Reviewer: Environmental Science Midterm
Coverage
Components of an Ecosystem
Palawan as the country’s last frontier.
It is known as the last frontier as it still retains more
than 50% of its original forests and harbours
IMPORTANT CONCEPT OF ECOSYSTEM
*Food Chain
*Ecological Pyramids
*Food Web
ECOLOGICAL PYRAMID
- Ecological pyramids show the relative
amounts of various parameters (such as
number if organisms, energy, biomass)
across trophic levels. Ecological pyramids
can also be called trophic pyramids or
energy pyramids
TROPIC LEVELS
Fourth (tertiary consumers)- Second Carnivores
Third (second consumers)- Primary Carnivores
Second (primary consumers)- Herbivores
First (primary producers)- Autotrops
ECOSYSTEM
- Consists of a community of organisms living
together and interacting with the non-living
components
Ecology
- Is the branch of biology that deals with the
study of the ecosystem
Ecology primarily seeks
Distribution and abundance of organism in their
physical environment
Interrelationship between organism in
populations and communities
Components of an Ecosystem
Consist of two main components:
Biotic components is the living component of na
ecosystem
Abiotic Component is the non-living component of
an ecosystem
Biotic Component
Refers to all living organisms in a habitat and
consists if :
Producers or autotrophs are organisms capable
of producing their own food
Consumers or heterotrophs are organisms that
depend on producers or other consumers
Decomposers are organisms that decompose
dead part of living organisms
Detritivores are groups that are responsible for the
decaying matter and release of gases into the
atmosphere
Abiotic Components
Refers to its non-living or physical environment
Air- mixture of different gases that is needed in
photosynthesis and respiration
Light-needed in photosynthesis of the producers
Mineral salts and salinity-essentials substances
that make up proteins and vitamins
pH(potential of hydrogen)-refers to acidity and
alkalinity of the surrounding environment
Temperature-refers to the degree of hotness or
coldness that affects metabolic activities
Water-vital for the survival of all organisms
- Humidity is the amount of water vapour
present in the air
- Precipitation is any forms of water that
forms in the atmosphere and falls back to
earth in the form of rain, sleet or snow
Interactions between biotic and abiotic
components
● Food in the form of sugar will be produced.
● This will be used by herbivores and
carnivores for consumption and energy
source.
● Plants also rely on humidity to adjust their
stomata.
● Plants need to close their stomata in an
environment with low humidity for it not to
lose water.
● Wild plants and animals rely on rain water
as nourishment.
● Precipitation influences the habitat of
organisms such as rain water filling lakes
and rivers.
Biodiversity
Biodiversity is all the different kinds of life you’ll
find in one area—the variety of animals, plants,
fungi, and even microorganisms like bacteria that
make up our natural world.
Each of these species and organisms work
together in ecosystems, like an intricate web, to
maintain balance and support life
Biodiversity is a term used to describe the
enormous variety of life on Earth. It can be used
more specifically to refer to all of the species in one
region or ecosystem. Biodiversity refers to every
living thing, including plants, bacteria, animals, and
humans.
3 Types of Biodiversity
• GENETIC DIVERSITY- is the variety of
species expressed at the genetic level by each
individual in a species. No two individuals
belonging to the same species are exactly similar.
For example, in the species of human beings, each
human shows a lot of diversity in comparison to
another human. People living in different
Types of Biodiversity: Genetic, Species,
SPECIES DIVERSITY
• It is the biodiversity observed within a
community. It stands for the number and
distribution of species. The number of species in a
region varies widely depending upon the varied
environmental conditions. For example, it is usually
observed that civilizations residing beside water
bodies show more species than the ones compared
to the areas away from water bodies.
ECOLOGICAL DIVERSITY
• It defines the diversity observed among the
ecosystems in a particular region. Different
ecosystems like mangroves, rainforests, deserts,
etc., show a great variety of life forms residing in
them
HABITAT AND NICHE
• HABITAT- the place where particular
plants and animals live. Within the habitat,
organisms occupy different niches.
• NICHES- the functional role of a species in
a community is occupation, or how it earns its
living.
EXAMPLE; the scarlet tanager lives in deciduous
trees forest habitat, its niche in part is gleaning
insects from the canopy foliage. the more the
community is stratified, the more finely the habitat
is divided into additional niches.
PROTECTING SPECIES
• not all species are endangered as a result
of habitat depeltion.
• for example the white rhinoceros is
endangered because poachers hunt and kill it for its
valuable horn.
• legislation that bans international trade in
endangered species can play an important play an
important part of this type of conservation.
COMMUNITY INTERACTION
• major influences on population growth
involve various interactions that tie the community
together.
• competition
• Is the consumption of one living organism,
plant or animal by another.
• Serve to move energy through the
ecosystem,

