22/10/2024

LECTURE 14:
BIODIVERSITY AND THE
HEALTHY SOCIETY
WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY-PHILIPPINES
College of Arts and Sciences

DIVINE GRACE S. BATENGA, MSc.

Subject Instructor
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, AND
SOCIETY

LEARNING OUTCOMES

• Determine the interrelatedness of society, environment,

and health;
• Create a diagram that would show the relatedness of
species in forming up a diverse and healthy society
without compromising one another; and
• Identify everyday tasks and evaluate whether they
contribute to the wellness and health of biodiversity and
society or not.

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BIODIVERSITY

• Biodiversity is the sum

of all the different
species of animals,
plants, fungi and
microbial organisms
living on Earth and the
variety of habitats in
which they live in.

BIODIVERSITY
• There are over one million
species of organisms that
have been studied and
classified and around 5-10
million more that needs to be
classified.

➢How do scientists handle this

vast numbers of organisms?
➢What system of classification
do they use to group these
organisms in order to avoid
chaos and confusion?

TAXONOMY

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TAXONOMY

•One of the first disciplines that evolved

from the study of the diversity of
organisms.
•Deals with the diversity of organisms and
all the relationships that may exist among
them.
•The theory and practice of grouping and
classifying organisms.

TAXONOMY: THE BINOMIAL

• A simpler system of
classification
• Introduced by a Swedish
naturalist, Carolus Linnaeus
• An organism is given with two
names (genus and species) using
the Latin language
• In writing the binomial names,
the first letter is capitalized,
while the species name starts
with a small letter
• The genus and species comprise
the scientific name
• A scientific name is usually
followed by the author’s name in
an abbreviated form; underlined
if handwritten and italicized if
typewritten

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TAXONOMY: THE BINOMIAL

Musca domestica Lin.

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Diptera
Section: Schizophora
Family: Muscidae
Genus: Musca
Species: domestica
Author: Linnaeus Common name: Housefly

Note: No two organisms

can be given the same
scientific name!

Genus: Solanum

Solanum tuberosum Solanum lycopersicum

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Where several different species and genera

cohabitate, there is rich biodiversity.

SELF-PRESERVATION: One of the basic

laws of the living
• The protection of oneself from harm or death, especially
regarded as a basic instinct in human beings and
animals.
• An organism will sacrifice all it has to ensure its survival.
• Example: PREDATION

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SELF-PRESERVATION: One of the basic

laws of the living

➢ With a limited amount of resources,

how do the many living organisms of
diverse region survive?

The answer lies in the way the

available energy supply in the world
is shared among the different species
through the various ecological
relationships.

ECOLOGICAL RELATIONSHIP

•Commensalism
• one organism
benefits while the
other is neither
helped nor harmed
➢ Examples are barnacles that grow
on whales and other marine
animals.

Barnacles feed by attaching

themselves to a whale's belly or
back, allowing the species to then
eat microorganisms as the whale
swims.

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ECOLOGICAL RELATIONSHIP

• Mutualism
• A very intimate
relationship between two
organisms, where both are
benefited from their
interaction
➢ Examples are the bees and flowers

The bee receives food

(nectar) in return for
transporting the pollen of the
other organism

ECOLOGICAL RELATIONSHIP

• Parasitism
• One member is benefited
(parasite), while the other
is harmed (host) but not
always killed

➢ Examples are the intestinal worms

that live inside the host

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ECOLOGICAL RELATIONSHIP

• Predation
• one organism eats another
organism to obtain
nutrients.
• the organism that is eaten
is called the prey.

➢ Examples are owls that eat mice

ECOLOGICAL RELATIONSHIP

• Competition
• when individuals or
populations compete for
the same resource, and
can occur within or
between species

3 types of competition:
➢ Consumptive or exploitative competition- when organisms
compete for a resource (such as food or building materials)
➢ Interference competition- when they compete for a territory
➢ Preemptive competition- when they compete for a new
territory by arriving there first

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BIODIVERSITY AND
ECOSYSTEM

ECOSYSTEM

• An ecosystem consists of a community of organisms together

with their physical environment.
• Ecosystems can be of different sizes and can be marine,
aquatic, or terrestrial.
2 components of ecosystem:
1. Biotic – all living things (plants, animals, microorganisms)
2. Abiotic – non-living things (air, water, sunlight)

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STABILITY AND DYNAMICS OF

ECOSYSTEM

•Ecosystems are dynamic systems, and a

static ecosystem would be a dead
ecosystem—just as a static cell would be a
dead cell.

Dynamic Ecosystem Dead Ecosystem

EQUILIBRUM AND DISTURBANCE OF

ECOSYSTEM
• Equilibrium is the steady state of an ecosystem,
in which its composition and identity remain
generally constant despite fluctuations.

