Explain why there is a need of variety of animals and plants in a forest

Biodiversity includes not only species we consider rare, threatened, or endangered but also every living thing—from humans to organisms we know little about, such as microbes, fungi, and invertebrates. At the Center for Biodiversity and Conservation, we include humans and human cultural diversity as a part of biodiversity. We use the term “biocultural” to describe the dynamic, continually evolving and interconnected nature of people and place, and the notion that social and biological dimensions are interrelated. This concept recognizes that human use, knowledge, and beliefs influence, and in turn are influenced, by the ecological systems of which human communities are a part. This relationship makes all of biodiversity, including the species, land and seascapes, and the cultural links to the places where we live—be right where we are or in distant lands—important to our wellbeing as they all play a role in maintaining a diverse and healthy planet. Why Is Biodiversity Important? Biodiversity is important to most aspects of our lives. We value biodiversity for many reasons, some utilitarian, some intrinsic. This means we value biodiversity both for what it provides to humans, and for the value it has in its own right. Utilitarian values include the many basic needs humans obtain from biodiversity such as food, fuel, shelter, and medicine. Further, ecosystems provide crucial services such as pollination, seed dispersal, climate regulation, water purification, nutrient cyclin...

A rainforest is an area of tall, mostly evergreen trees and a high amount of rainfall. Rainforests are Earth’s oldest living ecosystems, with some surviving in their present form for at least 70 million years. They are incredibly diverse and complex, home to more than half of the world’s plant and animal species—even though they cover just six percent of Earth’s surface. This makes rainforests astoundingly dense with flora and fauna; a 10-square-kilometer (four-square-mile) patch can contain as many as 1,500 flowering plants, 750 species of trees, 400 species of birds and 150 species of butterflies. Rainforests thrive on every continent except Antarctica. The largest rainforests on Earth surround the Amazon River in South America and the Congo River in Africa. The tropical islands of Southeast Asia and parts of Australia support dense rainforest habitats. Even the cool evergreen forests of North America’s Pacific Northwest and Northern Europe are a type of rainforest. Rainforests’ rich biodiversity is incredibly important to our well-being and the well-being of our planet. Rainforests help regulate our climate and provide us with everyday products. Unsustainable industrial and agricultural development, however, has severely degraded the health of the world’s rainforests. Citizens, governments, intergovernmental organizations, and conservation groups are working together to protect these invaluable but fragile ecosystems. Rainforest Structure Most rainforests are structured...

A greater variety of plants and animals in the forests helps it to regenerate and grow. Greater variety of plants means more food and habitat for the herbivores. An increase in herbivores means more food for carnivores.Decomposers help to maintain the supply of nutrients to the soil and to the growing plants. This wide variety makes forest a dynamic living entity.

The food chain describes who eats whom in the wild. Every living thing—from one-celled algae to giant blue whales—needs food to survive. Each food chain is a possible pathway that energy and nutrients can follow through the ecosystem. For example, grass produces its own food from sunlight. A rabbit eats the grass. A fox eats the rabbit. When the fox dies, bacteria break down its body, returning it to the soil where it provides nutrients for plants like grass. Of course, many different animals eat grass, and rabbits can eat other plants besides grass. Foxes, in turn, can eat many types of animals and plants. Each of these living things can be a part of multiple food chains. All of the interconnected and overlapping food chains in an ecosystem make up a food web. Trophic Levels Organisms in food chains are grouped into categories called trophic levels. Roughly speaking, these levels are divided into producers (first trophic level), consumers (second, third, and fourth trophic levels), and decomposers. Producers, also known as autotrophs, make their own food. They make up the first level of every food chain. Autotrophs are usually plants or one-celled organisms. Nearly all autotrophs use a process called photosynthesis to create “food” (a nutrient called glucose) from sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water. Plants are the most familiar type of autotroph, but there are many other kinds. Algae, whose larger forms are known as seaweed, are autotrophic. Phytoplankton, tiny organisms...