• predation • Regulate population and promote natural

selection by weeding the unfit from a population.
• co-evolution
Examples:
• adaptation
Rabbit>Grass
COMPETITION
Fox>rabbit
• When shared resources is in short supply,
organisms compete, those that are more successful Plants>grazers, consumption of seeds and fruits.
survive. Animals have a highly developed social
organization through which resources CO- EVOLUTION

-space -mate • Is the joint evolution of two unrelated

species that have a close ecological relationship-
-food -territory that is evolution of one species depends in part on
the evolution of the other.
COMPETITIVE INTERACTION
CO-EVOLUTION
- Competition among members of different
species results in the division of resources • Occurs when species evolve together.
in the community
• Often happens in species that have
DOMINANT INDIVIDUAL symbiotic relationships

- Exclude subdominant individuals from the • In Coevolution relationships may be positive

resource for one species or both or maybe an evolutionary
- Territoriality arm race between predator and prey

Subdominant Individivual • Examples: flowering plants and their

- Forced to live in poorer habitat, leave the
area,
- succumb to starvation, exposure and
predation
COMPETITION IN PLANTS
Plants compete for light by growing quickly to reach
it and often shade other plants with their leaves.
When an old tree in a forest dies and falls to the
ground, there is a race to fill in the gap in the
canopy. It doesn’t look like a race to us because it
happens slowly.
water,mineral,space
PREDATION
pollinators arms
ADAPTATION
• Evolutionary adaptation, or simply
adaptation, is the adjustment of organisms to their
environment in order to improve their chances of
survival in that environment.
• Organisms can adapt to an environment in
different ways. They can adapt biologically,
meaning they alter body functions. An example of
biological adaptation can be seen in the bodies of
people living at high altitudes, such as Tibet.
Tibetans thrive at altitudes where oxygen levels are
up to 40 percent lower than at sea level
INTERSPECIFIC INTERACTION
• parasitism • example: in ants we can distinguish several
caste by their rank of influence
• mutualism
-fertile queens,infertile queens, soldier, infertile
• commensalism workers, and fertile male.
• intraspecific interactions fertile queens occupy the main rank in the colony
while the males are the lowest rank.
• social dominance
SOCIAL HIERARCHY
• social hierarchy
• is the domination of an individual over the
• territoriality
other individuals of the same popluation.
• close associations between species are
• example:
called symbiotic relationship
in poultry pen, the stronger adult rooster, alpha
- if the host is essential, the relationship is called
male has the
obligatory. if not the relationship is called
absolute control of the other members of that
facultative.
populations.
PARASITISM
-the alpha male has preferences to a particular hen
• the dependent species or parasite, benefits
- this becomes the aplha female
at the expense of the host.
two constituents of species diversity
-lice
SPECIES RICHNESS
-plasmodium, causes malaria are called
endoparasites. • number of different species present in an
ecosystem.
MUTUALISM
• tropical areas have greater species richness
• is an organization in which both organisms
as the environment is conducive for large number
benefit.
of species.
• -referred as endosymbiosis
SPECIES EVENNESS
• example: lichens are formed by mutualistic
• relative abundance of individuals of each of
association between algae and fungi.
those species.
COMMENSALISM
• if the number of individuals within a species
-one organism gains while the other neither gains is fairly constant across communities, it is said to
nor loses. example: hydratinia echinata and the have high evennes and if the number of individuals
hermit crab varies from species to species, it is said to have low
evenness.
SOCIAL DOMINANCE

