Values or importance of Biodiversity

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 - 

Humans have over-exploited forests, fisheries, wildlife, land, oceans and what not! Many species of fishes are threatened just as Tiger, Gangetic Dolphin, Snow leopard, Asiatic lion were on the verge of extinction and Cheetah has already been extinct in India.

(3)    Introduction of Exotic Species- Whenever Exotic species get introduced in an area, whether naturally or accidentally, the biodiversity of native area gets affected. Examples are, Water Hyacinth in India, particularly in West Bengal; the Congress grass also called ‘gazar grass’ has spread all over India consuming extra nutrients from soil as well as causing health hazards like allergy. The congress grass in named so as it was the congress government which imported the contaminated PL-480 wheat from the United States in the 1950s. Such exotic species can lead to severe loss of biodiversity particularly on restricted territories like islands. 

(4)    Environmental pollution- The high level of Water and air pollution has resulted in a phenomenal decrease in the number of species. For example, in Yamuna, Ganga and Damodar rivers. High doses of fertilizers, pesticides, insecticides have polluted the soils, and food chains have been disturbed causing disappearance of many species. The case of deaths of vultures due to diclofenac content in dead animals is a fresh case. Similarly, hose sparrow has disappeared in many cities probably due to electromagnetic waves generated by mobile towers. Many lakes, rivers all over India as well as world over have become dead rivers or dead rivers or dead lakes. Acid rain in European countries has caused tremendous destruction of species and habitats.

(5)    Global Warming- This is one of the most severe and global effect causing and threatening biodiversity loss in all parts of the world. Rise in sea level and its temperature is eliminating many cold water fishes, causing coral bleaching, submerging small islands thereby eliminating the biological community of it forever. In the coming times, with further rise in global temperature sea level will rise in many coastal areas, and the flora and fauna of the coastal areas are likely to be submerged. The effects of rise in air temperature are becoming discernible through extreme climatic events.