Biodiversity
By: Harsh Bhatt,
Shehzaib Khan, Quintin Sudom &
Josh Barber
Part A: Diversity
What is Biodiversity?
 Biodiversity or also known as
Biological Diversity is the
richness and variety of life and
ecosystems on the Earth. This
includes different forms of
living organisms such as plants
and animals to even the
smallest things such as
bacteria. They all live in
different habitats which are
suitable for them. This
includes the processes that are
part of ecosystems as well.
What is
Sustainability?
 Sustainability is the ability
to maintain ecological
processes over time.
Part A: Diversity
How does Biodiversity relate to the
sustainability of ecosystems?
 Biodiversity is very closely
related to sustainability.
 The more biodiversity an
ecosystem has, the more
sustainable it is.
How?
If there is a variety of genes
and species in an
ecosystem, the ecosystem
can carry out natural
processes more effectively
if in the face of external
stress. Thus, it is more
sustainable.
Part A: Diversity
Explain the 5 components of Biodiversity.
• 1. Ecosystem Diversity: there are many kinds of ecosystems such as lakes,
streams, forests and marshes. This is ecosystem diversity.
• 2. Community Diversity: a whole lot of different species living within a
community. This is community diversity.
• 3. Species Diversity: there are a lot of differences within a specific species.
This is species diversity.
• 4. Genetic Diversity: there is a mixture of different genetic material in all
living things.
• 5. Species Distribution Diversity: plant and animal species are not evenly
distributed throughout the various ecosystems on Earth.
Part A: Diversity
What area of the Earth
do we find the most
biodiversity?
• The tropical rain forests in
the equatorial regions
contain the greatest
biological diversity.
Why are Coral Reefs
called “the Amazons of
the oceans”?
• Coral Reefs are called “the
Amazons of the oceans”
because of the richness of
their species diversity. Like the
tropical rain forests, coral reefs
support many different
communities of organisms
surviving on limited nutrients.
Part A: Diversity
What does
Interdependence mean?
• Interdependence means
that a species is dependent
on many other species in its
environment.
What is an important
example of
interdependence found in
nature?
• Two important examples of
interdependence that are
found in nature are:
 Food Webs &
 Food Chains.
Part A: Diversity
What is Symbiosis and also explain the three different
types of symbiosis with an example for each.
• Another type of interdependence is Symbiosis. It is an association
between members of different species.
• The three main types of Symbiosis are:
 Commensalism – when one of the participating organisms benefits but the
other does not. However, there is no harm done to the second organism. An
example is; a bird builds its nest in a tree. The bird gets shelter while the tree
is neither benefits or harmed.
 Mutualism – when both of the participating organisms benefit from each
other. An example is; The bull’s horn Acacia tree provides food and shelter for
ants while the ants protect the tree from other animals feeding on it by
attacking them.
 Parasitism – when one organism benefits and the other is harmed. An example
is; a tapeworm attached to the intestinal wall of a human. The tapeworm
absorbs nutrients from food in the intestine leaving little food for the human
host to absorb.
Part A: Diversity
What is a Niche?
• A niche describes the role of
an organism within the
ecosystem. An organism’s
niche includes what it eats,
what eats it, its habitat,
nesting sites, or range, and
its effect on both the
populations around it and
its environment.
Why are Niches Important?
• Niches are important as
they let lots of organisms
live together without
competition.
Part A: Diversity
Give an example of an ecosystem and name some animals that
live in the ecosystem and the niches they would fill.
• An example is a desert ecosystem. Some animals that live in
this kind of ecosystem would be; Ant, Ant Lion, Camel Spiders.
Niches an Ant would fill would be; they are scavengers,
meaning they forage for the corpses of insects and other
arthropods to eat on. These ants can sustain a body
temperature above 50 degrees Celsius. Niches that an Ant
Lion could fill would be; living in an arid or sandy habitat, they
eat small arthropods. An Ant Lion shelters in a nook or
crevice. Niches a Camel Spider could fill would be; living in a
desert, feeding on ground dwelling arthropods and other
small animals.
Part A: Diversity
Give an example of an ecosystem and name some animals
that live in the ecosystem and the niches they would fill.
• An example is a desert ecosystem. Some animals that live in this
kind of ecosystem would be; Ant, Ant Lion, Camel Spiders. Niches
an Ant would fill would be; they are scavengers, meaning they
forage for the corpses of insects and other arthropods to eat on.
These ants can sustain a body temperature above 50 degrees
Celsius. Niches that an Ant Lion could fill would be; living in an arid
or sandy habitat, they eat small arthropods. An Ant Lion shelters in
a nook or crevice. Niches a Camel Spider could fill would be; living
in a desert, feeding on ground dwelling arthropods and other small
animals.
