The human species came into being at the time of greatest biological diversity in the history of the earth. Today as human populations expand and alter the natural environment, they are reducing biological diversity to its lowest level since the end of the Mesozoic era, 65 million years ago. The ultimate consequences of this biological collision are beyond calculation and certain to be harmful. That, in essence, is the biodiversity crisis.
In one sense the loss of diversity is the most important process of environmental change. I say this because it is the only process that is wholly irreversible. Its consequences are also the least predictable, because the value of the earth’s biota (the fauna and flora collectively) remains largely studied and unappreciated. Every country can be said to have three forms of wealth: material, cultural and biological. The first two we understand very well, because they are substance of our everyday lives. Biological wealth is taken much less seriously. This is a serious strategic error, one that will be increasingly regretted as time passes. The biota is on the one hand part of a country’s heritage, the product of millions of years of evolution centred on that place and hence as much a reason for national concern as the particularities of language and culture. On the other hand, it is a potential source for immense untapped material wealth in the form of food, medicine and other commercially important substances.
It is a remarkable fact, given the interdependence of human beings and the other species that inhabit the planet, that the task of studying biodiversity is still in an early stage. Although systematic is one of the two oldest formal disciplines of biology (the other is anatomy), we do not even know to the nearest order of magnitude the number or species of organisms on the earth.
This Book will be of immense help to all those contemplating to acquire an expert knowledge of the disastrous effects of biodiversity extinction, deforestation and related issues.
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