They supply us with oxygen and clean water. They cycle carbon and fix nutrients. They enable plants to grow and therefore to feed us, keep pest species and diseases in check and help protect against flooding and regulate the climate. These benefits are known as ecosystem services.

Ecological life support— biodiversity provides functioning ecosystems that supply oxygen, clean air and water, pollination of plants, pest control, wastewater treatment and many ecosystem services. Recreation—many recreational pursuits rely on our unique biodiversity , such as birdwatching, hiking, camping and fishing.

The social value of biodiversity includes aesthetic, recreational, cultural and spiritual values. Thus apart from the local use or sale of products of biodiversity there is the social aspect in which more and more resources are used by affluent societies.

Biodiversity includes three main types: diversity within species (genetic diversity), between species (species diversity) and between ecosystems (ecosystem diversity).

It is the variation in the ecosystems found in a region or the variation in ecosystems over the whole planet. Biodiversity is important because it clears out our water, changes out climate, and provides us with food. Ecological diversity includes the variation in both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.

Physical attributes can include temperature, hydrology, and physical habitat, as well as major physical events that reshape ecological systems, such as fires, floods, and windstorms. Chemical attributes can include pH, dissolved oxygen concentrations, and nutrients (e.g., nitrogen and phosphorus).

Ecosystems that have high levels of biodiversity have a large number of species, complex food webs, a variety of ecological niches, increased genetic diversity, and abundant resources.

The term biodiversity (from “biological diversity”) refers to the variety of life on Earth at all its levels, from genes to ecosystems, and can encompass the evolutionary, ecological, and cultural processes that sustain life.

Biodiversity boosts ecosystem productivity where each species, no matter how small, all have an important role to play. A larger number of plant species means a greater variety of crops. Greater species diversity ensures natural sustainability for all life forms.

Population – All the members of one species that live in a defined area. Community – All the different species that live together in an area. Ecosystem – All the living and non-living components of an area.

Important direct drivers affecting biodiversity are habitat change, climate change, invasive species, overexploitation, and pollution (CF4, C3, C4. 3, S7).

Biodiversity underpins the health of the planet and has a direct impact on all our lives. Put simply, reduced biodiversity means millions of people face a future where food supplies are more vulnerable to pests and disease, and where fresh water is in irregular or short supply.

Explain how microevolution and migration can affect an ecosystem. Migration can negatively impact an ecosystem if the migration is permanent and leads to the loss of native species. Temporary migration, such as in the case of birds flying south in the winter, can maintain the biodiversity of an ecosystem.

TRUE. Migration is always temporary.