• Ecosystems may be knocked out of equilibrium

by disturbances, disruptive events that affect
their composition.

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RESISTANCE AND RESILIENCE OF

ECOSYSTEM
• Different ecosystems may respond differently to the
same disturbance; one may recover rapidly, and
another may recover more slowly—or not at all.
• Ecologists sometimes use two parameters to describe
how an ecosystem responds to disturbance.
1) RESISTANCE - the ability of an ecosystem to remain at
equilibrium in spite of disturbances
2) RESILIENCE - how readily an ecosystem returns to
equilibrium after being disturbed

➢Ecosystems with higher biodiversity tend to be more

stable with greater resistance and resilience in the
face of disturbances, disruptive events.

ROLE OF BIODIVERSITY IN THE

STABILITY OF ECOSYSTEM

One plant species sensitive

to drought

Several species, drought

tolerant plant species may
be present

The largest number of different

species in a certain area can be
a predictor of sustainable life in
that area. Sustainability of the
ecosystem ensures better
survival rate against any natural
disaster.

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ECOSYSTEM SERVICES

Supporting
Provisioning
Regulating
Cultural

Economy

Significant decline in biodiversity has direct human impact when

ecosystem in its sufficiency can no longer provide the physical as well as
social needs of human beings. Indirectly, changes in the ecosystem affect
livelihood, income, and on occasion, may even cause political conflict.

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All animals including

Supporting Service humans use glucose
and oxygen for
aerobic respiration.

•Providing living
spaces for plants or
animals
✓Primary production
✓Nutrient cycling

These are all

provided by our
Provisioning Services planet at NO
COST!

• Water, food, wood and other

goods are some of the material Energy
benefits people obtain from
ecosystems called ´provisioning
services´. Minerals
✓ FOOD - almost all ecosystems provide
the conditions for growing, collecting, Lumber
hunting or harvesting food.
✓ RAW MATERIALS - Ecosystems provide a
great diversity of materials including
wood, biofuels, and fibers from wild or
cultivated plant and animal species.
✓ FRESHWATER - No water, no life. Water
Ecosystems play a vital role in providing
the flow and storage of fresh water. Fishes
✓ MINERALS - mining
✓ ENERGY – energy from the sun

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Climate
regulation
Regulating Services
Pollination
• Maintaining the quality of
water, air and soil, providing
flood and disease control, Decomposition
and pollination are some of
the ‘regulating services'
provided by ecosystems.
• They are often invisible and
therefore mostly taken for
granted. Filtration
• When they are damaged, the
resulting losses can be
substantial and difficult to
restore.

Cultural Services
• Opportunities for tourism and for
recreation are also considered within the
group.
✓ RECREATION, MENTAL AND PHYSICAL Historical Spiritual
HEALTH - Nature-based opportunities for
recreation play an important role in
maintaining mental and physical health
✓ TOURISM - enjoyment of nature attracts
millions of travelers worldwide.
✓ AESTHETIC APPRECIATION AND
INSPIRATION FOR CULTURE, ART AND
DESIGN - animals, plants and ecosystems
have been the source of inspiration for
much of our arts, culture, and design;
they increasingly inspire science as well. Educational
✓ SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE AND SENSE OF Recreational
PLACE - natural heritage, spiritual sense
of belonging, traditional knowledge, and
associated customs are important for
creating a sense of belonging.

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DESTRUCTION OF
BIODIVERSITY

• Decrease in biodiversity
is eminent worldwide due
to human cause.
• It is projected by 2020,
wildlife decline will be
67% of the present
number.
• Major cause: human
population

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• Humans have
industrialized the
natural habitat of
wildlife and
marine life.

• Leaving these
creatures with no
place to live
would eventually
cause their
deaths.

MASS EXTINCTION OF WILDLIFE

• MASS EXTINCTION – is
described as the
disappearance of
species at a rate of
1,000 faster than
usual.

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CAUSES OF MASS EXTINCTION

• Wildlife is dying out due to:

• habitat destruction,
• overhunting,
• toxic pollution,
• invasion by alien species
• climate change
• But the ultimate cause of all of these factors is
human overpopulation and continued population
growth, and overconsumption.

HABITAT DESTRUCTION

• Habitat destruction occurs

when natural habitats are no
longer able to support the
species present, resulting in
the displacement or
destruction of its biodiversity.
• Examples include harvesting
fossil fuels, deforestation,
dredging rivers, bottom
trawling, urbanization, filling
in wetlands and mowing
fields.

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OVERHUNTING

• Overhunting is an activity
which results in serious
reduction of species
population or harm to wildlife.
• It is otherwise defined as the
relentless chase for wild
animals for the purpose of
killing or catching them for
economic or personal gains
or for food.

End of lecture…

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References:
•Serafica J.P.et. al, (2018). Science, Technology and
Society Rex Book Store, Inc.

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