BIODIVERSITY

Biodiversity is the degree of variation of life.It is a measure of the variety of organisms present in different ecosystems. This can refer to genetic variation, ecosystem variation, or species variation (number of species) within an area, biome, or planet. Terrestrial biodiversity tends to be highest near the equator,which seems to be the result of the warm climate and high primary productivity.Biodiversity is not distributed evenly on Earth. It is the richest in the tropics. Marine biodiversity tends to be highest along coasts in the Western Pacific, where sea surface temperature is highest and in the mid-latitudinal band in all oceans. There are latitudinal gradients in species diversity. Biodiversity generally tends to cluster in hotspots, and has been increasing through time but will be likely to slow in the future.

Rapid environmental changes typically cause mass extinctions.Although more than 99 percent of all species that ever lived on the planet are estimated to be extinct,there are currently 10–14 million species of life on the Earth.

The earliest evidences for life on Earth are graphite found to be biogenic in 3.7 billion-year-old metasedimentary rocks discovered in Western Greenlandand microbial mat fossils found in 3.48 billion-year-old sandstone discovered in Western Australia. Since life began on Earth, five major mass extinctions and several minor events have led to large and sudden drops in biodiversity. The Phanerozoic eon (the last 540 million years) marked a rapid growth in biodiversity via the Cambrian explosion—a period during which the majority of multicellular phyla first appeared.The next 400 million years included repeated, massive biodiversity losses classified as mass extinction events. In the Carboniferous, rainforest collapse led to a great loss of plant and animal life.The Permian–Triassic extinction event, 251 million years ago, was the

worst; vertebrate recovery took 30 million years.The most recent, the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, occurred 65 million years ago and has often attracted more attention than others because it resulted in the extinction of the dinosaurs.

PLANTS DIVERSITY

Green plants have cell walls with cellulose and characteristically obtain most of their energy from sunlight via photosynthesis by primary chloroplasts, derived from endosymbiosis with cyanobacteria. Their chloroplasts contain chlorophylls a and b which gives them their green color. Some plants are parasitic and have lost the ability to produce normal amounts of chlorophyll or to photosynthesize. Plants are also characterized by sexual reproduction, modular and indeterminate growth, and an alternation of generations, although asexual reproduction is common.

Precise numbers are difficult to determine, but as of 2010, there are thought to be 300–315 thousand species of plants, of which the great majority, some 260–290 thousand, are seed plants (see the table below).Green plants provide most of the world's molecular oxygen and are the basis of most of the earth's ecologies, especially on land. Plants that produce grains, fruits and vegetables form mankind's basic foodstuffs, and have been domesticated for millennia. Plants are used as ornaments and, until recently and in great variety, they have served as the source of most medicines and drugs. The scientific study of plants is known as botany, a branch of biology.

CANNONBALL TREE

cannonball tree, (Couroupitaguianensis), tall, soft-wooded tree, of the family Lecythidaceae, native to northeastern South America and notable for its large, spherical woody fruit, which resembles a rusty cannonball. The tree is also cultivated in the southern regions of North America.

The leaves are oval, oblong, or broadly lance shaped; the leaf margins are smooth or finely toothed. The showy flowers, borne in racemes 60–90 cm (2–3 feet) long, grow straight from the trunk and have concave petals about 5 cm (2 inches) long. They are yellow or red on the outside and crimson or lilac on the inside. The fruit, which grows to 20 cm (8 inches) in diameter, is pulpy on the inside and contains many seeds. The hard shell is used locally to make utensils.

FERN

A fern is a member of a group of roughly 12,000 species[3] of vascular plants that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. They differ from mosses by being vascular (i.e. having water-conducting vessels). They have stems and leaves, like other vascular plants. Most ferns have what are called fiddleheads that expand into fronds, which are each delicately divided.[4]

Leptosporangiate ferns (sometimes called "true ferns") are by far the largest group, but ferns as defined here (ferns sensulato) include horsetails, whisk ferns, marattioid ferns, and ophioglossoid ferns. This group may be referred to as monilophytes. The term pteridophyte traditionally refers to ferns plus a few other seedless vascular plants (see the classification section below), although some recent authors have used the term to refer strictly to the monilophytes.

Ferns first appear in the fossil record 360 million years ago in the late Devonian period but many of the current families and species did not appear until roughly 145 million years ago in the early Cretaceous, after flowering plants came to dominate many environments. The fern Osmundaclaytoniana is a paramount example of evolutionary stasis. Paleontological evidence indicates it has remained unchanged, even at the level of fossilized nuclei and chromosomes, for at least 180 million years.

Ferns are not of major economic importance, but some are grown or gathered for food, as ornamental plants, for remediating contaminated soils, and have been the subject of research for their ability to remove some chemical pollutants from the air. Some are significant weeds. They also play a role in mythology, medicine, and art.

