consist 348 islands, stretching about 590 km.
• In this zone tropical rain-forest is high. Here 86% area is legally under forest.
• It is recently declared as a hot- spot because of the richness of endemic species.

Biodiversity Patterns:
Earth, our own planet is home of rich diversity and more and more species are identified
everyday, which makes challenging in estimating the number of species. As of now it is
estimated to be in the range of 10million to over trillion. For e.g. the highest biodiversity of
Earth’s vascular plants lies in the tropics and the lowest is in the higher latitudes.
Each species are habitat to a particular region and their presence is neither not felt in other
parts or in lesser percentage. This type of uneven distribution of a particular species, brings
in a pattern of distribution. Some of the pattern might be natural, but most of the time the
distribution is not natural. Some of the factors affecting the patterns of distribution are as
follows:
1. Geological History: The geographical environment makes certain species to survive as
major events in Earth's past and present is keep changing with time.
2. Availability of Food: Migratory evolution of certain species from one place to another
in search of Food creates a diversity pattern.
3. Climate: Changing environmental temperature forces some of the species to extinct
and change their habitat
4. Chemistry of Environment: The basic needs for a species to survive. If the needs are
not fulfilled, there is a great chance of the species to move and form a pattern of
distribution.
5. Competition: This is survival of the fittest.

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Ecologists discovered two broad kinds of diversity patterns, namely:

Latitudinal gradient
According to this pattern, the species
diversity follows a regular pattern as we
move from the equator to the polar regions.
The plant and animal diversity are observed
to be maximum at the equator and it
decreases as we move towards the poles.
India, located in the tropical regions, shows
high species richness. However, the great
Amazon rainforests show maximum
biological diversity in terms of the number
of species residing in that region.

Species-Area relationships
The great German geographer and naturalist, Alexander von Humboldt observed the relation
between an area and the species richness found in it. He found that as he increased the area
of observation, the plant and animal diversity increased but up to a certain level.
Mathematically, it can be explained by the equation
log S = log C + Z log A
where, S = richness of species, C = Y-intercept, Z = regression coefficient, A = Area.
From this equation, it is predicted that with increasing area, the species diversity increases
and their patterns.

Hot spots of Biodiversity:

Biodiversity Hotspot is a geographical region which is house of rich biodiversity and faces a
threat to the existing diversity. It is a place which needs our immediate and constant attention
to make the place adaptable for several species to survive and thrive in the future. The idea
of identifying hotspots was first initiated by Norman Myers in 1988.
There are around 36 biodiversity hotspots identified all over the world among which most of
them lie in the tropical forests. Almost 2.3% of the land surface of Earth is represented by
these hotspots. And surprisingly, these biodiversity hotspots have been losing 86% of their
habitats some of which are still on the verge of extinction due to serious threats posed by
climate change and human intervention.

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To qualify as a biodiversity hotspot, a region must meet two strict criteria:

• It must have at least 1,500 vascular plants as endemics — which is to say, it must have
a high percentage of plant life found nowhere else on the planet. A hotspot, in other
words, is irreplaceable.
• It must have 30% or less of its original natural vegetation. In other words, it must be
threatened.

Biodiversity (Mega biodiversity) of India

India is a country rich in biological diversity. It is situated in the Indomalaya ecozone. Some
of the diverse habitat is given below with their % with respect to world.
In India, there are approximately
-350 mammals which make up 7.6% of world species
-1224 birds which make up 2.6% of the world species
-197 amphibians which make up 4.4% of the world species
-408 reptiles which make up 6.2% of the world species
-2546 fishes which make up 11.7% of the world species
-15000 flowering plants which make up 6% of the world species

Among the 36 identified hotspots, Four Biodiversity Hotspots are available in India. They are
1. The Western Ghats
2. The Himalayas
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3. Indo-Burma Region
4. Sundaland

The Western Ghats:

These are hills present along the western edge of
peninsular India. Since they are situated near the
ocean, they are likely to receive a good amount of
rainfall making the environment suitable for
deciduous and rainforest.
Around 77% of the amphibians and 62% of the
reptiles are endemic. There are more than 6000
vascular plants here which belong to more than
2500 genus. 3000 plants out of these are endemic.
The region is also home to around 450 species of
birds, 140 mammals, 260 reptiles and 175
amphibians.
The vegetation in this region was originally spread
over 190,000 square Km but has reduced to 43,000
square Km.

The Himalayas:
• This region comprises of Bhutan, Northeast India, and Southern, Central and Eastern
Nepal. The Himalayas comprise of more than 100 mountains.
• There are almost 163 endangered species in this region including one-horned
rhinoceros, wild Asian water buffalo and as many as 45 mammals, 50 birds, 12
amphibians, 17 reptiles, 3 invertebrate and 36 plant species.

Indo-Burma Region
• This region consists of numerous countries including North-Eastern India (to the south
of the Brahmaputra River), Myanmar, and China's Yunnan provinces southern part,
Lao People's Democratic Republic, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand. It is spread over
a distance of 2 million square kilometers.
• Although this region is quite rich in its biodiversity, it has been worsening over the
past few decades.
• 1300 species of birds are spotted which includes the white-eared night-heron, Gray-
crowned crocias, and orange necked Patridge which are endangered. Almost 13,500
plant species can be spotted in the region half of which are endemic and cannot be
found in any other place in the world.

