Ecology and Environmental Diversity

Environmental diversity is defined as the availability of multiple environmental conditions that can co-exist in one space or a spatial sequence. Diversity and biological balance may impact the functioning and stability of ecological systems. Scientists generally agree that a particular ecosystem can potentially lose its flexibility as the number of species in any particular type of ecological system declines.

Environmental Diversity is also concerned with the protection of natural world which includes land, plants, animals, sea and air.

An ecosystem is simply defined as a geographic area where group of living organisms such as animals, plants and other organisms, as well as landscape and weather, work together to form a bubble of life. Ecosystem consists of both living or biotic parts, as well as abiotic factors, or nonliving parts. Plants, animals, and other organisms comes under biotic factors. Water, light, radiation, temperature, humidity, atmosphere, acidity, and soil comes under abiotic factors.

Ecosystem ecology is the integrated study of interactions of living or biotic parts and non-living or abiotic components of ecosystems within an ecosystem framework. The main concept of Ecosystem Ecology is to look into how an ecosystem works and how it is related to their components such as chemicals, bedrock, soil, plants, and animals.

Ecosystem ecology looks into physical and biological structures and investigates how these ecosystem characteristics interact with each other. Eventually, this helps us understand how to maintain good quality water and reasonably viable commodity production. Ecosystem ecology mainly focuses on the functional processes which include primary productivity, decomposition, and trophic interactions.

The biosphere is made up of the parts of Earth where human life exists. The hydrosphere is made up of Earth's water on the surface, in the ground, and in the air. As we know life exists mostly on the ground, in the air, and in the water, the biosphere overlaps all these spheres.

The Biosphere is made up of three parts

1.  Lithosphere
2. Atmosphere
3. Hydrosphere

Environmental Toxicology, This field is concerned with the natural science that's upset regarding the analysis of harmful substances that effect ecosystem, environmental diversity and population within the Earth. Harmful Insecticides, pesticides, pollutants, and fertilizers toxicants that effect biosphere in various ways by reducing its species and its productivity such changes in the pollution affect the ecosystem. There are various kinds of toxicants at any life cycle stage some are different more sensitive than others. Among its essential benefits, the analysis of toxic substances within the earth, Biodegradation releases the carbon dioxide and water in to the atmosphere. This process is limited in certain areas which are affected by environmental toxicants

Pollution is the presence of a waste material and toxic gases within the atmosphere and is mainly because of the results of human actions. Pollution includes a prejudices impact on the atmosphere and environment. The pollution suffered by animals, fish and alternative aquatic life, plants and humans all once cannot be controlled. One in every of the best issues that the planet is facing today is because of environmental pollution, increasing with every passing year and imposing grave and irreparable harm to the planet and its habitats. In some cases, greenhouse gases contribute to pollution and air pollutants contribute to global climate change. Global climate change itself could have an immediate impact on air quality. Another most important problem we are facing now a days is Marine pollution which is probably harmful or once harmful, effects result from the entry into the ocean of harmful chemicals, waste particles, industrial wastes, agricultural and residential waste, noise, or the unfold of invasive organisms.

Natural Ecosystems are one of our most valuable resources, important for sustaining life on the planet. Humans derive a varied benefits from ecosystem such as marketable products such as pharmaceuticals, recreational opportunities such as camping, ecosystems services such as erosion control and water purification. For most of the people, nature plays a very powerful prominent spiritual and aesthetic role in their lives, and many people place a high value on the existence of wilderness and nature for its own sake pollution. In addition to these, here comes a new threat that is global climate change which results in increasing greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere.

The term Biodiversity describes the richness and varied species of life on earth. It is the most critical and complex feature of our planet. Without biodiversity, life would not sustain.

The term biodiversity was coined in 1985. It plays a very crucial in natural as well as artificial ecosystems. It deals with nature’s variety, the biosphere. It refers to variablities among plants, animals and microorganism species. Biodiversity also includes the number of different organisms and their relative frequencies present in an ecosystem. Biodiversity also studies the organization of organisms at different levels.

Types of Biodiversity 

• Ecological Biodiversity
• Genetic Biodiversity
• Species Biodiversity

Ecophysiology is the branch of science that studies how the environment that is both physical and biological components interacts with the physiology of an organism. It also includes the effects of climate and nutrients on physiological processes in both plants and animals, and has a particular focus on how physiological processes scale with organism size.

Environmental science is the branch of science to study the interrelationships between human activities and the environment. It also studies disciplinary academic field that integrates physical, biological and information sciences which also includes ecology, biology, physics, limnology, physical geography, geology, mineralogy, atmospheric science, chemistry, soil science, oceanology and zoology, and plant science to the study of the environment, and the solution of environmental problems. Environmental science came into view from the fields of natural history and medicine during the Enlightenment. Today in the present days it also provides a computable, consolidated, and interdisciplinary approach to the study of environmental systems.

