The word ‘Biodiversity’ has evolved from a commingling of the descendants of the Greek noun bios, which means “mode of life,” and the Latin verb divertere, which means “to turn aside” or “to go different ways.” Biodiversity is a short way of saying biological diversity. It describes the variety and variability of Life on Earth.

Symbiotic connections exist between humans, animals, plants, insects, and even microbes. In fact, deep connections exist between all life forms on Earth. Together, they make up ‘The Web of Life’.

Sustaining this web of life requires the performance of a million functions. To do them efficiently, there exist a million diverse lifeforms, each performing a different but vital function. Thus, it is vital to preserve Biodiversity if we want to preserve life on earth.

Biodiversity is often understood in terms of the wide variety and interdependence of plants, animals and microorganisms that inhabit the planet. Although biodiversity is very complex, this ‘web of life’ includes:

Species Diversity: A species is a group of organisms that can reproduce. Species diversity is the most obvious type of biodiversity. Our planet, Earth, supports an estimated 8 million species and many more which are yet to be identified! Within a species, there is genetic diversity.

Genetic Diversity: Biodiversity includes genetic differences within each species, for example, between varieties of crops and breeds of livestock. Chromosomes, genes and DNA – the building blocks of life – determine the uniqueness of each individual and each species.

Ecosystem Diversity: Another aspect of biodiversity is the variety of ecosystems such as those that occur in deserts, forests, wetlands, mountains, lakes, rivers and agricultural landscapes. In each ecosystem, living creatures, including humans, form a community, interacting with one another and with the air, water and soil around them. A single tree in the Amazon rain forest, can provide a home for up to 2,000 species of birds, insects, fungi, epiphytes and microorganisms.

Biodiversity also provides a variety of ecosystem services, which are critical to human survival. Between 50-90 percent of the human diet, by both volume and calories, depending on the country, comes directly from flowering plants.

Provisioning Services: Services that describe the material or energy outputs from ecosystems. They include food, water and other resources.

Regulating Services: Services that act as regulators. E.g. regulating the quality of air and soil or by providing flood and disease control.

Cultural Services: Non-material benefits that people obtain from contact with ecosystems. They include aesthetic, spiritual and psychological benefits.

Supporting Services: Services necessary for production of all other ecosystem services – from the very basic provision of living spaces for plants or animals to maintaining a diversity of different breeds of plants and animals. Plus, services such as Nutrient Cycling, Water Cycling Soil Formation and Photosynthesis etc.

Media Contact:

Mercy
Microbiology: Current  research