Sundaland
• This region lies in South-East Asia and includes Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei,
and Malaysia. In this sundaland, the Nicobar Islands represent India.

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• These islands have a rich terrestrial as well as marine ecosystem including mangroves,
seagrass beds, and coral reefs.
• Species such as dolphins, whales, turtles, crocodiles, fishes, prawns, lobsters and
seashells comprise the marine biodiversity.
• In case the marine resources are over-used, it can pose a serious threat to biodiversity.

Endangered and Endemic species of India

• Endangered species are animals or plants which exist in very less number and if not
conserved properly, will extinct. A plant, animal or microorganisms which are at
immediate risk of biological extinction are called as Endangered species.
• Endemic species are plants or animals exist in some particular regions and nowhere
in the world. For example, kangaroos are originally endemic to Australia and are found
nowhere else in the world. The Tasmanian Tiger is one such animal that was endemic
to Australia, Tasmania and New Guinea.

Endemic Species of India: A list of the endemic species of India is mentioned below:
Asiatic Lion, Gir Forest: Asiatic Lion is also known as the Indian Lion and can be only found
in and around Gir Forest National Park of Gujarat. These are listed as endangered species.
These are one of the five big cats found in India, the others being Indian Leopards and
Bengal Tigers.

Kashmir Stag, Kashmir Valley: Also known as Hangul, Kashmir Stag is found in the dense
forests of Dachigum National Park, Kasmir Valley and Chamba district, Himachal Pradesh.

Lion-Tailed Macaque, Western Ghats: It is the rarest and the most threatened and
endangered primate species found only in the Western Ghats of Southern India.

Purple Frog, Western Ghats: The purple frog, also known as Pignose frog is only found in
the rainforests of western ghats in India. It spends most of its life underground.

Sangai Deer, Loktak Lake: It is also known as Brow Antlered Deer exclusively found in
Keibul Lamjao National Park of Manipur. This park is a marshy wetland located in the
southern parts of Loktak lake.

Nilgiri Tahr, Nilgiri Hills: It is a wild sheep species, endangered and endemic to the Nilgiri
Hills of Western Gats.

Some of the major Indian species which are endangered are as follows.

Bengal Tiger: Bengal Tiger is national animal of two country i.e. India and Bangladesh. The
estimated population figures of Bengal Tigers are 1706. They are vanishing fast due to human
interference and poaching.
Snow Leopard: The snow leopard is the large cat native found in a mountain range in central
and South Asia. There is only 4000 individual left of this beautiful species, that’s why
conservation is necessary.

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Ganges Dolphin: The population of Ganges Dolphin is in between 2500 and 3000. The reason
they are in the list of endangered species is accidental killing, entanglement in fishing gear,
poaching for it soil a meat and river pollution.
Asiatic Lion/ Indian Lion: The Current Population of Asiatic Lion is around 350. These lions
differ from the African Lion by less inflated auditory bullae, a larger tail tuft and a less
developed mane.
Lion Tail Macaque:The population of macaque is around 4000. Also, due to large Inter Birth
Periods and seasonal resources availability, combined make it an endangered species.
Kashmiri Red Stag (Hangul)
The Kashmiri Red Stag, also known as Hangul, is a critically endangered species. According to
a survey of 2011, there is only 218 individual left.
Endangered Plant Species in India
There are more 15,000 plant species found in India, which accounts for 6% of all plant species
in the world.

Some of the most endangered plant species are listed below

• The Indian Mellow :- Botanical name – Abutilon indicum Found in – Tamil Nadu
• Umbrella Tree:- Botanical name – Acacla Planifrons Found in – Tamil Nadu
• Assam Catkin Yew:- Botanical name – Amentotaxus Assmica Found in – Arunanchal
Pradesh
• Spider Wort:-Botanical name – Belosynapsis vivipara Found in – Madhya Pradesh
• Jeemikanda:- Botanical Name – Ceropegia odorata Found in – Gujarat

Threats to Biodiversity:
Climate change
Changes in climate throughout our planet's history is
continuous and keeps changing with more and more
human intervention with the nature. This change
leaves permanent impact over the ecosystem, which
may lead to extinction of species.
Because of increasing anthropogenic activity, the rate
of climate change increases very fast without
affording ecosystems and species the time to adapt.
For example, rising ocean temperatures and
diminishing Arctic sea ice affects marine biodiversity
and can shift vegetation zones, having global
implications.
With the increase in temperature expected from
increasing greenhouse gases, there will be higher
levels of air pollution, greater variability in weather
patterns, and changes in the distribution of
vegetation in the landscape. Some species will not be
able to adapt to these changes in the environment
and will become extinct.