ANIMAL DIVERSITY

The diverse appearance of animals is mostly superficial; the bewildering variety of known forms, some truly bizarre, can be assorted among a mere half-dozen basic body plans. These plans are established during the embryonic stages of development and limit the size and complexity of the animals. Symmetry, number and relative development of tissue layers, presence and nature of

body cavities, and several aspects of early development define these fundamental modes of organization

Animals are multicellular, eukaryotic organisms of the kingdomAnimalia (also called Metazoa). Their body plan eventually becomes fixed as they develop, although some undergo a process of metamorphosis later on in their lives. All animals are motile, meaning they can move spontaneously and independently, at some point in their lives. All animals are heterotrophs: they must ingest other organisms or their products for sustenance.

Most known animal phyla appeared in the fossil record as marine species during the Cambrian explosion, about 542 million years ago. Animals are divided into various sub-groups, some of which are: vertebrates (birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles, fish); molluscs (clams, oysters, octopuses, squid, snails); arthropods (millipedes, centipedes, insects, spiders, scorpions, crabs, lobsters, shrimp); annelids

(earthworms, leeches); sponges; and jellyfish

SWAMP DEER

Swamp Deer, also known as Barasingha, is one of the most vulnerable species of deer of the Indian subcontinent as well as the world. Presently, one can find them only in the protected sanctuaries of India. Known by the scientific name of Cervusduvauceli, the swamp deep of India derives its name, Barasingha, from its large antlers. An adult male swamp deer has huge antlers, which branch to over twelve points.

Swamp deer is a medium sized deer, which grows to a maximum height of 130 cm and weighs around 180 kg. Its thick brown coat helps it in remaining warm and dry in the moist habitat it resides in. As the mating season approaches, the coat of the Barasingha becomes darker in color. A male deer has huge antlers, which can grow to length of 75 cm.

Facts about Indian Swamp Deer

Scientific Name: CervusduvauceliMating Season: November and DecemberGestation Period: 6 monthsNumber of Offspring: One Natural Habitat: Marshes or swamplands

Height: 130 cmWeight: 180 kgLength of Antlers: 75 cmNumber of Sub-species:

Three

HIMALAYAN MONAL

The Himalayan Monal is a scarce near-endemic pheasant found in the higher altitudes of the Himalaya. It is Nepal's national bird. The 72cm male is a sight to behold in the cold dark landscape of the high Himalaya. Females are drabber in comparison and are smaller in size.

The Monal is placed in the genus Lophophorus of the Pheasant family, Phasianidae. There are three species within the genus Lophophorus of which two occur in India.

SNOW LEOPARD

The snow leopard (Pantheraunciasyn.Unciauncia) is a large cat native to the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia. It is listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species because as of 2003, the size of the global population was estimated at 4,080-6,590 adults, of which fewer than 2,500 individuals may reproduce in the wild.

Snow leopards inhabit alpine and subalpine zones at elevations from 3,000 to 4,500 m (9,800 to 14,800 ft). In the northern range countries, they also occur at lower elevations.

Taxonomically, the snow leopard was classified as Unciauncia since the early 1930s.Based on genotyping studies,

the cat has been considered a member of the genusPanthera since 2008. Two subspecies have been attributed, but genetic differences between the two have not been settled.

LARGEST BIRDS

The largest living bird, a member of the Struthioniformes, is the ostrich (Struthiocamelus), from the plains of Africa and Arabia. A large male ostrich can reach a height of 2.8 m (9.2 ft) and weigh over 156 kg (345 lb). A mass of 200 kg (440 lb) has been cited for the ostrich but no wild ostriches of this massive weight have been verified. Eggs laid by the ostrich can weigh 1.4 kg (3 lb) and are the largest eggs in the world today.

The largest bird in the fossil record may be the extinct elephant birds (Aepyornis) of Madagascar, which were related to the ostrich. They exceeded 3 m (10 ft) in height and 500 kg (1,120 lb). The last of the elephant birds became extinct about 300 years ago. Of almost exactly the same upper proportions as the largest elephant birds was Dromornisstirtoni of Australia, part of a 26,000-year-old group called mihirungs of the family Dromornithidae. The largest carnivorous bird was Brontornis, an extinct flightless bird from South America which reached a weight of 350 to 400 kg (770 to 880 lb) and a height of about 2.8 m (9 ft 2 in). The tallest bird ever however was the giant moa (Dinornismaximus), part of the moa family of New Zealand that went extinct around 1500 CE.

