This document discusses India's status as a megadiverse country and biodiversity hotspots within its borders. It provides details on 4 key biodiversity hotspots - the Himalayas, Indo-Burma Region, Western Ghats, and Sundaland. Each hotspot is described in 1-2 sentences highlighting species diversity and endemic species. Threats to India's biodiversity such as habitat loss, climate change, and overexploitation are summarized. Methods of both in-situ and ex-situ conservation of biodiversity are briefly outlined.

1. JAIPUR NATIONAL UNIVERSITY
SEEDLING SCHOOL OF NURSING
PREPARED BY-
(Prof.) Dr. Rahul Sharma
HOD of Mental Health Nursing
Ph.D. Coordinator
Seedling School of Nursing

2. India As A Megadiversity
Nation

3. Introduction
The United Nations has declared the year 2010 as the ‘International Year of
Biodiversity’ and the theme for this year’s environment day is “Biodiversity:
Connecting with Nature” and India is one of the 12 mega diversity nation in the
world
India is located in south Asia, between latitude 60 and 380 N and
longitudes 690 and 970 E
The Indian landmass extending over a total geographical area of about
3029 million hectares is bounded by Himalayas in the north, the Bay of
Bengal in east, the Arabian Sea in the west, and Indian Ocean in the south

4. Megadiverse India
The above figure
represents a species
wise endemic content
of the biodiversity in
India
Biodiversity is a
biogeographical area
with a large reservoir of
biodiversity that is
threatened with
destruction

5. The biodiversity
species diversity
genetic diversity
ecosystem diversity

6. Hotspot of biodiversity
Himalayas
Western
Ghats
Indo Burma
Region
Sundaland

7. Biodiversity
Hotspots in India -
Himalayas, Indo-
Burma, Western
Ghats &
Sundaland
Biodiversity is referred to as the variation of plant
and animal species in a particular habitat
India is known for its rich biodiversity and has around
24.46% of the geographical area covered by forests
and trees
Coined by Norman Myers, the term “Biodiversity
hotspots” can be defined as the regions which are
known for their high species richness and endemism

8. Biodiversity Hotspots – 2 Main Qualifying Criteria
The region should have
at least 1500 species of
vascular plants i.e., it
should have a high
degree of endemism
It must contain 30% of
its original habitat, i.e. it
must be threatened
The Himalayas
Indo-Burma Region The Western Ghats Sundaland

9. The Himalayas
Considered the highest in the world, the Himalayas comprises North-
East India, Bhutan, Central and Eastern parts of Nepal
This region holds a record of having 163 endangered species
which includes the Wild Asian Water Buffalo, One-horned Rhino;
and as many as 10,000 plant species, of which 3160 are endemic
This mountain range covers nearly 750,000 km

10. Indo – Burma Region
The Indo-Burma Region is stretched over a distance of 2,373,000 km²
In the last 12 years, 6 large mammal species have been discovered in this
region: the Large-antlered Muntjac, the Annamite Muntjac, the Grey-
shanked Douc, the Annamite Striped Rabbit, the Leaf Deer, and the Saola
This hotspot is also known for the endemic freshwater turtle species, most
of which are threatened with extinction, due to over-harvesting and
extensive habitat loss

11. The Western Ghats
The Western Ghats are present along the western edge of peninsular
India and covers most of the deciduous forests and rain forests
The region is also known for the globally threatened flora and fauna
represented by 229 plant species, 31 mammal species, 15 bird
species, 43 amphibian species, 5 reptile species and 1 fish species
UNESCO mentions that “Of the total 325 globally threatened species
in the Western Ghats, 129 are classified as Vulnerable, 145 as
Endangered and 51 as Critically Endangered.”