Part A: Diversity
Explain whether
niches stay the same
or can change.
What are two ways a niche
can change, Give a couple of
examples to help explain the
two ways niches can change.
• Niches can change • Two ways that a niche can change are if there is
in a species
a different environment for a species then what
it is used to or if there is a change of organisms
lifetime.
that the species inter-relates with.
• For example if there is a fox in a forest, it might
have to fill the niche of a scavenger because
there is a lot of competition inside the forest.
This is inter-relation with a species.
• If there is a rabbit which scavenges for food in a
forest, but goes to live in the city, it can fill the
niche of a predator and start to kill small
animals living around it.
Part A: Diversity
What is Resource partitioning? Give an
example.
• Resource partitioning
happens when two or more
species’ niches overlap. The
species then work out an
arrangement to reduce
their niche size so there is
no more interspecies
competition.
• An example is that there are two
squirrels living in the same forest,
the same tree and they eat the
same food; acorns. One of the
squirrels eats the acorns that are
on the branches of the tree while
the other squirrel eats the acorns
that have fallen off the tree and
are on the ground. This is
resource partitioning as there are
two species sharing the same
resource and portioning it to coexist.
Part A: Diversity
What are two reasons that variability is important in an
ecosystem?
• I) Variability is important
because when the species
in an ecosystem have a lot
of variation among its
individuals; it is more likely
that some of these
individuals will survive
environmental changes.
• II) Variability also makes an
ecosystem healthier.
Part A: Diversity
Explain what natural selection is and how it relates to
variability.
• Natural selection is when
the environment “selects”
which individuals will
survive long enough to
reproduce and pass on its
genes.
• It relates to variability because
if the environment changes,
variation in the species will
allow some of those species to
survive because they would
have certain different
characteristics that promotes
survival. It is all those
“variations” in an organism
that will allow certain
organisms to survive changes
in the environment, which is in
turn Natural Selection.
Part A: Diversity
Describe why variation is important in the
environment.
• Variation is important in the environment because if all the
members of one species were the same, all of them would
not be able to handle a change that might occur in an
environment. This way if there is variation between members
of a species, will continue to have some members that will
survive the change and pass on their traits to the new
generation.
Part B: Reproduction and Characteristics
Explain the difference between heritable and non-heritable
traits and give some examples of each.
• The difference between heritable and non-heritable traits is that
heritable characteristics are the ones that are passed on from
generation to generation. These types of characteristics are in
genetic materials that get passed on by sexual reproduction. Some
examples of inherited characteristics are eye color, skin color, and
hair type. Conversely, non-heritable characteristics are the ones
that are acquired or learned from others. These kinds of
characteristics are not necessarily passed on to other generations.
Some examples of non-heritable traits are learning how to play an
instrument, acquiring the skills to play a sport, artistic abilities,
academic abilities etc.
Part B: Reproduction and Characteristics
Explain how environment can play a role in the development of
characteristics and give some examples of how environment can
affect characteristics.
• Some variations in individual organisms can result from
interactions with the environment. Variations caused by the
interactions with the environment are not heritable. For
example, if you have two plants that are completely identical,
and you put one in a place where there is a good source of
sunlight, and the other where there isn’t, they will soon begin
to look different. The one with the greater source of sunlight
will be green and bushy, while the other one with not so
much of a source of sunlight will look pale and spindly.
Part B: Reproduction and Characteristics
Explain the difference between discrete and continuous
variation and give some examples of each.
• The difference between discrete and continuous variation is
that discrete variation refers to differences in characteristics
that have two defined forms. So it will either be the first form
or it will be the second form. Some examples are, a cat either
has blue eyes or it does not have blue eyes, or your earlobes
are attached or they are not attached. On the other hand,
continuous variation has many forms. Some examples are, the
height of a human can range through multiple measurements
or the weight of humans can also range for multiple
measurements.
Part B: Reproduction and Characteristics
Explain what asexual reproduction means and explain the
four types of asexual reproduction with examples.
• Asexual reproduction is when the reproduction only involves one
parent. It’s offspring that results from this asexual reproduction will
be identical to that one parent, inheriting identical characteristics
from it. There are four types of asexual reproduction, binary fission,
budding, spore production, and vegetative reproduction.
• I) Binary Fission is only involving one-celled organisms and it is
when a cell splits exactly in two, producing two identical individuals.
Examples are bacteria, protists such as amoebas and some algae.
• II) Budding is when the parent produces a small bud, or a smaller
version of itself. It detaches from itself and becomes a self sufficient
individual which is identical to its parent. Examples are the hydra
and yeast. In other animals, the new individual stays attached to its
parent and it forms a large structure which is composed of many
identical individuals. An example of this would be a coral.
