{ Biodiversity Components and Benefits

 One important renewable resource is biodiversity: The different life forms and life sustaining processes  Biodiversity has four main components  Species Diversity  Genetic Diversity  Ecological Diversity  Functional Diversity Biodiversity

 The number and abundance of species present in different communities Species Diversity

The variety of genetic material within a species or population Genetic Diversity

 The variety of ecosystems found on an area or on earth Ecological Diversity

 The biological and chemical processes such as energy flow and matter recycling needed for the survival of living things. Functional Diversity

 Biodiversity provides us with:  Natural Resources (food water, wood, energy, and medicines)  Natural Services (air and water purification, soil fertility, waste disposal, pest control)  Aesthetic pleasure Why Should We Care About Biodiversity?

 Fossil Evidence, chemical analysis, Ice Core samples, and DNA analysis demonstrate that the biodiversity today is different from the biodiversity in the past Biodiversity of the Past Figure 4-4

 Ecosystem Services  Ecosystem Function  Food Security  Drugs and Medicine  Tourism and Recreation  Keeping in Touch With Nature Benefits of Biodiversity

 Service that nature provides humans/ecosystems  Clean air from plants Ecosystem Services

 Increased biodiversity means more stability and better chance at bouncing back  Keystone species: take it away, ecosystem fumbles Ecosystem Function

 Increased biodiversity (of crops) means more stable (disease resistant, tougher)  Is this better for the future?  Seed banks Food Security

 Lots of drugs come from plants and other organisms (mostly the rainforest) other organisms (mostly the rainforest)  Aspirin Drugs and Medicine

 Ecotourism (should have a balance between money and ecosystem)  Great Barrier Reef  Costa Rica  Fishing/Hunting Tourism and Recreation

 Biophilia: the need to connect with nature  Outdoor activities  People “need” this  Nature-deficit disorder  Children/people are spending less and less time outdoors Keeping in touch with Nature

 Closer to the mainland, increased biodiversity biodiversity  Bigger island, increased biodiversity  Habitat fragmentation:  The disruption of an organisms environment Island Biogeography