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Habitat loss and Degradation

Habitat loss refers to changes in the environment that result to the rendering of a specific
habitat to be functionally valuable. The habitat can no longer accommodate and support the
life of the organisms present, thereby declining their population. Habitat loss may either be
caused by natural events like natural calamities and geological events or anthropogenic
activities like deforestation and man-induced climate change.
In the process of habitat degradation, the organisms that were once living in a particular area
or region are displaced and are forced to relocate, thus resulting in biodiversity reduction.

Pollution
Be it water, air, or land pollution, all forms of pollution appear to be a threat to all life forms
on Earth. However, it plays a major threat to biodiversity when it comes to the nutrient
loading of the elements nitrogen and phosphorus. For e.g. the presence and accumulation of
phosphorus in water systems can alter the way food webs function. Excessive phosphorus,
like nitrogen can result to the uncontrolled growth of planktonic algae, thus increasing organic
matter deposition in the seabed.
Another form of pollution that can damage and kill living organisms is acid rain. Acid rain, as
its name suggests, is rain that is composed of harmful acids (i.e., nitric and sulfuric acid). This
rain is usually a result of pollution coming from the excessive burning of fossil fuels.

Invasive Species
An exotic or unnatural species can be any kind of organism that has been introduced to a
foreign habitat. This introduction can cause major threats to the native species as they often
become subjected to great competition for resources, disease, and predation. When these
species have successfully colonized the area, they are called “invasive”.

Overexploitation
Overexploitation refers to the act of overharvesting species and natural resources at rates
faster than they can actually sustain themselves in the wild. Because of this, species
population is put into great risk of reduction. Overharvesting, overfishing, and overhunting
are some examples of overexploitation. Additionally, some species of living organisms find it
hard to reproduce when their number is too small. If the act of overexploitation continues, it
can ultimately bring extinction to many species, even if they still exist in the wild.

Conservation of Biodiversity:
“Biodiversity conservation refers to the protection, upliftment, and management of
biodiversity in order to derive sustainable benefits for present and future generations.”
Biodiversity conservation has three main objectives:
• To preserve the diversity of species.
• Sustainable utilization of species and ecosystem.

Biodiversity refers to the variability of life on earth, it can be conserved in the following ways:
1. In-situ Conservation
2. Ex-situ Conservation

In-situ Conservation

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In-situ conservation of biodiversity is the conservation of species within their natural habitat.
In this method, the natural ecosystem is maintained and protected. The in-situ conservation
has several advantages. Following are the important advantages of in-situ conservation:

• It is a cost-effective and a convenient method of conserving biodiversity.

• A large number of living organisms can be conserved simultaneously.
• Since the organisms are in a natural ecosystem, they can evolve better and can easily
adjust to different environmental conditions.

Some of the protected areas where in-situ conservation takes place are national parks,
wildlife sanctuaries and biosphere reserves.

National Parks

These are small reserves maintained by the government. Its boundaries are well demarcated
and human activities such as grazing, forestry, habitat and cultivation are prohibited. There are
around 103 national parks in India covering an area of 40,501.13 km2 (15,637.57 sq mi), under
protected areas of India comprising 1.23% of India's total surface area. Madhya Pradesh and
Andaman & Nicobar Islands have the maximum number of National Parks (9 each).To name
few: For e.g. Kaziranga national park, Assam, Bannerghatta National park, Bangalore, Kanha
National Park, Bandipur National Park. Largest National Park: Hemis National Park, Jammu
& Kashmir. Smallest National Park: South Button Island National Park, Andaman and Nicobar
Islands

National Parks in India Wildlife Sanctuaries in India

Wildlife Sanctuaries
These are the regions where only wild animals are found. Human activities such as timber
harvesting, cultivation, collection of woods and other forest products are allowed here as long
as they do not interfere with the conservation project. There are 543 wildlife sanctuaries in
India and it covers 3.62 percent of total India’s surface area with an area that cover 118,918 km2
(45,914 sq mi). Also, tourists visit these places for recreation.

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Biosphere Reserves
Biosphere reserves are multi-purpose protected areas where the wildlife, traditional lifestyle
of the inhabitants and domesticated plants and animals are protected. There ae 18 biosphere
reserves in India. Some of the reserves are, Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve covering TN, Kerala and
Karnataka, Sundarbans Biosphere reserve in West Bengal, Khangchendzonga National Park in
Sikkim, recently added to biosphere reserve, etc. Tourist and research activities are permitted
here.

Ex-situ Conservation
Ex-situ conservation of biodiversity involves the breeding and maintenance of endangered
species in artificial ecosystems such as zoos, nurseries, botanical gardens, gene banks, etc.
There is less competition for food, water and space among the organisms.
Ex-situ conservation has the following advantages:
1. The animals are provided with a longer time and breeding activity.
2. The species bred in captivity can be reintroduced in the wild.
3. Genetic techniques can be used for the preservation of endangered species.

Biodiversity Conservation Strategies:

• Conservation of Ecosystems
• Reverse the decline of species
• Conservation of all biological aspects
• Efficient utilization of natural resources
• Strict laws on deforestation and preventions of deforestations by every means
• Poaching and killing animals in the wild should be prevented
• Creating public awareness about conservation of biodiversity and its importance,

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