Biodiversity Grade 9 Academic Science R.H. King Academy

Recap 1. Define biodiversity 2. Define sustainability 3. How are biodiversity and sustainability related?

How many species are on the planet?  See Table 1.1. on p. 9  Which category of organisms has the most species?  There are about 2 million identified species on Earth  There are perhaps million species on Earth, but many still haven’t been identified

Number of species vs. number of organisms  An ecosystem can have a high number of organisms. But this does not mean it has high biodiversity. (E.g pigeons)  What makes an ecosystem biodiverse is a high number of a variety species. (E.g. several bird species: pigeons, robins, sparrows, jays, grouse, starlings, hawks, etc).

Areas of low biodiversity  Areas of low biodiversity tend to have:  Cooler temperatures  Low precipitation  More human disturbances  Urban areas tend to have lower biodiversity because most species’ niche does not allow them to live in urban areas with concrete, pollution, humans, cars, etc.  Only a few species have managed to find a niche in urban areas  Examples: raccoons, squirrels, pigeons, wasps, dandelions, etc.

Areas of high biodiversity  The most biodiverse regions are those with  Warm temperatures  High precipitation  No/little human disturbance  Therefore, which biomes do you think have the most biodiversity?

Tropical Rainforest  The Tropical Rainforest is the biome with the most biodiversity in the world  It is called a “biodiversity hotspot”  However, it is being greatly threatened by human disturbances:  Deforestation and logging  Poaching and hunting  Climate change

So why does biodiversity even matter?  Low biodiversity makes an unsustainable ecosystem because  Fewer species are able to survive  Disease is more likely to spread across the same species… when there are many different species, disease likely won’t spread between them.  Biodiversity is needed to ensure sustainability for all life forms, including humans  Despite what you think, we are part of nature. We need ecosystems for our:  Food  Water  Medicine  Materials (e.g. paper)

What does biodiversity do for us?  odiversity/biodiversity_and_you/ odiversity/biodiversity_and_you/

Videos  David Suzuki  M2Fjuc M2Fjuc  Earth Focus: Biodiversity and Health  (up to 20:00) sity-and-health