A Decrease in Biodiversity is a Real Threat to Worry About
There are approximately 1.5 million identified species in the world, but scientists estimate that there could be more than ten million and as many as two billion species. With these numbers, humans comprise only 0.01% of the entire global biodiversity.
Biodiversity is the abundance and variety of life found on the planet. Going beyond the creatures that are seen, biodiversity includes variation in genes and bacteria as well as plants and animals.
Sadly, due to climate change and the destruction of habitats, many species are decreasing in number and becoming extinct — causing a decline in biodiversity. According to a new study, loss of biodiversity impacts ecosystems just as much as climate change, pollution, and other forms of environmental stress.
Biodiversity loss is defined as the reduction in the number, genetic variability, and variety of species as well as biological communities in an area. Associating biodiversity loss with species alone overlooks the impact and threat it has on an ecosystem’s long-term health.
Impacts on Ecosystems
Biodiversity is crucial for maintaining ecosystem health. A loss of biodiversity lowers an ecosystem’s productivity and the quality of its resources.
A sudden decline in the population of a species upsets social structures, as it is difficult for species with declining numbers to find mates. With a small pool of members in a species, they are forced to inbreed, which declines genetic diversity through the generations.
The lack of genetic diversity can lead to many health issues for organisms; they become more vulnerable to diseases and their long-term survival is also threatened. The loss of varied genes endangers the species that have a small population and increases the chances of their extinction.
With the number of certain species shrinking, the niche of that species also diminishes. Niche is the role that a species plays in its environment. For example, a wolf plays the role of the predator in an ecosystem, if its numbers go down, then it is difficult for another species to fill in that spot, and the number of “prey” begins to increase from the lack of predators.
This throws off the entire structure of the ecosystem such as the food chain, which leads to negative consequences.
Causes of Biodiversity Loss
The causes of biodiversity loss can simply be explained with the acronym HIPCO.
- Habitat Loss/Degradation → This includes thinning, fragmentation, and destruction of existing natural habitats due to deforestation, mining, destruction of ocean floors when fishing, etc. Habitat destruction eliminates and diminishes food resources and space for a species to live. Without food or a home, these organisms will simply die out.
- Invasive Species → Invasive species are organisms that cause harm in the new environment where they are introduced, either through natural migration or human introduction. These species disrupt the ecosystems they colonize and especially hurt the native species found there. Invasives out-compete native species for food and habitat, which causes the decline of native species and can lead to extinction.
- Pollution → Pollution is the introduction of harmful materials into the environment at a rate that is faster than it can be dispersed or recycled. Increasing pollution in an area can create health problems for the organisms there, sometimes harsh enough to kill them and force their numbers to drop.
- Climate Change → This includes altering the Earth’s climate and causing temperatures to rise from the burning of fossil fuels. When fossil fuels are burned, it produces greenhouse gases that when in the atmosphere, absorb heat energy from the sun and trap it in the atmosphere. This trapped heat influences global temperature and weather patterns. Some species are not able to adapt to the change in temperature or weather and die off, resulting in a loss of biodiversity.
- Over-exploitation → This involves the harvesting of game animals, fish, and other organisms beyond the ability of the organisms to replace their losses. This can result in species depleted to low numbers or driven to extinction.
Ecologists state that habitat loss and invasive species have the biggest impact on biodiversity loss, but climate change can become the primary driver as the years go by.
Impact on Humans
Humans rely on the biodiversity of organisms for many reasons, such as for food and medicines.
Concerning agriculture, with a lack of diversity among crops, those crops are more vulnerable to disease, pests, invasive species, and climate change. This means that it is easier for crops to be ruined, resulting in an undersupply of food.
A similar trend would occur among livestock as well, especially with the high-producing breeds of cattle and poultry. Diverse crops and livestock, on the other hand, provide a variety of foods and are not as susceptible to being destroyed by a single cause.
Many medicines are derived from chemicals in rare plants and animals. But because many organisms are becoming extinct, there could be cures for certain diseases and illnesses that will never be discovered due to the species dying off before the chemical was identified in them. Diverse organisms guarantee many discoveries can be made in the future.
Solutions and How to Help
In order to maintain biodiversity and prevent more organisms from going extinct, it is necessary to focus on conservation. This involves protecting the remaining organisms from over-hunting, over-fishing, and over-cultivation by humans.
In addition, it is necessary to protect habitats from destruction and prohibit the introduction of invasive species that could cause damage to an environment.
For this to happen, the government, non-governmental organizations, and the scientific community need to work together. They are able to create laws and policies that prevent over-exploitation, set standards for the conservation of the most vulnerable species, and punish those who do not follow the laws.
Everyone else can help as well, whether it be through volunteering to preserve habitats or by donating to conservation groups such as The Nature Conservancy and Ocean Conservancy.
All of these components will help save global biodiversity and halt the rapid extinction of many species.
Sources
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Edited by: Amanda Lee, Director of Research Bloggers
