[CBSE 11] [TB 11]

Diversity in the Living World

If you look around you will see a large variety of living organisms, be it potted plants, insects, birds, your pets, or other animals and plants. There are also several organisms that you cannot see with your naked eye but they are all around you. If you were to increase the area that you make observations in, the range and variety of organisms that you see would increase. Obviously, if you were to visit a dense forest, you would probably see a much greater number and kinds of living organisms in it. Each different kind of plant, animal, or organism that you see, represents a species. The number of species that are known and described ranges between 1.7-1.8 million. This refers to biodiversity or the number and types of organisms present on earth. We should remember here that as we explore new areas, and even old ones, new organisms are continuously being identified.

What is Biodiversity?

• The term biodiversity was coined in 1985.
• It deals with nature’s variety, the biosphere. It refers to variabilities among plants, animals, and microorganism species.
• Biological diversity largely describes the change of life from genes to ecosystems, comprising their existences, genetic variations, their environment, populations and the ecosystem in which they are existing, and other evolutionary developments that keep the system functioning, changing, and adapting.

Types of Biodiversity:

• Genetic Biodiversity
• Species Biodiversity
• Ecological Biodiversity

1. Species diversity:

Species diversity is the number of different species that are represented in a given community.

2. Genetic Diversity:

Genetic diversity refers to the genetic variation that occurs among members of the same species. 

3. Ecological Biodiversity:

Ecological biodiversity refers to the variations in the plant and animal species living together and connected by food chains and food webs.