1. Introduction
In many communities worldwide, people depend on forests, for fuel wood-gathering, harvesting of wood and non-wood forest products, for larger-scale commercial purposes, habitat for more than half the world’s terrestrial species, clean water, and other important ecosystem services (De Groot et al., 2002, Santangeli et al., 2013, Chhatre and Agrawal, 2009). However, the forest biodiversity is continuously undergoing loss which directly or indirectly contributes to forest ecosystems being transformed and in some cases irreversibly degraded. A large number of species have gone extinction or have been threatened to extinctions and reduction in population (Morris, 2010, Kuussaari et al., 2009). The main causes of biodiversity lose are a complex combination of social, economic and natural process, which includes continued growth of human population and per capita consumption, climate change, ocean acidification and other anthropogenic environmental impacts (Butchart et al., 2010, Geist and Lambin, 2002). Currently, the changes in forest biodiversity are more drastic than at any time in human history.
The different conservation programs for the management of biodiversity loss in the present days have been or are often being tracked from discipline-bound approaches, a solution which is problematic or with little success (Sunderland et al., 2009). One of the reasons for little success is, it ignores the complexity of the challenge being addressed (Moslemi et al., 2009) and the views of the different stakeholders about the forest resource. Therefore, the sustainable management of forest biodiversity loss needs interdisciplinary approaches that creates theoretical, conceptual and methodological ways that focus on and blendi...
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Landscape fragmentation contributes to loss of migratory corridors, loss of connectivity and natural communities, which all lead to a loss of biodiversity for a region. Conservation of biodiversity must include all levels of diversity: genetic, species, community, and landscape (CNHP 1995). Each complex level is dependent upon and linked to the other levels. In addition, humans are linked to all levels of this hierarchy. A healthy natural and human environment go hand in hand (CNHP 1995). An important step in conservation planning, in order to guarantee both a healthy natural environment as well as a healthy human environment, is recognizing the most endangered elements.
The Boreal Forest and Tropical Rainforest are two important and crucial biomes on the planet. They are a necessary part of an ecosystem that sustains plant and animal life. In understanding these biomes, it helps researchers and the public become more aware of the delicate balance needed for their continued survival and also, their protection from increasing anthropogenic activities. Given the global impact of these biomes, it is important to understand as much as we can.
No matter where a person lives, even if it is not near a rain forest, the complete destruction of rain forests will affect living conditions. For years rain forests have provided countries around the word with valuable resources, minerals, lumber, and energy. In Brazil alone the rain forests contains 45% of Brazil’s hydroelectric power. The minerals found in the rain forests of Brazil are estimated to value 1.6 trillion dollars, while the lumber that the rain forests can provide total 1.7 trillion dollars (“In the Forest” 1). Nutrients from decomposing organisms can be found throughout rain forests, including in soil and in trees. To continue destroying forests also destroys the important materials that they are providing to humans.
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This review will be useful for research scientists and conservation practitioners as it will highlight the current paradigms of biodiversity conservation in relation to reducing habitat fragmentation through the use of ecological
One of the most predominate ecosystems is the forest community. Covering about one-fourth of the land area on Earth, forests consist mainly of trees and other woody vegetation, growing closely together. The trees can be large and densely packed, as they are in the coastal forests of the Pacific Northwest, or they can be relatively small and sparsely scattered, as they are in the dry tropical forests of sub-Saharan Africa. Forests are complex ecosystems that also include “soils and decaying organic matter, fungi and bacteria, herbs and shrubs, vines and lichens, ferns and mosses, insects and spiders, reptiles and amphibians, birds and mammals, and many other organisms” (Audesirk, 2003). All of these components constitute an intricate web with many biological interconnections. A bird may depend on the upper branches of a tree for nesting, while the tree may depend on the fungi surrounding its roots to obtain water and nutrients. A forest performs a number of vital environmental services, such as cleansing the air, moderating the climate, filtering water, cycling nutrients, providing a habitat for animals and provides humans with recreation and beautiful scenery. Resources from the forest supply raw materials, such as lumber, paper products, greenery and pharmaceuticals. Some of the developing issues today concerning forests are fires and what we as a society can do to restore the natural ecosystems within the forests around our world. Many aspects are to be considered when looking at the ecology and bioremediation of forests such as, human activities, wildlife, endangerment and environmental changes. This paper will discuss the effect wildfires have on the forest ecosystem.