is the stratification of groups in a society given by

the influence that one individual or a group of examples of the ecosystems with high species
individuals has on the other individuals or groups in diversity
the same society.
• tropical rainforest
-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.
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. adaptation to various disturbances and niche
specialisation gives rise to species richness.
VALUE OF BIODIVERSITY
• consumptive uses
• productive values
• social values
• ethical values
• aesthetic values
• option values
CONSUMPTIVE USES
• include the use of biodervisity
for food, medicine, fuel and other material.
PRODUCTIVE VALUES
• biodiversity also has productive values such
as the use of forests for timber and non-timber
forest products and the use of biodiversity for
bioprospecting and biotechnology.
• bioprospecting- is defined as a systematic
and organized search for useful products derived
from bioresources including plants,
microorganisms, animals, etc., that can be
developed further for commercialization and overall
benefits of the society.
SOCIAL VALUES
• has social values such as cultural and
spiritual values, recreational and tourism values
and educational values.
• for example some indigenous communities
view certain plants and animals as sacred and use
them in their cultural practices
ETHICAL VALUES
• biodiversity has social values, such as the
intrinsic value of biodiversity which recognizes that
biodiversity has a value in and of itself regardless of
its usefulness to humans.
AESTHETIC VALUES
• includes the beauty and wonder of nature
and the pleasure and enjoyment people derive from
nature.
OPTION VALUES
• biodiversity has option values, who may
derive benefits from biodiversity for future
generations, who may derive benefits from
biodiversity that are currently unknown or
unforeseen.
INTRODUCTION
。 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.
o India is the seventh largest country in the world
and Asia's second largest nation with an area of
3,287,263 sq.km. encompassing a varied
landscape rich in natural resources.
o India is shielded by the world's highest
mountains, the Himalayas, in the north.
Biogeography is important as a branch of
geography that sheds light on the natural habitats
around the world. It is also essential in
understanding why species are in their present
locations and in developing and protecting the
world's natural habitats.
INDIA'S BIOGEOGRAPHIC ZONES
Our country is divided into ten major regions, based
on the geography, climate and pattern of vegetation
seen and the communities of mammals, birds,
reptiles, amphibian, insects and other invertebrates
that live in them by the Forest and Wildlife Dept of
Government of India.
1. TRANS-HIMALAYAN REGION
o The Himalayan ranges immediately north of the
Great Himalayan range are called the Trans-
Himalayas.
o The Trans-Himalayan region with its sparse
vegetation has the richest wild sheep and goat
community in the world.
The snow leopard is found here, as is the migratory
black-necked cranes.
2. HIMALAYAS
o The Himalayas consist of the youngest and
loftiest mountain chains in the world.
o The forests are very dense with extensive growth
of grass and evergreen tall trees. Oak, chestnut,
conifer, ash, pine, deodar are abundant in
Himalayas. There is no vegetation above the
snowline.
Several animals live in the Himalayan ranges. Chief
species include monal, wild sheep, mountain goats,
ibex, shrew, and tapir. Panda and snow leopard are
also found here.
3. SEMI-ARID AREAS
o Adjoining the desert are the semi-arid areas, a
transitional zone between the desert and the
denser forests of the Western Ghats.
o The natural vegetation is thorn forest. This region
is characterized by discontinuous vegetation cover
with open areas of bare soil and soil-water deficit
throughout the year.
Asiatic lions, Birds, jackals, leopards, eagles,
snakes, fox, buffaloes are found in this region.
EXAMPLES OF XEROPHYTES
SUCCULENTS ARE A COMMON TYPE OF
XEROPHYTE
Xerophytic plants are adapted to living in dry
conditions.
- Most xerophytes live in deserts, but wet
environments that don't allow the plant to access
water, such as acid bogs or saline soil, can also
result in xerophytic adaptations.
AGAVE
Nerium oleander
Desert Lavender (Condea emoryi)
4. WESTERN GHATS
o The mountains along the west coast of peninsular
India are the Western Ghats, which constitute one
of the unique biological regions of the world.
5. NORTH-WEST DESERT REGIONS