Organismal ecology mainly focuses on the physiological, morphological, and behavioral changes that let an organism survive in a specific habitat. Population ecology studies the number of individuals in an area, as well as how and why their population size changes with respect to time.

Behavioral ecology as well as evolutionary ecology also comes under the heading of organismal ecology. Indeed, up to some extent that almost all of what organisms do is ecological in some manners, what is studied under the heading of organismal biology has substantial overlap with what is studies instead under the more generally as organismal biology.

Biodiversity means the variety of life, including how that life is categorised and associated with respect to ecological processes. The vast amount of life on this planet includes plants, animals, fungi, bacteria and micro-organisms. Life is categorized at a number of different levels: genes that shape the form and function of each individual organism.

Biodiversity conservation, It is generally the practice of preserving and protecting the wealth and variety of species, habitats, ecosystems, and genetic diversity on the planet, It also plays a major role for our health, wealth, food, fuel, and services we depend on. Biodiversity conservation plays a vital role for economic growth and poverty reduction.

The three main objectives of Convention on Biological Diversity are:

• The conservation of biological diversity.
• The sustainable use of the components of biological diversity.
• The fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources.

Human ecology is the term used to define the interactions between man and nature in different cultures. It is the discipline that enquires into the patterns and process of interaction of humans with their environments. Human ecology also says that Human values, wealth, life-styles, resource use, and waste, etc. should affect and be affected by the physical and biotic environments along urban-rural gradients. The ultimate concept of these interactions is a legitimate ecological research topic and one of increasing importance.

The philosophy and study of human ecology has a overlong history with advancements in ecology, psychology, anthropology, geography, sociology, zoology, epidemiology, public health, and home economics, among others.

Global climate change is defined as a long-term shift in global or regional climate patterns. It also often refers specifically to the rise in global temperatures due to global warming from the mid-20th century to present days.

Climate change also refers to sea level rise caused by the expansion of warmer seas and melting glaciers and ice sheets. Climatic changes caused by global warming poses a serious threat to life on earth in the forms of extreme weather and widespread flooding. Scientists are still working to study the various causes of global warming and its impact on Earth.

Environmental indicators are defined as study of environment that provides insight into the state of environment or human health. Since the environment is very complex and vast, these environmental indicators helps us to provide a more economical and practical way to track the state of the environment. The concentrations of ozone depleting substances (ODS) present in the atmosphere are tracked time to time and it is considered as a good indicator with respect to the environmental issue of stratospheric ozone depletion.

Environmental indicators should be referred as a section of sustainable development indicators which are usually meant to track and record the overall sustainability of a society with respect to its environmental, social and economic integrity and health.

Natural resource management is the study of management of natural resources  that present in our ecosystem such as land, soil, plants, animals, water, with a targeted focus on how management affects the quality way of life for both the generations.

Natural resource management deals with managing the way in which people and natural landscapes interact with each other. NRM also brings together natural heritage management, land use planning, bio-diversity conservation, water management, and the future stability of industries like tourism, fisheries and forestry, agriculture, mining. It also recognises that people and their livelihoods totally depend on the quality health and good productivity of our landscapes, and their actions as representators of the land play a most important role in maintaining this health and productivity.

Genetic Diversity is defined as the term which refers to the range of different inherited traits within a species. There would be many individuals with a wide variety of different trait in a species with high genetic diversity. Genetic diversity plays a crucial for a population to adapt to changing environments.

The human population is comprised of large number of individuals with different physical traits reflecting their genetic diversity. Genetic diversity is also observed among species. For example, the population of dog consists of different breeds of dogs.

The primary source of energy for organisms and the ecosystems of which they belong to is sun. Plants and algae, use energy that comes from sunlight to make food energy by combining carbon dioxide and water to form organic matter, these are called as producers.

Energy is generally transferred between organisms from producers to consumers in food webs. This energy is used to carry out complex tasks by organisms. In a food chain system, most of the chemical energy is converted to other forms such as heat at every stage, and does not remain within the ecosystem.

The major roles of energy within an ecosystem are producer, consumer, and decomposer. Photosynthesis is a process through which organisms make their own food by using the sun's energy to turn water and carbon dioxide into food. Producers are the basic source of all the food available in an ecosystem.

An endangered species is a species that is much likely to become extinct in the coming future days, either worldwide or in a particular area or country. These Endangered species may be at risk due to various factors such as habitat loss, hunting illegally and invasive species. The global conservation status of many species, and various other agencies assess the status of species within particular areas are listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. Many nations have imposed strict laws that protect conservation-reliant species which, for example, forbidding illegal hunting, restrict land development, or create protected areas. Some of extensive conservation efforts such as captive breeding and habitat restoration have their main motto as conserve some of the endangered species.