Rainforests once covered 14% of the worlds land surface, however now it only covers a mere 6%. It is estimated that all rainforests could be consumed in less than 40 years. Trees are becoming more needed and used everyday. We need them cut down for many reasons such as paper and timber, while also needing them ‘untouched’ for other reasons like oxygen, we have to ask ourselves, which is more important? At the current rate, most of the rainforests are being cut down for resources like paper and timber, but less importance is being placed on main resources like oxygen.
... Works Cited The "Amazon" - "The.. WorldWildlife.org -.. World Wildlife Fund. Web. The Web. The Web.
The Disappearing Rainforests Conserving the rainforest is a global issue of great importance. Tropical rainforests provide a habitat for animals, a unique ecosystem for vegetation, and an abundance of resources for humans, yet they are being destroyed at an astonishing rate. Experts estimate that if these endangered territories continue to be consumed in this manner, no more will be standing in forty years (Rainforest). Examining the social, environmental, and economic costs of the continued destruction of the Earth's tropical rainforests will prove that deforestation for short-term profit is ultimately not viable.
Biodiversity loss can lead to extinction, and hurt human life. It is our responsibility to take care of the environment. We bring in machines that harm the environment and destroy animal life. We need to limit ourselves on how much land and resources we consume. There are major issues that are causing species to become extinct and hurt our way of life and other animals do to the change in food chain.
Biodiversity is so important that if any chain or link is disturbed then the whole system will come to a halt. Biodiversity also boosts ecosystem productivity and if it declines automatically our ecosystem also declines as both are interdependent upon each other, where all the species play an essential role in the way ecosystem functions, so local and global species loss could threaten the stability of the ecosystem services on which humans depend. This is an interesting topic as well as a global issue concerning the whole human civilization and their existence. . The said issue as well as many other issues regarding our natural processes cannot be neglected as our present and future depends entirely on the sustainability and growth of this ecosystem and biodiversity. Our ecosystem completely depends on the way biodiversity functions. This is the reason I have chosen this topic and gathered information about how it e...
The Earth is far and away the most biodiverse planet in our solar system, with about 8.7 million more unique species than the other 8 planets (UNEP). However, the Earth’s commanding lead is shrinking; not because the other planets are increasing biodiversity, but because Earth’s is decreasing. According to the World Wildlife Fund, we as a planet are losing 1,000 to 10,000 more species than the natural rate. Since the total number of species is hard to pin down, this can mean anywhere from 200 to 10,000 species going extinct per year (World Wildlife Fund). This obscenely high extinction rate is dangerous not just to ecosystems directly affected by the loss, but also creates a domino effect that circles around the globe and up and down the food
One of the reasons for loss in biodiversity is alteration of habitats. A habitat is the natural environment in which a species of living organism lives. If the habitat of a species is changed, it will cause the species to die or migrate to other places where it can find its natural habitat. There are many ways in which the habitat of plants and animals can be altered. One of them is land use changes. Since the beginning of human life, human beings have been changing land use for farming. Large areas of forests have been cleared by humans to increase the area of farming to satisfy their growing needs. Many biodiversity-rich landscape characteristics have been lost due to intensive farming (Young, Richards, Fischer, Halada, Kull, Kuzniar, Tartes, Uzunov & Watt, 2007). For example, traditional farming was replaced by private farms in Europe after the First World War causing an immense change in land use patterns. Another major proble...