o This region consists of parts of Rajasthan, Kutch,
Delhi and parts of Gujarat.
o The climate is characterized by very hot and dry
summer and cold winter. Rainfall is less than 70
cms.
7. GANGETIC PLAIN
o In the North is the Gangetic plain extending up to
the Himalayan foothills. This is the largest unit of
the Great Plain of India.
o The Great Plains cover about 72.4mha area with
the Ganga and the Brahmaputra forming the main
drainage axes in the major portion.
8. NORTH-EAST INDIA
o North-east India is one of the richest flora regions
in the country.
o It has several species of orchids, bamboos, ferns
and other plants.
Here the wild relatives of cultivated plants such as
banana, mango, citrus and pepper can be found.
9. ISLANDS
o The two groups of islands, i.e., the Arabian Sea
islands and Bay Islands differ significantly in origin
and physical characteristics.
o The Arabian Sea Islands (Laccadive, Minicoy,
etc.) are the foundered remnants of the old land
mass and subsequent coral formations. On the
other hand, the Bay Islands lay only about 220
kms.
10. COASTAL REGION
India has a coastline extending over 5,500 kms.
The west coast is narrow except around the Gulf of
Canbary and the Gulf of Kutch.
In the extreme south, however, it is somewhat
wider along the south Sahyadri. The backwaters
are the characteristic features of this coast.
*Larger parts of the coastal plains are covered by
fertile soils on which different crops are grown. Rice
is the main crop of these areas. Coconut trees grow
all along the coast.
Biodiversity
Biodiversity is that part of nature which includes
the differences in genes among the individuals of a
species.
The variety and richness of all the plants and
animals species at different scales in space-locally,
in a region, in the country and the world.
And the type of ecosystem, both terrestrial and
aquatic within a define area.
Biodiversity can be observed at three levels
1)Genetic diversity
each member of any animal or plants species
differs widely from other individual in its genetic
makeup.
2)Species diversity
number of species of plants and animals that are
present in a region constitutes its species diversity.
3) Ecosystem diversity
there are large variety of different ecosystems on
earth. Each having their own complement of
distinctive interlinked species based on the
differences in the habitat.
Habitat loss can be described when an animal
loses their home. Every animal in the animal
kingdom has a niche, a their in their animal
community and without their habitat they no longer
have a niche.
Reasons of habitat loss by humans: ~agriculture,
farming
~harvesting natural resources for personal use ~for
industrial and urbanization development
Habitat destruction is currently ranked as the
primary causes of species extinction world wide
Solutions on for this..
~ Protecting remaining intact section of natural
habitat.
~Reduce human population and expansion of
urbanisation and industries.
~Educating the public about the importance of
natural habitat and bio diversity.
~Solutions to habitat loss can include planting
trees, planting home gardens so as to reduce need
for man to need large lands for agricultural farms
which lead to habitat loss.
Poaching
Poaching is the hunting and harvesting taking of
wild plants or animals, such as through hunting,
harvesting, fishing, or trapping.
History of poaching
~ Millions of years ago, in the Stone Age ~Followed
through the ages, to even the tribal natives
~but it was during the Late Middle Ages that
poaching became a punishable offense
Why Poaching is done?
Poaching is done for large profits gained by the
illegal sale or trade or animal parts, meat and pelts
Exists because there is a demand for these
products, cause by a lack of education or disregard
for the law amongst the buyers
Many cultures believe yhat certain animal parts
have medical value
Poaching is not limited to animals its also for
plants too
Three of the most often poached species in the
park are galax, black cohosh, and ginseng
How does poaching affect the environment?
~Poaching or illegal hunting causes animals
endangered of being extinct. If more animals
becomes extinct there's a disruption in the food
chain, and that will cause major problems in our
ecosystem, resulting eventually in new adaptations
of animals, and or species beyond human control.
~Poaching results in animals being hunted too soon
for them to have time to reproduce and repopulate.
Man-wildlife conflict
wildlife) is unacceptably disadvantageous to other
Increase in man wildlife conflict is due to resource
