These are broadly divided as follows:
(1) Ecological services: These include ecological supporting services and regulating services such as regulation of biogeochemical cycle, maintenance of ecosystem stability, etc. Please refer to ecological services as described in earlier chapter.
(2) Economic Services: These include provisioning services and provided by ecology such as food, fibers, fodder, drugs, medicines, industrial and agricultural raw materials, as well as cultural services such as shelter tourism, etc.
Causes of Biodiversity Loss
1. Natural Cause – These include global climatic changes, volcanic eruptions, falling of meteors, continental drift and fragmentation, prolonged drought and famine.
2. Anthropogenic causes
(1) Habitat Loss- due to deforestation, urbanization, infrastructure and industry projects like dams, mining, and pollution industries, etc. Many wetlands too have been reclaimed for urbanization or cultivation for example; in Tarai marsh lands Mono-culture cropping and GM crops are slowly decreasing the habitat for diversity. In Western Ghats, natural habitats have been fragmented due to urbanization. World’s wide tropical forests as in Amazon Congo are being rapidly destroyed.
(2) Overexploitation of Species -