• Forests are the essential life on earth. All plants and animals continue to live in forest life. • Forest plays an important role in the ecological balance, environmental balance, etc. • Each and every living being in the forest is interconnected so that the carbon dioxide and oxygen cycle will be balancedand when anyone among them is out of balance it results in the entire organisms being weakened. • When animals and plants die, the various microorganisms present in the soil helps to convert the dead and decayed matter into humus and thus the fertility of soil can be increased which boosts up the plant growth. • All food chains and food webs need a variety of plants and animals. In laboratory experiments, two special of the protest paramecium (species 1 and 2) were grown along and in the presence of the other species. The following graphs show growth of species 1 and species 2, both alone and when in mixed culture with the other species. Which of the following conclusions can be drawn from the graphs?

Each biome, or community of plants and animals in a certain climate, has life-forms characteristic of that place. For instance, the plants and animals that inhabit the Amazon rainforest are completely distinct from those in the Arctic tundra. However, not everyone agrees on exactly what constitutes a biome and defining them presents a challenge. Defining Biomes Biomes are sometimes confused with similar ecological concepts, such as habitats and ecosystems. Ecosystems are the interactions between biota, such as plants and animals, within the environment, and many ecosystems can make up a single biome. Nutrient and energy flow also play a critical role in ecosystems. A habitat, on the other hand, is specific to a population or species; it is the area in which that group lives. Meanwhile, biomes describe life on a much larger scale than either habitats or ecosystems. The term “biome” was first used in 1916 by Frederic E. Clements, an American ecologist, to describe the plants and animals in a given habitat. In 1939, it was further defined by Clements and fellow ecologist Victor Shelford. Over time scientists continued to expand and refine the definition of biome and related concepts in the burgeoning field of ecology, and in 1963, Shelford characterized the following biomes: tundra, coniferous forest, deciduous forest, grassland, and desert. Later, ecologist Arthur Tansley created a separate definition for ecosystems, which was more inclusive of biological processes than the ...

• New • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

• Variety of animals and plants living in forests build a rich biodiversity. Different animals and plants play a different role in forest. [1 mark] • For example, herbivores eat green plants and provide food for the carnivores. Similarly, carnivores eat the herbivores and check their population. This biodiversity makes forests more productive and stable. [1 mark] • If there is no grass, all herbivores would die. If there are no carnivores, the herbivores would eat up all the plants and there will be a shortage of food. If there are no decomposers, the dead remains of plants and animals would pollute the environment. [1 mark] • Due to such a biodiversity, a balance in nature is maintained. [1 mark]

The food chain describes who eats whom in the wild. Every living thing—from one-celled algae to giant blue whales—needs food to survive. Each food chain is a possible pathway that energy and nutrients can follow through the ecosystem. For example, grass produces its own food from sunlight. A rabbit eats the grass. A fox eats the rabbit. When the fox dies, bacteria break down its body, returning it to the soil where it provides nutrients for plants like grass. Of course, many different animals eat grass, and rabbits can eat other plants besides grass. Foxes, in turn, can eat many types of animals and plants. Each of these living things can be a part of multiple food chains. All of the interconnected and overlapping food chains in an ecosystem make up a food web. Trophic Levels Organisms in food chains are grouped into categories called trophic levels. Roughly speaking, these levels are divided into producers (first trophic level), consumers (second, third, and fourth trophic levels), and decomposers. Producers, also known as autotrophs, make their own food. They make up the first level of every food chain. Autotrophs are usually plants or one-celled organisms. Nearly all autotrophs use a process called photosynthesis to create “food” (a nutrient called glucose) from sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water. Plants are the most familiar type of autotroph, but there are many other kinds. Algae, whose larger forms are known as seaweed, are autotrophic. Phytoplankton, tiny organisms...

A greater variety of plants and animals in the forests helps it to regenerate and grow. Greater variety of plants means more food and habitat for the herbivores. An increase in herbivores means more food for carnivores.Decomposers help to maintain the supply of nutrients to the soil and to the growing plants. This wide variety makes forest a dynamic living entity.