Notes on Forests, Desertification and Biodiversity

There are more than 50 million species of plants, animals, and microorganisms on the planet, according to estimates. So far, around 1.4 million species have been recognised. From mountain summits to the depths of the seas, from polar ice caps to tropical rainforests and deserts, each species has evolved to thrive in a distinct environment. All of life’s diversity is contained within a one-kilometer thick layer of lithosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere that makes up the biosphere. Though the study of ecology and environment is not new, Walter Rosen coined the word biodiversity in 1986. Biological diversity, often known as biodiversity, refers to the richness and variability of living creatures and the ecological complexes in which they live.

Forest

A forest represents a larger area of land that remains covered with trees. Forests are very important for our lives and can be found all throughout the planet. They are a diverse ecosystem with a diverse range of flora and animals. Forests are home to many species who rely on them to survive. The two most significant factors for forests are temperature and rainfall. They can’t live in many regions since they’re too cold or too dry. Forests can be found anywhere from the equator to the poles, but different climates produce distinct types of forests. Conifers predominate in cold areas, whilst flowering plants predominate in temperate and tropical climes. Different types of rainfall result in different types of forest. In deserts, there are no woods, only a few trees in places where their roots may reach subsurface water. Forests are home to 80% of the world’s plant biomass. Tropical woods produce roughly 21.9 gigatonnes carbon per year, 8.1 gigatonnes for temperate forests, and 2.6 gigatonnes for boreal forests.

Types of Forests

Deciduous forests, coniferous forests, and tropical rain forests are the three major forest biomes. 

Only five countries contain more than half of the world’s woods (Brazil, China, Canada, the Russian Federation, and the United States of America). The tropics have more woods (45%) than any other climate.

Deciduous Forests

Deciduous woods are found mostly in North America, Europe, and Asia’s temperate zones. They have a mild climate in the summer, spring, autumn (fall), and winter, with at least 500mm of rainfall every year. Summers are hot, and winters are frigid, but not as cold as those found in the northern coniferous forests. Snow blankets the ground in the winter, and deciduous plants and trees lose their leaves. The nutrient-rich soil is aided by the rotting leaves. This fertile soil is home to a variety of insects, snails, worms and spiders. In the spring, wildflowers and ferns can be seen practically everywhere. Before the tall trees shade them, new leaves capture the sun’s energy and sprout.

Majority of birds move to warmer climates in the winter. Many small animals aestivate or hibernate, which means that their metabolism slows down and they sleep or stay in their burrows. Few of the other animals just slow down their metabolism and eat food that they have accumulated over the summer and fall. The trees remain naked in the winter, but as spring arrives, birds return, leaves sprout, creatures are born, and all of the woodland animals go about their daily lives. Bears, deer, raccoons, otters, beavers, frogs, foxes, snakes, squirrel, salamanders, and birds such as woodpeckers, owls, robins, blue jays, and tiny birds are among the animals we may see or hear in this biome.

Coniferous Forests

Alaska, Canada, Northern Europe, and Northern Asia all have coniferous woods. Their primary trees are evergreen conifers with cones that generate seeds.

The weather is cold in the winter, but as the snow melts in the spring, the woodland becomes swampy. Because of the cold temperature and poor soil, there are few diverse varieties of trees in coniferous woods. Needles, branches, and dead animals do not decompose as quickly as they do in warmer climates. This is why coniferous forest soil is not particularly fruitful. Furthermore, only trees that have acclimated to cold weather and poor soil will be able to survive. The flexible branches of these trees allow them to withstand severe snowfalls. Because of the form of their leaves, less water evaporates.

Tropical Rainforests

Tropical rainforests can be found in South America, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Indonesia and neighbouring nations, Hawaii, and north-eastern Australia. Tropical rainforests are appropriately called, considering it rains nearly half of the time here. Because summer is the only season in a tropical rainforest, plants can thrive all year.

In the rainforest, trees grow tall and thick, and they grow so close together that they form a large canopy of greenery. The majority of the sunshine is blocked by this. As it penetrates through the deep canopy of trees, the air is humid. The light is dim and green as it penetrates through the canopy of trees. Plants can only grow on the forest ground if there is enough sunlight along river sides and in cleared areas.

The world’s tropical woods are home to millions of plant and animal species. In the rainforest, life can be found at various levels or strata in the trees. ‘Emergent,’ ‘canopy,’ ‘understory,’ and ‘forest floor’ are some of the names given to each stratum. On all levels, animal life can be discovered.

Desertification

Desertification, also known as desertization, is the process of reducing the biological productivity of drylands due to natural or human-caused factors (arid and semiarid lands). Climate change, deforestation, overgrazing, political instability, poverty,  unsustainable irrigation practices, or a combination of these factors may cause production declines. The term refers to the multiple processes that endanger all dryland ecosystems, encompassing deserts, grasslands, and scrublands, rather than the physical growth of existing deserts.

Desertification in dryland ecosystems is mostly caused by climate change and unsustainable land management practices. Arid and semiarid environments are characterised by low or variable rainfall by their very nature. As a result, climate disturbances comprising extended droughts might rapidly impair the biological productivity of certain ecosystems. These shifts might be fleeting, lasting barely a season, or they can linger for years or decades. Plants and animals, on the other hand, are fast to take advantage of wetter seasons, and productivity can skyrocket at these times. Because dryland habitats are used for a variety of human activities (including animal grazing, agriculture and fuelwood collecting), the numerous activities carried out in them can worsen desertification and cause long-term changes to dryland ecosystems.

Biodiversity

The phrase “biodiversity” is sometimes used for the more well-defined and well-established terms “species diversity” and “species richness.” Biodiversity is usually defined as the “totality of genes, species, and ecosystems of a region” by biologists.

Biodiversity is not uniformly distributed across the globe; it is typically higher in the tropics as a consequence of the equatorial region’s warm environment and strong primary output. These tropical forest habitats span less than 10% of the earth’s area but house 90% of the world’s species. Marine biodiversity is often higher along the shores of the Western Pacific, wherein sea surface temperatures are the highest, and in the mid-latitudinal belt of all oceans. Species diversity exhibits latitudinal gradients. Biodiversity tends to cluster in hotspots and has been increasing over time, but as a result of deforestation, it will likely slow in the future. 

Conclusion

All living and non-living objects that occur naturally, that is, not artificially, are included in the natural environment or natural world. The phrase is basically used to refer to the Earth or certain areas of it. The relationship of all living species, weather, climate and natural resources to manage human survival and economic activity is referred to as the environment. Built environments are landscapes that have been significantly affected by people, such as urban settings, transforming the natural environment into a simplified human environment and agricultural land conversion. Even seemingly less severe actions, such as erecting a mud home or installing a solar system in the desert, result in the creation of an artificial environment.