Table of heaviest living birdsRan

k AnimalAverage

mass[kg (lb)]

Maximum mass

[kg (lb)]

Average total length

[cm (ft)]1 Ostrich 104 (230) 156.8 (346) 210 (6.9)2 Southern

cassowary 45 (99) 85 (190) 155 (5.1)3 Northern 44 (97) 75 (170) 149 (4.9)

cassowary4 Emu 33 (73) 70 (150) 153 (5)5 Emperor

penguin 31.5 (69) 46 (100) 114 (3.7)6 Greater rhea 23 (51) 40 (88) 134 (4.4)7 Dwarf

cassowary 19.7 (43) 34 (75) 105 (3.4)8 Lesser rhea 19.6 (43) 28.6 (63) 96 (3.2)9 King penguin 13.6 (30) 20 (44) 92 (3)

RICERiceis the seed of the grass species Oryza sativa (Asian rice)

or Oryzaglaberrima (African rice). As a cereal grain, it is the most widely consumed staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in Asia. It is the agricultural commodity with the third-highest worldwide production, after sugarcane and maize, according to data of FAOSTAT 2012.

Since a large portion of maize crops are grown for purposes

other than human consumption, rice is the most important grain with regard to human nutrition and caloric intake, providing more than one fifth of the calories consumed worldwide by humans.

Chinese legends attribute the domestication of rice to Shennong, the legendary Emperor of China and inventor of Chinese agriculture. Genetic evidence has shown that rice originates from a single domestication 8,200–13,500 years ago in the Pearl River valley region of China. Previously, archaeological evidence had suggested that rice was domesticated in the Yangtze River valley region in China.From East Asia, rice was spread to Southeast and South Asia. Rice was introduced to Europe through Western Asia, and to the Americas through European colonization.

HERBS

Herbs are any plants used for food, flavoring, medicine, or perfume. Culinary use typically distinguishes herbs as referring to the leafy green parts of a plant (either fresh or dried), from a "spice", a product from another part of the plant (usually dried), including seeds, berries, bark, roots and fruits.

In botanical English the word "herb" is also used as a synonym of "herbaceous plant".

Herbs have a variety of uses including culinary, medicinal, and in some cases spiritual usage. General usage of the term "herb" differs between culinary herbs and medicinal herbs. In medicinal or spiritual use any of the parts of the plant might be considered "herbs", including leaves, roots, flowers, seeds, resin, root bark, inner bark (and cambium), berries and sometimes the pericarp or other portions of the plant.

FLOWER

The flowering plants (angiosperms), also known as Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta, are the most diverse group of land plants. Angiosperms are seed-producing plants like the gymnosperms and can be distinguished from the gymnosperms by characteristics including flowers, endosperm within the seeds, and the production of fruits that contain the seeds. Etymologically, angiosperm means a plant that produces seeds within an enclosure, in other words, a fruiting plant.

The ancestors of flowering plants diverged from gymnosperms around 245–202 million years ago, and the first flowering plants known to exist are from 160 million years ago. They diversified enormously during the Lower Cretaceous and became widespread around 120 million years ago, but replaced conifers as the dominant trees only around 60–100 million years ago.

FOREST DIVERSITY `

Forestry in India is a significant rural industry and a major environmental resource. India is one of the ten most forest-rich countries of the world along with the Russian Federation, Brazil, Canada, United States of America, China, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Australia, Indonesia and Sudan. Together, India and these countries account for 67 percent of total forest area of the world.India's forest cover grew at 0.22% annually over 1990-2000, and has grown at the rate of 0.46% per year over 2000-2010, after decades where forest degradation was a matter of serious concern.

As of 2010, the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations estimates India's forest cover to be about 68 million hectares, or 24% of the country's area.The 2013 Forest Survey of India states its forest cover increased to 69.8 million hectares by 2012, per satellite measurements; this represents an increase of 5,871 square kilometers of forest cover in 2 years.However, the gains were primarily in northern, central and southern Indian states, while northeastern states witnessed a net loss in forest cover over 2010 to 2012.

In 2002, forestry industry contributed 1.7% to India's GDP. In 2010, the contribution to GDP dropped to 0.9%, largely because of rapid growth of the economy in other sectors and the government's decision to reform and reduce import tariffs to let imports satisfy the growing Indian demand for wood products. India produces a range of processed forest (wood and non-wood)

products ranging from wood panel products and wood pulp to make bronze, rattazikistan ware and pern resin. India's paper industry produces over 3,000 metric tonnes annually from more than 400 mills.The furniture and craft industry is another consumer of wood. India's wood-based processing industries consumed about 30 million cubic metres of industrial wood in 2002.

FOREST AND FIELDS

THE COASTLAND AND ISLANDCoastal India spans from the south west Indian coastline

along the Arabian sea from the coastline of the Gulf of Kutch in its western most corner and stretches across the Gulf of Khambhat, and through the Salsette Island of mumbai along the Konkan and southwards across the Raigad region and through Kanara and further down through Mangalapuram or Mangalore and along the Malabar through Cape Comorin in the southernmost region of South India with coastline along the Indian Ocean and through the Coromandal Coast or Cholamandalam Coastline on the South Eastern Coastline of the Indian Subcontinent along the Bay of Bengal through the UtkalaKalinga region until the easternmost Corner of shoreline near the Sunderbans in Coastal East India.