limitation like :
1. Space
2. Food
3. Shelter
It is also due to Increasing population of human
beings, Loss of forest, decrease in quality of forest
and development activities.
A 'Conflict' of Words
One-sided Reporting Can Harm Wildlife
The headlines are invariably provocative - menace,
threat, fear, attack and death!
In 99.9 per cent of these cases (with the exception
of deliberate stalking and predation on humans by
big cats), it's never an aggressive attack by the
animal. The animal gets cornered, surrounded by
people (big cats) or faces an abrupt encounter at
short range because of its poor senses (elephants,
bear) and then attacks out of fear.
reporters and sub editors should avoid biased or
sensationalized reports
In India, wild elephants probably kill far more
people than tiger, leopard or lion.
Damage to agricultural crops and property, killing of
livestock and human beings are some of the worst
forms of man-animal conflict.
Farmers sometimes poison and shoot wild animals
as they damage their crops, but this can be
prevented by taking certain measures.
2006-07/31/342
2007-08/34/241
2008-09/46/726
2010-11/52/689
Ways to reduce the conflicts
Governments is working on improvement of habitat
to augment food and water availability and to
reduce movement of animals from the forests to the
habitations.
Training forest staff and police to tackle these
situations and creating awareness among the
people about the Do's and Don'ts to minimize
conflicts.
construction of boundary walls and solar fences
around the sensitive areas to prevent the wild
animal attacks.
Some devices of Information Technology, viz.,
radio collars with Very High Frequency, Global
Positioning System and Satellite uplink facilities can
be used to track the movements of wild animals.
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
Endangered and Sendemic species of India
Endangered species
An endangered species in a population of organism
which is at a risk of becoming extinst because is
either few in numbers, or threatened by changing
environmental ar predation panamaters
Endemic charies
When species are found in particular geographical
region because of its isolation, soil and climatic
conditions, it is said to be endemic
Some endangered and endemic species of India
Asiatic lion
The Asiatic lion which survives today only in the Gir
forest of Gujarat, were also known as Indian lion or
Persion lion. In 2005 Gujarat government reported
that 354 Asiatic lions were sighted in the Gir forest.
Nilgiri tahr
Nilgiri tarh is endemic to nilgiri hills and the
southern portion of western ghats in the states of
tamil nadu and kerela in southern India.
Sumatran rhinocerous
Sumatran rhinocerous is the smallest rhino
weighing about 500-800 kg. The decline in the
number of sumatran rhinocerous is attributed
primarily to poaching for their Forns. They are
estimated to be 300 in number.
OTHER ENDANGERED SPECIES
Asiatic cheetah Bengal fox
Gaur
ARKIVE
Markhor
Marbled cat
Indian elephant
OTHER ENDEMIC SPECIES
Nilgiri langur
Brown palm civet
Sapria himalayana
Ovaria lurida
Nepenthis khasiana
Factors affecting endangered species
Human beings dispose wastes indiscriminately in
nature thereby polluting the air, land and water.
These pollutants enter the food chain and
accumulate in living creatures resulting in death.
Over-exploitation of natural resources and
poaching of wild animals also leads to their
extinction.
Climate change brought by green house gases
threatens organisms and ecosystems leading to
their death and extinction.
Factors affecting endemic species.
Habitat loss and fragmentation due to draining and
filling of inland wetlands. Pollution also plays an
important role.
MEASURES TO CONSERVE ENDANGERED
AND ENDEMIC SPECIES
Know what species in your area are endangered.
Volunteer your time to protect the wildlife in your
area. Make certain that your home is not a hazard
to wildlife.
Plant native flora. Do not use toxic herbicides or
pesticides. Watch the road and drive carefully.
Recycle and buy recycled or reusable products.
Do not purchase illegal products that come from
endangered species. ✓ Support zoos and other
wildlife parks. Get active and spread the word
Reduce the amount of pollution that you cause
Read up on the subject.
BIODIVERSITY at GLOBAL LEVEL
The Global Patterns in Biodiversity
The present geological era is perhaps the richest
in biological diversity .
About 2.6 million species have been identified till
date, while many more species are believed to
exist.
According to UNEP (1993-94) (UN convention on