Part B: Reproduction and Characteristics
Last Slide Continued
• III) Spore Production is when organisms produce a spore
which is similar to a seed, but they are produced by the
division of cells of the parent. This spore will then become an
individual which will be identical to the parent. Examples are
fungi, green algae, some moulds and non-flowering plants
such as ferns.
• IV) Vegetative Reproduction is the reproduction of plants
which does not involve the formation of a seed. Examples are
runners from strawberries or tubers from potatoes on a
potato plant and even bulbs from which daffodil and tulips
develop.
Part B: Reproduction and Characteristics
Give a scientific explanation of a sexual reproduction.
• Sexual reproduction is the reproduction that involves the
exchanging of genetic material between two individuals
resulting in offspring that are genetically different from the
parents. Although the new individual will be genetically
different from its parents, the individual will resemble some
characteristics from the female and some from the male.
Part B: Reproduction and Characteristics
What special cells are involved in sexual reproduction? In animals,
what are the specialized cells called that are involved in sexual
reproduction and what do they produce when they combine? What is
formed next?
• The special cells which are involved in sexual reproduction are
the male gametes called the sperm cells, the female gametes
called the egg cells (ova). When these two cells unite, a
fertilized combination of cells is produced called the zygote.
The zygote then begins to divide known as cleavage, and this
division continues to make an embryo. The embryo then
begins to develop into a multicellular organism inside the
female.
Part B: Reproduction and Characteristics
Briefly describe how sexual reproduction works in plants.
Use the proper names of the parts. Briefly explain the three
types of sexual reproduction in plants.
• Just like in animals, sexual reproduction in plants requires the
joining of a male gamete (inside the pollen) with a female
gamete (inside the ovule) to produce a zygote and then an
embryo. The pollen is found on the anther. It moves from the
anther to the stigma, and then travels down the stigma to the
ovule. Ovules contain the female gametes of a plant. Ovules
are found in the pistil. The male and female gametes then
unite to make a zygote and then finally an embryo. The
embryo then develops inside a seed, which helps protect the
developing embryo.
Part B: Reproduction and Characteristics
Briefly explain the three types of sexual reproduction in
plants.
• Plants can be reproduced by three ways, self-pollination,
cross-pollination and artificial pollination. Self-pollination
occurs when pollen is transferred from the anther of the
stamen to the stigma of the pistil of the same plant.
Fertilization occurs when the male gametes and the female
gametes unite. Cross-pollination occurs when the pollen of
one plant is carried by wind, water or animals to the stigma of
another plant. Artificial pollination happens when flowers are
pollinated by man.
Part B: Reproduction and Characteristics
Give one major advantage and disadvantage of both
sexual and asexual reproduction.
• One major advantage of sexual reproduction is that it
provides lots of variation which helps species survive
environmental changes. One major disadvantage of sexual
reproduction is that it takes a lot of energy. One major
advantage of asexual reproduction is that asexual
reproduction can produce lots of individuals very quickly as it
does not involve any specialized cells or a way of bringing
gametes together. One major disadvantage of asexual
reproduction is that if conditions become unfavourable, the
entire population may be wiped out because there is no
variability between species.
Part B: Reproduction and Characteristics
What are some examples of organisms that can reproduce both
asexually and sexually?
• Some plants can reproduce both sexually and asexually such
as some species of grasses, sunflowers, and roses. Some
animal species can also reproduce both ways, such as aphids.
Driving Question
What is Biological Diversity, and by what processes do diverse
living things pass on their characteristics to future generations?
• Biological Diversity is is the richness and variety of living organisms
and ecosystems on the Earth. This includes all the processes that
are part of ecosystems as well. A process by diverse living things in
which they pass on their characteristics to future generation is
called Reproduction. Three things that make Reproduction with
variations successful are DNA, Chromosomes and Genes. Parents
pass on a “blueprint” to their offspring during Reproduction. Every
multicellular organism on Earth contains a blueprint for making a
copy of itself in each of its body cells. A large molecule which is first
found in cells’ nuclei is responsible for storing such information and
passing it on to future generations. This molecule is known as
deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA for short.
Driving Question Continued
What is Biological Diversity, and by what processes do diverse
living things pass on their characteristics to future generations?
Another part is called the Chromosomes. Since there are so many
physical and chemical characteristics, there is a lot of DNA in a cell.
If the DNA from a typical human body cell was stretched out, it
would be about two meters long, which is more than 1 000 000
times longer than the cell it came from. To fit such a large amount
of DNA into their cells, organisms arrange their DNA into packages.
These packages are called Chromosomes. Lastly there is one more
part called genes. Genes are responsible for the inheritance of an
organism’s characteristic features. A single gene is an uninterrupted
segment of DNA, which contains coded instructions. These parts
are the ones which are responsible to pass on their characteristics
to future generations of a parent.