Before we can understand the effect of the loss of biodiversity and see reason why we need to tackle it, let us first understand what biodiversity is all about.

BIODIVERSITY

This refers to the variety of species of life on earth at all its levels; from genes to ecosystem and can encompass the evolution, ecological and cultural process that sustains life.

Biodiversity does not just include species we consider rare, threatened or endangered, but also every living thing; from we humans to organisms we know little or nothing about such as microbes, fungi and invertebrate.

Biodiversity plays a very important role to our wellbeing and that of the ecosystem by helping maintain a diverse, stable and healthy planet.

IMPORTANCE OF BIODIVERSITY

It is very Important to most aspect of our lives.

We value biodiversity for many reasons such as provision for food, shelter and medicine which are some of the basic necessities we need as humans.

Further, the ecosystem provide crucial services such as pollination, seed dispersal, climate regulation, water purification, nutrient cycling and control of agricultural pest. It holds value for potential benefits yet to be recognized such as new medicines and other unknown services.

Finally, the value of biodiversity can also be understood through the lens of relationships we form and strive for with each other and the rest of nature.



LOSS OF BIODIVERSITY

When we talk about lost of biodiversity, we are referring to the death or extinction of an entire specie or species. Over the last century, humans have come to dominate the planet, causing rapid changes in the ecosystem and massive loss of biodiversity across the planet. While the earth has always experienced changes and extinctions, they are occurring at an unprecedented rate today.

CAUSES OF LOSS OF BIODIVERSITY

Loss of biodiversity is caused by five primary drivers;

Habitat loss,

Invasive species,

Overexploitation,

Pollution, and

Climate change.

In each case, humans and their activities have been known to play a major role. 

The roles humans have played in influencing this primary drivers include;

Human exponential population growth,

Increased consumption as each person strives on for a more affluent lifestyle,

Reduced resource efficiency.


HABITAT LOSS:

Due to population growth, the need for humans to occupy more land mass, has caused the need for some forests and other wildlife habitat to be destroyed, thereby leading to a loss of habitat of the species present in those habitat. As this continues, it has cause a loss of diverse species, as those species that have been driven from their natural habitat would die off because of being unable to adapt to their new home.



INVASIVE SPECIES:

An invasive species is said to be a modified species living outside its natural space. Due to their modified nature, an invasive species can cause a disrupt to an ecosystem, as it proves to be a far better competitor than the native species present in that ecosystem. They may consume food and other resources more rapidly than their competitors and if need be, they may also prey on the native species, and if this native species have no natural defense against their invaders, they may be made extinct from the ecosystem.

OVER-EXPLOITATION:

When humans tend to go beyond the limit of resource exploitation, it can cause a major loss of biodiversity, as this resources wouldn’t be given enough time to regenerate. Over-exploitation has led to deforestation and extinction of both plant and animal species.

POLLUTION:

The addition of harmful nutrients or substances to an ecosystem. In a polluted area, the quality of food, water and other habitat resources tend to decline, sometimes leading to a point where some or most of the species move away or perish. Consequently, with such deep population loss, one could understand how genetics diversity of a species in an area could be lost.

CLIMATE CHANGE:

Climate change such as global warming has led to disasters such as wildfires and droughts. This disasters have caused various damages to the presence of biodiversity in such regions as either this species are either killed or driven away from their natural habitat.


EFFECTS OF LOSS OF BIODIVERSITY

The loss of biodiversity has resulted in the following;

Degradation of ecosystems,

Disruption of water cycles and ecosystems,

Soil erosion,

Global warming,

Ecosystem instability,

Flooding of coastal cities and island nations,

Marine life extinction,

Desertification of the arable land,

Melting ice sheets and glaciers,

Embedded droughts, and

Outbreak of diseases.


CONSEVATION OF BIODIVERSITY

Biodiversity conservation techniques include the following;

Establishment of protected areas like national parks, game reserve, forest reserves, biosphere reserve and strict natural reserves and habitats like other world heritage sites which are biodiversity hotspot.

Creation of more conservation areas of various statuses.

Strict adherence to forest resources conservation in every country.

Market oriented approach to biodiversity conservation.

Creation of world heritage site for protection of marine biodiversity.

Mass awareness and people participation in biodiversity conservation.

Traditional knowledge and conservation of aquatic biodiversity, e.g fish location, movement and other factors, to explain spatial pattern and time in aquatic ecosystem.

Research strategies- A call to greater investment in research is eminent to improving the quality of information on relationship between land use and biodiversity benefits. Such strategies must integrate the physical, economic, social and cultural conditions of the farmers so as to come up with innovations and technologies that conserve and sustain biodiversity.


-- Warrence Oghenevwegba, undergraduate environmentalist.