environment protection) estimate, the total number
of species that might exist on Earth range between
9.0-52 million
• Invertebrate animals and plants make-up most of
the speces.
About 70% of all known species are invertebrates
(animals without backbones such as insects,
sponges, worms, etc.);
About 15% are plants.
The rest of the species constitute 15%
Mammals, the animal group to which man belong,
comprise a comparatively small number of species.
Of all the global species, only 10 to 15% live in
North America and Europe.
BUT the major centers of greatest biodiversity tend
to be in the tropics.
The twenty countries most rich in biodiversity are
listed in Table
Patterns in Biodiversity
Species are not uniformly distributed over the
Earth,
diversity varies greatly from place to place.
In terms of the number of organism and number
of species of each kind, biodiversity has varied
markedly through geological time
In terms of present day species richness,
biodiversity varies greatly across the globe.
The present global patterns in biodiversity
indicate that the species richness tends to vary
geographically according to a series of well define
rules
For example case of terrestrial environments:
Warmer areas hold more species than the colder
areas.
Wetter areas hold more species than the drier
ones;
Larger areas hold more species than the smaller
areas;
For example, case of terrestrial environments:
Areas of varied climate and topography hold
more species than the areas of uniform climate and
topography
Areas at lower altitude (elevation) hold more
species than the high altitude areas; and
Less seasonal areas hold more species than the
highly seasonal areas
In case of pelagic marine species
⚫ there tends to be more species in warmer and
less seasonal waters(i.e. at lower latitudes.)
In a simplified way, it can be said that there are
much more species, both per unit area and
overall, in the tropics than in temperate regions.
and somewhat more in the temperate regions
than in Polar Regions.
The moist tropical forests
•The moist tropical forests, in general, are the
most species rich areas /environments on earth
Though they cover about 7% of the world's
surface; but may hold more than 90% of the
world's species,
In constrast
If small tropical forest insects are discounted, then
the areas with similar richness will be in;
• Coral reefs; and areas of Mediterranean climate
in South Africa and Western Australia.
These areas are rich in angiosperm species.
Reasons for Greater Biodiversity in the Tropics
1. Tropical areas receive more solar energy over
the year. Therefore, tropical communities are more
productive resulting in a greater resource base
that can support a wider range of species.
2. Warm temperatures and high humidity of
tropical areas provide favourable environmental
conditions for many species.
3. Over geological times, the tropics have had a
more stable climate than the temperate areas. In
tropics, therefore, local species continued to
thrive and live there itself; whereas, in temperate
zones, they tend to disperse to other areas.
4. There has been more time for tropical
communities to evolve as they are older than
temperate ones.
This has allowed tropical communities greater
degree of specialization and local adaptation to
occur.
5. in tropics, the greater pressure from pests,
parasites and diseases does not allow any single
species to dominate. Thus, there is opportunity for
many species to coexist.
In temperate areas, there is reduced pressure
from pests, parasites and diseases due to cold, that
6. In tropics, higher rates of out crossing among
plants may lead to higher levels of genetic
variability.
BIODIVERSITY at NATIONAL LEVEL
INDiA as mega diverse biodiversity
Biodiversity has three aspects, viz genetics,
species and ecosystem.
India is uniquely rich in all these three aspects.
The country has a rich heritage of biodiversity,
encompassing a wide spectrum of habitats (from
tropical rainforests to alpine vegetation, and
from temperate forests to coastal wetlands.)
Almost ALL the biogeographical regions of the
world are represented in India.
With a mere 2.4% of the total land area of the
world, the known biodiversity of India contributes
8.22% of the known global biodiversity
india is one of the twelve mega-diversity nations of
the world accounting for 7.31% of the global faunal
and 10.88% of the global floral total species.
Currently India is in tenth position in the world and
fourth in the Asia in plant diversity. INDIA ranks
tenth in mamimallan sp in the world, and in terms of
