Thematic digest - 'Biodiversity and Forests' - Issue 28(03 March 2012)

Environmental Conservation, 2020

NWLBEST, 2017

Department of Zoology, KKTM Government College, Pullut, 2020

Foreword Biodiversity is the foundation of ecosystem services to which human well-being is intimately linked. No feature of Earth is more complex, dynamic, and varied than the layer of living organisms that occupy its surfaces and its seas, and no feature is experiencing more dramatic change at the hands of humans than this extraordinary, singularly unique feature of Earth. This layer of living organisms-the biosphere-through the collective metabolic activities of its innumerable plants, animals, and microbes physically and chemically unites the atmosphere, geosphere, and hydrosphere into one environmental system within which millions of species, including humans, have thrived. Documenting spatial patterns in biodiversity is difficult because taxonomic, functional, trophic, genetic, and other dimensions of biodiversity have been relatively poorly quantified. Even knowledge of taxonomic diversity, the best known dimension of biodiversity, is incomplete and strongly biased toward the species level, mega fauna, temperate systems, and components used by people. This results in significant gaps in knowledge, especially regarding the status of tropical systems, marine and freshwater biota, plants, invertebrates, microorganisms, and subterranean biota. For these reasons, estimates of the total number of species on Earth range from 5 million to 30 million. Irrespective of actual global species richness, however, it is clear that the 1.7-2 million species that have been formally identified represent only a small portion of total species richness. More-complete biotic inventories are badly needed to correct for this deficiency. Biodiversity plays an important role in ecosystem functions that provide supporting, provisioning, regulating, and cultural services. Ecosystem services make human life possible by, for example, providing nutritious food and clean water, regulating disease and climate, supporting the pollination of crops and soil formation, and providing recreational, cultural and spiritual benefits. Despite an estimated value of $125 trillion, these assets are not adequately accounted for in political and economic policy, which means there is insufficient investment in their protection and management. Much of the Earth's biodiversity, however, is in jeopardy due to human consumption and other activities that disturb and even destroy ecosystems. Aanthropogenic impact on the environment includes changes to biophysical environments and ecosystems, biodiversity, and natural resources caused directly or indirectly by humans, including global warming, environmental degradation and biodiversity loss, ecological crisis, and ecological collapse. Modi

daff.gov.au

2012

Putting the Pieces together to solve the biodiversit y Puzzle As we've seen in earlier chapters, biodiversity issues are complex and exist on several scales. tackling biodiversity issues requires concerted and complementary efforts at the community, sub-national, national, regional and global levels. Claudia Lewis, Plan C Initiative Carlos L. de la Rosa, Catalina Island Conservancy chAnge Hermit crab. © alex marttunen (age 12) 165 for 166 Y o u t H a n d u n i t e d n at i o n s G l o b a l a l l i a n c e c h A p t e r 1 2 | B i o d i v e r s i t y a n d A c t i o n s f o r c h a n g e © muha mmad mahd i Karim [ww w.mi cro2 macr o.ne t] Wild ebees t Herd inG and Follo WinG a FeW lead inG zebra in tHe masa i mara , KenYa .

2010

This 2010 conference, organized by the IUFRO Landscape Ecology Working Group (8.01.02), the Mountain Research Centre (CIMO), and the Polytechnic Institute of Bragança (IPB) is dedicated to the theme Forest Landscapes and Global Change -New Frontiers in Management, Conservation and Restoration. The conference will be attended by more than 300 participants from 46 countries. Most are from Europe (62%), followed by North, Central and South America (28%), Asia (7%), Africa (3%) and Oceania (1%). The 2010 IUFRO Landscape Ecology Working Group International Conference witnesses the global growth of scientific interest in forest landscape patterns and processes, and the recognition of the role of landscape ecology in the advancement of science and management. This conference offers a venue to explore the challenges faced by scientists and practitioners by broadening the context of landscape ecology to emerging physical, social and political drivers of change, which strongly and rapidly influence forest systems and their services. During this conference, we address these topics via 300 presentations: in three keynote addresses, 12 symposia, 18 oral sessions, and two poster sessions. For the organizing committee, CIMO and the Polytechnic Institute of Bragança putting together a conference of such magnitude in Bragança was an enormous challenge, and we hope that our response was successful. Above all, it is a great privilege for us to host this outstanding group of scientists, to contribute to the development of landscape ecology, and to foster a debate on real issues that influence not just landscape ecology but the society at large. In this context, we thank you very much for your participation in this conference and your contribution to the advancement of research and applications in landscape ecology. Finally, we hope you enjoy your time with us in Bragança, in the Polytechnic Institute and in our Research Centre.

Journal of Environmental Biology, 2020

Tree species inventories, particularly of poorly known dry deciduous forests, are needed to protect and restore forests in degraded landscapes. A study of forest stand structure, and species diversity and density of trees with girth at breast height (GBH) ≥10 cm was conducted in four management zones of Bannerghatta National Park (BNP) in the Eastern Ghats of Southern India. We identified 128 tree species belonging to 45 families in 7.9 hectares. However, 44 species were represented by ≤ 2 individuals. Mean diversity values per site for the dry forest of BNP were: tree composition (23.8 ±7.6), plant density (100.69 ± 40.02), species diversity (2.56 ± 0.44) and species richness (10.48 ± 4.05). Tree diversity was not significantly different (P>0.05) across the four management zones in the park. However, the number of tree species identified significantly (P<0.05) increased with increasing number of sampling sites, but majority of the species were captured. Similarly, there were significant variations (p<0.05) between tree diameter class distributions. Juveniles accounted for 87% of the tree population. The structure of the forest was not homogeneous, with sections ranging from poorly structured to highly stratified configurations. The study suggests that there was moderate tree diversity in the tropical dry thorn forest of Bannerghatta National Park, but the forest was relatively young.