sinaumedia Literacy – Biodiversity or diversity of living things comes from various sources in an ecosystem. Ecosystem is a group of organisms both plants and animals that interact with each other as well as with the surrounding environment. Let’s look at a more complete explanation of biodiversity below, Sinaumed’s.
DEFINITION OF BIODIVERSITY
Biodiversity is a term used for the diversity of natural resources, including the number and frequency of ecosystems, species and genes in a place. Basically diversity describes the various conditions of an object that occur due to differences in terms, size, shape, texture and amount.
While the word biodiversity itself means something that is alive, so Biodiversity can be interpreted as the diversity or diversity of living things that can occur as a result of differences ranging from differences in shape, size, color, number of textures, appearance and also their properties.
Indonesia with its diversity of both flora and fauna, Biodiversity or often known as biodiversity. Biodiversity is a level that exists in the earth and this becomes a benchmark or measure in determining the health of the earth.
The biodiversity that exists in the environment of a terrestrial ecosystem has a higher number than the environmental biodiversity at the poles. This is caused by climate or weather because biodiversity is a function of climate.
Changes that occur in an environment can have a negative impact on species, this is the mass extinction of a species. Historical records show that there have been five mass extinctions during the time life existed on earth. About 540 million years ago, the Phanerozoic eon saw rapid growth in biodiversity.
The rapid growth of species was due to an explosion when multicellular phyla with large majorities first appeared. Then around 400 million years ago, a mass extinction occurred or is often said to be a big loss for biodiversity. It is also said that rainforests are one of the causes of mass extinction due to the presence of an excess of carbon.
It was followed by the most serious mass extinction 251 years ago and recovery which took 30 years. Then the last mass extinction that has existed until now is the Paleogene extinction that occurred about 65 million years ago. This extinction is the most interesting thing because in it the dinosaurs became extinct.
Due to the extinction of the dinosaurs, many types of fauna disappeared from this world. Thus, we can only study their lives through books. sinaumedia has a book entitled Ng Dinopedia Second Edition which contains the most complete types of dinosaurs in the world. Sinaumed’s can purchase this book by clicking “buy now” below.
LEVELS OF BIODIVERSITY
Biodiversity occurs at levels ranging from low organisms to high levels of organisms. These levels are as follows:
1. GENE LEVEL
The book entitled Genes, written by Siddhartha Mukherjee, explains that what forms the characteristics, life, and even the characteristics of all living things is something that is inside each of these creatures, namely genes which are instructions for the formation and operation of the body in the deoxyribonucleic acid molecule or DNA. in all living cells. If Sinaumed’s wants to buy this book, click the “buy now” button above.
This level of diversity is due to variations in genes or gene structure within a species of living thing. Genes are hereditary factors that can be found in chromosomes. Each gene sequence will give each organism an appearance, either anatomy or physiology. If the arrangement is different, then the appearance will also be different in one characteristic or even as a whole.
This diversity is quite easy to recognize by the characteristics that have variations, the same scientific name, and morphological differences that are not too striking. Usually, gene-level biodiversity is referred to as variety.
Examples of gene-level biodiversity in plants:
- Rice (Oryza sativa) with varieties of rojolele rice, ciherang rice, ciliwung rice, and others
- Mango (Mangifera indica) with Varieties of Arumanis Mango, Manalagi Mango, Golek Mango, and others
- Durian (Durio zibethinus) with Petruk Durian Varieties, Bawor durian, Monthong durian, and others.
Examples of gene-level biodiversity in animals:
- Dogs (Canis familiaris) with golden retriever dog breeds, bulldogs, German shepherd dogs, and others
- Cats (Felis catus) with the Angora cat race, Persian cat, sphinx cat, and others
- Cattle (Bos taurus) with Bali cattle, Madura cattle, Fried Holland cattle, and others.
At the gene level of biodiversity, increases can occur through crosses or hybridization between organisms or species with different characteristics as well as the cultivation of wild animals and plants by humans, aka domestication.
2. SPECIES LEVEL
In a book entitled The Origin of Species – On the Origin of Species written by Michael Keller, it discusses the origin of existing species, and whether humans are descended from apes. This book is a graphic adaptation of Chares Darwin’s On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life, which is one of the most famous, controversial, and most important books of all time. .
Sinaumed’s can buy this book by clicking “buy now”. This one diversity can be found in communities or groups of various species of living things in the same genus or family in one place. Usually, the further away from human life, the higher the diversity at the species level. For example, in the forest.
Examples of species-level biodiversity in plants:
- Genus level: Genus Citrus, for example, grapefruit (Citrus maxima), lime (Citrus aurantifolia), and sweet orange (Citrus nobilis). Also, the genus Musa includes fruit bananas (Musa paradisiaca) and fiber bananas (Musa textilis).
- The family level is divided into the Poaceae family on rice (Oryza sativa), corn (Zea mays), and reeds (Imperata cylindrical), and the Zingiberaceae family on turmeric (Curcuma domestica) and ginger (Zingiber officinalis).