OCEANSAn ocean (from Ancient GreekὨκεανός, transc. Okeanós, the

sea of classical antiquity is a body of saline water that composes much of a planet's hydrosphere. On Earth, an ocean is one of the major conventional divisions of the World Ocean, which occupies two-thirds of the planet's surface. These are, in descending order by area, the Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Southern, and Arctic Oceans.The word sea is often used interchangeably with "ocean" in American English but, strictly speaking, a sea is a body of saline water (generally a division of the world ocean) partly or fully enclosed by land.

Saline water covers approximately 72% of the planet's surface (~3.6×108 km2) and is customarily divided into several principal oceans and smaller seas, with the ocean covering approximately 71% of the Earth's surface.The ocean contains 97% of the Earth's water, and oceanographers have stated that only 5% of the World Ocean has been explored. The total volume is approximately 1.3 billion cubic kilometers (310 million cu mi) with an average depth of 3,682 meters (12,080 ft).

Because it is the principal component of Earth's hydrosphere, the world ocean is integral to all known life, forms part of the carbon cycle, and influences climate and weather patterns. It is the habitat of 230,000 known species, although much of the oceans depths remain unexplored, and over two million marine species are estimated to exist.

JELLYFISH

Jellyfish or jellies are the major non-polyp form of individuals of the phylum Cnidaria . They are typified as free-swimming marine animals consisting of a gelatinous umbrella-shaped bell and trailing tentacles. The bell can pulsate for locomotion, while stinging tentacles can be used to capture prey.

Jellyfish are found in every ocean, from the surface to the deep sea. Scyphozoans are exclusively marine, but some hydrozoans live in freshwater. Large, often colorful, jellyfish are common in coastal zones worldwide. Jellyfish have roamed the seas for at least 500 million years, and possibly 700 million years or more, making them the oldest multi-organ animal

SEA PLANTS

Sea plants like marine algae, seagrasses, marsh grass, and mangroves provide habitats formany marine creatures including shrimp, bivalves, fish, plankton, and other small organisms. In large concentrations, these plants stabilize the substrate that might otherwise be affected by erosion. From the human perspective, wetlands and mangrove stands offer a buffer against storms such as hurricanes, protecting the inland areas where people live – especially in places like the coastlines of Florida and Louisiana.

Mangroves, marine algae, seagrasses, and marsh grass play another vital role for many marine creatures – that of nursery. Many animals spawn in these areas because their young have a better chance of evading predators while hidden in the plants. Many animals rely on these plants as a main food source as well. Sea urchins are just one example of an invertebrate that eats marine algae, also keeping the algae in check against overgrowth. Without these vital plants, marine animals would have little protection from the elements, predators, and human activities

CORALS

Corals are marine invertebrates in the class Anthozoa of phylum Cnidaria . They typically live in compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. The group includes the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.

A coral "head" is a colony of myriad genetically identical polyps. Each polyp is a spineless animal typically only a few millimeters in diameter and a few centimeters in length. A set of tentacles surround a central mouth opening. An exoskeleton is excreted near the base. Over many generations, the colony thus creates a large skeleton that is characteristic of the species. Individual heads grow by asexual reproduction of polyps. Corals also breed sexually by spawning: polyps of the same species release gametes simultaneously over a period of one to several nights around a full moon.

Although some corals can catch small fish and plankton, using stinging cells on their tentacles, like those in sea anemone and jellyfish, most corals obtain the majority of their energy and nutrients from photosynthetic unicellular algae that live within the coral's tissue called zooxanthella (also known as Symbiodinium).

WESTERN GHATS

The Western Ghats are a mountain range that runs almost parallel to the western coast of the Indian peninsula, located entirely in India. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is one of the eight "hottest hotspots" of biological diversity in the world. It is sometimes called the Great Escarpment of India.[3] The range runs north to south along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau, and separates the plateau from a narrow coastal plain, called Konkan, along the Arabian Sea. A total of thirty nine properties including national parks, wildlife sanctuaries and reserve forests were designated as world heritage sites - twenty

in Kerala, ten in Karnataka, five in Tamil Nadu and four in Maharashtra.

The range starts near the border of Gujarat and Maharashtra, south of the Tapti river, and runs approximately 1,600 km (990 mi) through the states of Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu ending at Kanyakumari, at the southern tip of India. These hills cover 160,000 km2 (62,000 sq mi) and form the catchment area for complex riverine drainage systems that drain almost 40% of India. The Western Ghats block southwest monsoon winds from reaching the Deccan Plateau. The average elevation is around 1,200 m (3,900 ft).