endemic species of higher
Indias one of the twelve mega-diversity nations of
the world accounting for 7.31% of the global faunal
and 10.58% of the global floral total species.
Currently India is in 10th position in the world and
4th in the Asia in plant diversity. INDIA ranks 10th
in mammalian sp in the world, and in terms of
endemic species of higher vertebrates, it ranks 11"
SALIENT FEATURES OF NATIONAL
BIODIVERSITY
India has two major realms called the Palaearctic
and the Indo Malayan; and three biomes, namely
the tropical humid forests, the tropical dry
deciduous forests and the warm desert/semi-
deserts.
India has ten biogeographic regions, namely the
Trans-Himalayan, the Deccan Peninsula, the
Himalayan, the Indian desert. the semi-arid zone,
the Genetic plain, North-East India, the Islands, and
the coasts
India is one of the 12 mega-diversity nations of the
world.
ALIENT FEATURE TERES OF NATIONAL
BIODIVERSITY
India is one of the 12 centres of origin of cultivated
plants
There are two hotspots that extend into india. There
are the Western Ghats Sen Lanka and the Indo-
Burma region
(covering the Eastern Himalayas). Further these
hotspots are included amongst the top
India has 26 recognised endemic centres that are
home to nearly 1/3rd of all the flowering plants
(angiosperms) identified and described to date.
India has SIX Ramsar Wetlands. Chilka Lake
(odisha), Hari-ke Lake (punjab), Loktak Lake
(Manipur), Keoladeo National Park (Bharatpur
Rajasthan), Wular Lake (J & K) and
India has 5 world heritage sites namely, Kaziranga
National Park, Keolades Ghana National Park,
Manas Wildlife Sanctuary,Nanda Devi National
Park and Sundarban National Park.
Todia has twelve biosphere reserves, namely
Nilgiri, Nanda Devi, Nokrerk, Manas, Great
Nicobar, Similpal, Dibru-Saikhowa, Dehang
Debang,Sunderbans,Gulf or Mannar,Pachmarchi
and Kanchanjunga
there are 88 national parks and 490 sanctuaries
covering an area of 1.53 lakh sq.km.
NATIONAL BIODIVERSITY
About 2/3 of the geographical area of the country,
has at present 89,317 species of fauna and 45,364
species of flora representing about 7.32% of the
world fauna and 10.88% the world flora
Among plants, the species richness is high in
angiosperms bryophyta pteridophyta orchidaceae.
Among animals, arthropoda (insects) are
predominant.
India is rich in agro-biodiversity.
There are over 167 crop species and wild relatives.
India has the origin of 30,000 to 50,000 varieties of
RICE,pigeon-pea, mango, turmeric, ginger,
sugarcane,gooseberries, etc. and ranks 7th in
terms of contributionto world agriculture.
India also boasts rich marine biodiversity,along the
coastline of 7516.5 km with exclusive economic
zone of 202 million sq.km,supporting the most
productive ecosystems such as mangroves,
estuaries, lagoons and coral reefs.A number of
zooplankton cereid is about 16,000 species.
The benthic fauna largely consists of polychaeta
(62%),crustacean (20%) and molluscs (18%) with
the biomass of about 12 gm per square metre.
Over 30 species of marine algae and 14 species of
sea grass have been reported.
There are over 45 species of mangrove plants over
342 species of 76 genera of corals reported and
BIODIVERSITY at LOCAL LEVEL (karnataka
state)
BIOVERSITY at LOCAL LEVEL
It is the Southern states of India having 3.83 Million
ha of recorded forest area which is around 20
percent of its geographical area
•Karnataka consists of 3 regions;
Coastal zone: 320 km with estuaries, lagoons,
bays, creeks, cliffs, dunes etc
• Western ghats: 1600 km, 60% located in
Karnataka
• Eastern plainS
Coastal Karnataka
Offers good opportunities to sight sea birds like
terns and gulls and many other water birds,
particularly in winter.
The beaches of Uttara Kannada district offer
spectacular views of the White bellied Sea Eagle.
Western ghats
Over 4500 species of flowering plants (38%
endemic)
330 butterflies (11% endemic),
plan
156 reptiles (62% endemic)
in e
508 birds (4% endemic)

150 mammals (12% endemic)

How
289 fishes (41% endemic)
arou
135 amphibians (75% endemic) mill
Eastern plains bee
The species occur here are mostly Acacias, des
Hardwikicia, Neem, Pongamia, Somida, Santalam
albam, Ficus etc.
mos
1421 species of angiosperms under 140 families.
inse
107 species are listed as medicinal plants but due
to scarce occurrence many are not harvested.

to refer to all of the

species in one
region or
ecosystem.
Biodiversity refers
to every living thing,
including plants,
bacteria, animals,
and
Scientists have
estimated that
there are around 8.7
million species of