Examples of species-level biodiversity in animals:
- The genus level is divided into the Genus Felis and Genus Bos. Genus Felis, including leopard cats (Felis bengalensis), domestic cats (Felis silvestris), and forest cats (Felis chaus) and Genus Bos in humped cattle (Bos indicus), beef and dairy cattle in Europe (Bos Taurus), and native cattle Indonesia (Bossondaicus).
- Family level, divided into the Bovidae family for cattle (Bos) and buffalo (Bubalus) and the Canidae family: wolves (Canis) and foxes (Lycalopex).
3. ECOSYSTEM LEVEL
This diversity occurs due to differences in geographical location that cause climate differences and affect differences in temperature, rainfall, sunlight intensity, and duration of sunlight. With so many differences, the flora and fauna that occupy an area will also vary.
Examples of ecosystem-level biodiversity:
- Moss ecosystems are located in areas around mountain peaks or in cold areas around the poles and are dominated by moss plants. Animals that can be found in it are thick furry animals such as polar bears.
- Conifer forest ecosystems that are dominated by plants with leaves like needles, for example pine or fir, in which there are animals as well as one of them is a bear.
- Tropical rain forest ecosystem with a variety of trees, lianas and epiphytes. Animals that live in it such as monkeys.
- The grassland ecosystem is found in dry areas at an altitude of around 4000 MDPL and is dominated by grasses. In this ecosystem, live large mammals, carnivores and herbivores.
- Desert ecosystems that have marked temperature differences between day and night, strong winds, hot climates, and very little rain and are dominated by xerophytic plant groups such as cacti. Animals that can be found in it are reptiles and small mammals.
- The coastal ecosystem is dominated by pes-caprae and barringtonia formations in the form of shrubs or trees. In it, there are insects, shorebirds, and others.
Based on a book entitled Diversity of Indonesia’s Natural Ecosystems: Short Expressions with Photographs and Images written by Kuswata Kartawinata. It also explained that the characteristics of vegetation or plant communities in an ecosystem are one of the easiest features to use to identify ecosystems in an area.
This is because the form of vegetation is a reflection of the external appearance of the interactions that occur between plants, animals, and their environment. If Sinaumed’s is interested in buying this book, click “buy now” below.
BIODIVERSITY BENEFITS
For example, the galactic bird that lives in the Galapagos Islands, originally this bird came from the same place in South America. Because his life moves around and inhabits different places, over time the beak of the galactic bird changes according to the new environmental conditions of Sinaumed’s.
Biodiversity or biodiversity on earth has vital benefits for the survival of all creatures. The diversity of animals and plants as well as organisms on earth fulfill all kinds of needs that are needed by us as humans. The needs fulfilled by the three include not only primary needs, but also secondary needs. The benefits of biodiversity in the fields of food and clothing, ecology, pharmacy, and science and technology:
THE FOOD AND CLOTHING FIELD
Food is one of the things that must be done by all living things on earth so that their life goes on. Biodiversity has benefits as a useful food ingredient to fulfill energy and nutrition. Living things, especially humans, must have enough energy to carry out their activities.
Biodiversity of plants and animals provides a choice for humans in choosing what kind of food is needed. According to a study, our country has at least hundreds of types of food-producing plants such as vegetables and fruit. It was recorded that 400 fruit-producing species and 370 vegetable-producing species and 55 spices and other producers were recorded.
It is also noted that in our country there are 70 types of tuber-producing species, which of course will further add to the existing diversity. Animal biodiversity is no less amazing because hundreds of species of animals that produce meat and milk and skin live here. Humans can obtain carbohydrate sources from corn, wheat and various types of tubers such as taro.
Furthermore, humans can meet their protein needs from animal products, namely eggs and fish meat and various other marine animals. Nutrition and mineral fulfillment will be obtained from various types of fruits and vegetables such as spinach and citrus fruits. Not only that, milk and coconut water will also increase the protein intake needed by the human body.
In addition, several types of wood have benefits for the interests of the Indonesian people as well as for export purposes, for example, if teak wood is exported, it will generate foreign exchange for the country. Some plants can also be used as medicines and cosmetics (Plants that are often used for cosmetic ingredients are aloe vera, pandanus and various flowers such as roses and jasmine).
Resources derived from animals can be utilized as a source of industrial activity. Two-thirds of Indonesia’s territory is waters that can be used as natural resources with economic value. The sea, rivers and ponds are sources of fisheries in the economic field.
ECOLOGY FIELD
Biodiversity is a very important ecosystem component, for example in tropical rain forests with ecological or environmental values that play a very important role in the survival of living things on earth, including:
- Act as the lungs of the earth. Photosynthetic activities in tropical rain forests can reduce levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere, which means it can reduce air pollution and prevent the greenhouse effect.
- Maintain global climate stability, namely maintaining air temperature and humidity. In addition to functioning to support human life, biodiversity has a role in maintaining ecosystem sustainability. Each type of organism has a role in its ecosystem. This role cannot be replaced by any other type. For example, owls and snakes in the paddy field ecosystem are rat eaters. If these two predators were eradicated by humans, then no one would control the rat population. As a result, rat breeding increased rapidly and rat pests occurred everywhere.