12. Sundaland
The Sundaland hotspot lies
in South-East Asia and
covers Singapore, Thailand,
Indonesia, Brunei, and
Malaysia
In the year 2013, the
Sundaland was declared as
a World Biosphere Reserve
by the United Nations
Sundaland is one of the
biologically richest hotspots
in the world which
comprises 25,000 species
of vascular plants, of which
15,000 are found only in
this region

13. Biodiversity in India – Flora, and Fauna
India houses over 500
species of mammals,
more than 200 species of
birds, and 30,000 different
species of insects
The Zoological Survey of
India which is
headquartered in Kolkata
is responsible for
surveying the faunal
resources of India
India has a diverse
climate, topology, and
habitat are known to have
the richest flora in the
world with over 18000
species of flowering plants

14. Endangered Species of India
According to the International
Union for Conservation of
Nature, “India accounts for 7-
8% of all recorded species,
including over 45,000 species
of plants and 91,000 species
of animals
The species that are at risk of
extinction due to the sudden
decrease in their population
and habitat are known as
endangered species
Biodiversity is in peril while
being one of the most crucial
and complicated traits without
which life would not exist

15. THREATS OF BIODIVERSITY
Biodiversity threats includes the
worldwide extinction of
different species, as well as the
local reduction or loss of species
in a certain habitat, resulting in a
loss of biological diversity
The latter phenomenon can be
temporary or permanent,
depending on whether
the environmental
degradation that leads to the loss
is reversible through ecological
restoration/ecological resilience or
effectively permanent
The current global extinction , has
resulted in a biodiversity
crisis being driven by human
activities which push beyond
the planetary boundaries and so
far has proven irreversible

16. The threats are
• Changes to how we use the land and waters - Both our lands
and our seas contain many different ecosystems, and these are
affected by business actions

17. Overexploitation and unsustainable use
Climate change
Increased pollution
Invasive species
Habitat loss

18. Overexploitation
and
unsustainable
use
• Habitat loss refers to the reduction in the
amount of space where a
particular species, or group of species can
survive and reproduce

19. 2. Poaching of Wildlife
• poaching, in law, the illegal shooting, trapping, or taking of
game, fish, or plants from private property or from a place where
such practices are specially reserved or forbidden

20. Modern poaching
Poaching is now usually done for sport or commercial profit,
both in legal and black markets
Poaching can be a serious threat to many wild species,
particularly those protected in wildlife preserves or national
parks
Many animal species have been limited in range or depleted
in numbers, sometimes to the point of extinction, by the
depredations of market hunters and unregulated sportsmen

21. Efforts to reduce poaching
Game management and other conservation programs throughout the world
have been instituted to counteract the effects of poaching and other threats to
wildlife, reinforced by the patrolling of game wardens to restrain poaching for
commercial profit
Sometimes conflicts can be violent, and wardens, environmentalists, and
poachers have been killed in confrontations over especially valuable
animals and poaching operations
International agreements, such as the Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species , seek to reduce poaching incentives by regulating
worldwide commercial trade in wild animal and plant species

22. Human wildlife
conflict
• Since human populations expand into wild
animal habitats, natural wildlife territory is
displaced
• Reduction in the availability of natural
prey/food sources leads to wild animals
seeking alternate sources
• Alternately, new resources created by
humans draw wildlife resulting in conflict

23. Man-Wildlife
Conflict
• Man-wildlife conflict refers to the interaction
between wild animals and people and the
consequential negative impact on both of them
• World Wide Fund for Nature defines this conflict
as “any interaction between humans and wildlife
that results in a negative impact on human social,
economic, or cultural life, on the conservation of
wildlife population, or on the environment.”
• Although man-wildlife conflict is as old as human
civilization, in modern times the degree of conflict
has been on the rise due to high rise in human
population in the past several centuries

24. Endemic Species
The concept of
endemic species is
related to the habitat
and geographical
location of species
Endemic species
are those that live in a
limited area, such as a
mountain range, lake or
island, among others
Endemism is linked to
historical and ecological
factors and is different
from the indigenous
species

25. List of Endemic Species In India
There are a number
of endemic species
of animals in India
Let's have a look at
endemic species and
their geographical
distribution within
India

26. Conservation of Biodiversity
Pollution
Invasive species
Overexploitation
Change in the climatic conditions

27. In-situ Conservation
It is the methods of
conserving all the living
species, especially the wild
and endangered species in
their natural habitats and
environment
In-situ conservation of
Biodiversity includes
biosphere reserves,
national parks, wildlife
sanctuaries, etc

28. Ex-situ Conservation
• It is the methods of conserving all the
living species in the artful habitats that
reflect their natural living habitats
• Examples of ex-situ conservation of
biodiversity include aquariums,
botanical gardens, cryopreservation,
DNA banks, zoos, etc