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• Biodiversity – refers to the number, variety, and variability of organisms in a particular area
• Biodiversity

  • Provides life-sustaining goods and services
  • Foundation of human heath
  • If secured, biodiversity will continue to provide benefits to humankind
• What is Biodiversity?

  1. Aka Biological diversity, refers to life on earth at structural levels (genetic,species, and ecosystem)
  2. Measure of number of species on the planet or in a specified area
  3. Variation of living things, making the world a beautiful place
  4. Variety of life on Earth at all levels (genes, ecosystems, ecological and evolutionary process)
• • Scientists define Biodiversity in terms of organisms and their complex interactions with nonliving (abiotic) and living (biotic) components
• • The tropical region has the greatest biodiversity.
• • A decrease in biodiversity can be observed in the poles
• Genetic biodiversity – measure of the variety of versions of the same genes within individual species (E.g. Different breeds of dogs, different varieties of rose flower, wheat, rice, mangoes, etc.)
• Species Biodiversity – number of different kinds of organisms within individual communities or ecosystems (Eg. presence of five different species of tree in a woodland forest, 100 different species of fish)
• Ecological Biodiversity – number of niches, trophic levels, and ecological processes that capture, sustain food webs, and recycle materials within this system  (E.g. deserts, forests, grasslands, wetlands and oceans)
• According to the Canadian Museum of Nature 2018), biodiversity can be measured by determining the biodiversity index.
• Biodiversity Index

  1. Species Richness – total number of species in an area
  2. Species Evenness –  how evenly the species are represented in the area

  • Guide question: Do most individuals belong to one species?
• • Several biodiversity indices combine various biodiversity measures (eg. Simpson’s index)
• Simpson’s Index 

  • combines species richness and species evenness in a single number 
  • Ranges 0-1
  • 1 representing the lowest biodiversity
  • Larger data sets are difficult to handle by manual calculations hence researchers use computer software like BioDiversity Pro
  • Biodiversity Pro – a free statistical package that calculates biodiversity easily
• Why is Biodiversity Important?

  The Biodiversity Management Bureau (DMB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) (2016) listed the ff. Reason why biodiversity is important

  1. Provides food
  2. Provides air and water
  3. Provides materials for clothing and shelter
  4. Heals since the forests house 80% biodiversity resources with medicinal uses
  5. Gives income
  6. Soothes as it provides a venue for nature trips/teks, mountain  climbing, bird watching, beach, and inspiration for artists
• What threatens biodiversity?

  • Human caused species loss – one of the major current threats to biodiversity globally
  • Human caused species loss is a global issue that needs urgent attention before biodiversity will be lost
• Major human-mediated causes of biodiversity loss as cited by the California Academy of Sciences (2014)

  Local Factors

  1. Land use changes
  2. Pollution
  3. Resources Exploitation
  4. Introduction to exotic or invasive species

  Global Factors

  1. climate change
• Land use changes – habitat destruction (mangrove destruction, mining, slash and burn, natural habitat to human use and monoculture)
• Pollution – water-borne pollutants from leaching, nitrogen fertilizer use, chemicals from factories, human waste, noise pollution, light pollution, sonar (underwater detection system) pollution
• 1. Resources Exploitation – killing, poaching, and selling endangered species of plants and animals
• Introduction to exotic or invasive species – kuhol (Golden Apple snail) and janitor fish that threaten the survival of native species
• Edward Osborne Wilson

  • American biologist that proposed the threats of  biodiversity through the acronym HIPPO
• HIPPO – stands for; 

  • Habitat Destruction
  • Invasive Species,
  • Pollution
  • Population growth
  • Overharvesting
• Keystone Species – refers to organisms/species which other organisms/species largely depend on.

  • Eg. The Philippine monkey-eating eagle in Luzon and Mindanao is at top of the food chain and acts as predator of several other species (prey) such as rats, snakes, etc, resulting in population control
• Removal of Keystone Species will affect the ecosystem. Hence, destroying the natural habitat of the species will highly affect the Keystone species in that area. One affected, it will affect all other species.

  • Habitat destruction was reported as the major cause of the Philippine Eagle’s waning population
• Biodiversity hotspots – biologically rich areas but with species threatened by extinction
• 2 criteria in identifying biodiversity hotspots:

  1. Area must contain at least 1,500 endemic vascular plant species

  • Endemic species – species that can be found only in a particular place, not anywhere else

  1. At least 70% of its original area has been lost by destruction
• • There are currently 26 biodiversity hotspots around the world
• Biodiversity hotspots

  1. Philippines
  2. japan
  3. Madagascar
  4. Sri Lanka
  5. New Zealand
• Philippines

  • Ranked top 10 with the largest number of endangered species (DENR, 2016)
  • One of the top priority hotspots for global conservation due to Philippines being biologically rich in terms of species with high endemism (globally important species but is threatened by natural habitat destruction)
  • One of the 17 megadiverse countries
  • Houses 70-80% biodiversity
  • More than 52, 777 species, half of which are endemic
  • Prone to extinction crisis if no immediate intervention
• Philippine Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (PBSAP) 2015-2018  enumerated these policies

  1. Philippine Constitution, Article 2 Section 16
  2. Philippine Constitution, Article 12 Section 16
  3. National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) Act of 1992 (RA 7586)
  4. Wildlife resources conservation and protection  act of 2001 (RA 9147)
  5. RA 10654 of 2015
  6. Philippine Mining act of 1995 (RA7942)
  7. Executive Order No. 79 S. 2012
  8. National Policy Agenda On Revitalizing Mining in The Philippines of 2004 (EO 270, S. 2004)
• Philippine Constitution, Article 2 Section 16

  • The state shall protect and advance the right of the people to a balanced and healthful ecology in accord with the rhythm and harmony of nature.
• Philippine Constitution, Article 12 Section 16

  • The state shall protect the rights of indigenous cultural communities to their ancestral lands to ensure their economic, social and cultural well-being.
• National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) Act of 1992 (RA 7586)

  It provides the legal framework for the establishment and management of protected areas in the Philippines
• Wildlife resources conservation and protection  act of 2001 (RA 9147)

  It aims to conserve and protect wildlife species and their habitats for sustainability
• RA 10654 of 2015

  • an act amending the Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998, an act to prevent, deter, and eliminate illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing. It provides higher penalties while mandating better monitoring systems
• Philippine Mining act of 1995 (RA7942)

  • All mineral resources in public and private lands within the territory and exclusive economic zone of the Republic of the Philippines are owned by the State. It shall be the responsibility of the State to promote their rational exploration, development, utilization and conservation through the combined efforts of government and the private sector
• Executive Order No. 79 S. 2012

  • Produced “no go zone map” which states that application for mineral contracts, concessions, and agreements shall  to be allowed in the following areas;

  1. Areas enumerated under Sec 19 of RA 7942
  2. Protected areas categorized under National Integrated Protected Areas (NIPAS) under RA 7586
  3. Prime agricultural lands and lands covered under RA 6657 or Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law
  4. Tourism development areas
  5. Critical areas, island ecosystems, impact areas of mining
• National Policy Agenda On Revitalizing Mining in The Philippines of 2004 (EO 270, S. 2004)

  • It recognizes that remediation and rehabilitation of abandoned mines shall be accorded as a top priority to address the negative impacts of past mining in the country
• Genetic Modification

  • has been practiced for centuries through selective breeding
  • Organisms with beneficial/superior traits are bred together to produce desirable traits
  • It takes months to years of constant breeding
• Genetic Engineering

  • Process used in producing genetically modified organisms
  • In producing GMOs, scientists can remove undesirable genes and replace it with a desirable gene