PHARMACY FIELD
Plants that can be used as medicine grow as many as 940 species in Indonesia and 250 of them are used as herbal medicines. Various plants commonly used for medicine are quinine trees with a function as a medicine for malaria because of their alkaloid content. In addition, there is also noni fruit which has a role in reducing high blood pressure.
Not only that, meat from wild animals with venom, namely snakes, is also useful for skin medicine such as itchy skin. Even the fat from snake meat is also believed to have properties in healing various skin diseases that most people often suffer from. Another example is honey which is believed to increase the immune system of anyone who drinks it.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
The wealth of various flora and fauna has long been utilized for the development of science. Until now there are still many animals and plants that have not been studied and their benefits are not known. Thus this situation can still be used as a means of developing knowledge and research for various fields of knowledge.
Classification of Biodiversity
The classification of biodiversity is divided into three, namely natural systems, artificial systems, and phylogenetic.
1. Classification of Natural Systems
As the name implies, the classification of natural system biodiversity is made or created based on the morphological similarities and differences of a living thing. For example, the classification of animals based on how they move (animals with wings, animals with fins, and animals with legs), the classification of plants based on seeds in pieces (seeds with one chip and seeds with two pieces).
2. Classification of Artificial Systems
The classification of biological diversity in artificial systems is the diversity of species that is classified using one or two characteristics of living things. Therefore, this artificial system is usually formed or arranged according to the characteristics of humans. For example, Aristotle classified living things into two groups based on their ability to move and chlorophyll.
3. Classification of Phylogenetic Systems
The phylogenetic classification system is a biological diversity classification system based on the close relationship between one taxon and another. Therefore, the classification of phylogenetic systems can be arranged based on observable characteristics of living things or from phenotypic equations.
Biodiversity in Indonesia
Basically every country already has its own diversity, so both the flora and fauna in a country are not always the same. According to several sources, in Indonesia, diversity is divided into two, namely the biodiversity of flora and fauna.
Flora
The diversity of flora in Indonesia can be said to be very much, but there is one original Indonesian flora whose name is well known abroad, namely Rafflesia Arnoldii or better known by many people as “corpse flower”. The plant is usually found in the forests of Sumatra. Not only a lot, but Indonesia’s flora is also uneven, for example, the number of forests on the islands of Kalimantan, Papua and Sumatra is different from the forests on the islands of Java, the Sunda Islands, Maluku and Sulawesi.
The flora in Indonesia are included in the Malesiana flora . The plants in the Malesiana flora are plants that have very large stems and quite dense leaves. In fact, sometimes there are some plants that look like a forest canopy.
Fauna
Unlike the flora, the fauna of Indonesia is basically divided according to the lines of Wallace and Weber. From these two lines, the Indonesian fauna is divided into three regions, namely Australian, Oriental and Transitional.
The Australian fauna is in the area of Papua and the surrounding islands, one of the animals included in the Australian fauna is the bird of paradise. Meanwhile, Oriental fauna can be found in Java, Bali, Sumatra and Kalimantan. In Oriental fauna we can find animals or fauna that have quite large body sizes, such as the Sumatran Rhino, Elephant, Bull, and so on. Not only large bodies, there are also birds, such as the Javanese Eagle, Bali Starling, and so on.
Finally, Transitional fauna whose territory is located in the Central region of the Indonesian archipelago, such as the Nusa Tenggara Islands. As for animals or flora in the central part of Indonesia, for example Singapore, Sulawesi rangkok, Maleo, and Anoa.
BIODIVE CONSERVATION EFFORTS
INSITU METHOD
The in-situ method is an effort to preserve biodiversity, which is carried out directly where the flora and fauna are. This method provides protection to areas that are considered to have unique ecosystems or endangered flora and fauna. This is usually done by establishing animal sanctuaries, nature reserves, forest nature reserves and national parks:
- Wildlife sanctuary is an effort to protect ecosystems that are considered unique. This uniqueness contains various types of flora and fauna that must be protected.
- A national park is a piece of land that has absolute protection from the government. This soil usually contains protected ecosystems.
- A nature reserve is a state of nature that has distinctive characteristics derived from the flora and fauna in it. Nature reserves also have ecosystems that must be protected.
- Nature reserve forest is a forest that has a protected ecosystem in it. Nature reserve forests are also commonly known as protected forests.
EXITU METHOD
Ex-situ method is a method of preserving biodiversity which is carried out by taking fauna and flora from their original area. The goal is conservation, protection and breeding. This method is also carried out when the ecosystem where the flora and fauna live has been completely destroyed or damaged, so it takes time to be habitable again.
The ex-situ method is also a conservation effort using a collection of rare species, so that the life span of these animals or plants can be longer. In the ex-situ method, there are several ways, namely using zoos, safari parks, and forest parks.
Well, that’s an explanation of the definition, structure, examples, benefits and efforts to preserve biodiversity. One way to preserve biodiversity is to know it first. Hopefully useful Sinaumed’s! Eager to learn.