Biodiversity

 

 

Welcome to the Biodiversity Eco-topic. Below the biodiversity facts you will find information on:

• Why Biodiversity is An Eco-topic
• Biodiversity In The World
• Local Biodiversity
• The Problem
• What You Can Do

·        Approximately 90,000 species of animal, plant and microbes live in Scotland

 

·        The Scottish Crossbill is the only bird that lives nowhere else in the world but Scotland

 

·        A male Pine Marten’s territory (at up to 25km²) can be larger than the town of Perth

 

·        The Atlantic Salmon grows in fresh water rivers, spends years at sea, then return to their home river to spawn

 

·        The common frog can ‘breath’ through its skin.

 

• Human health and well-being are deeply linked to the health of ecosystems and the biological diversity they support.

 

 

 

Why is Biodiversity an Eco-topic? 

 

Biodiversity is important locally and globally. It is a word that describes the variety of life that exists in the world. It includes all plants, from grasses to Oak trees, whole areas of land such as forests or peat bogs and animals from the smallest insect to the largest whale. In other words, it includes the area a plant or animal lives in (habitat) and the living things themselves.

 

The living things on earth keep us alive. Wouldn’t it be nice if we kept them alive too? Plants and animals provide human beings with oxygen to breathe, water to drink, food to eat, material to build shelter with and beauty to inspire us. For a long time, people thought about the environment around us as something to use for our benefit. Unfortunately some activities widely practiced by human beings disturb and destroy habitats that are home to a variety of plants and animals. More and more people are discovering that the environment and everything in it is terribly important and worth protecting.

 

Biodiversity is an Eco-topic because school is an excellent place to learn about the variety of life on this planet and in Dumfries and Galloway. There is also great potential in your school to make a real difference to your local environment and encourage diversity in your school grounds.

 

Biodiversity in the World 

 

It is impossible to say exactly how many species (types of plant and animal) there are in the world because many animals and plants have not been discovered and named by scientists yet and some species are going extinct. Some animals and plants are easy to find because they are large but many are so small that they cannot easily be seen. Estimates are different but some scientists think there may be around 30 million (30,000,000) different plants and animals in the world. Up to the present, 1.5 million (1,500,000) species have been named. The list includes: 950,000 species of insect, 45,000 vertebrate species and 250,000 different species of plant, wow!

 

 

Some areas of the world are more diverse than others. Biodiversity changes in different areas of the world depending on the climate, the distance from the equator, the distance inland and the height above or below sea-level. Some places in the world have a big variety of plants and animals. The largest biodiversity is found in the rainforest. In other areas such as hot and cold deserts, there is a lower biodiversity. Only plants and animals that are specially designed to live there can survive. A hot desert like the Sahara or a cold desert like Antarctica are good examples of areas with a naturally lower biodiversity. Our global biodiversity is made up of areas of high and low biodiversity.

 

Just as biodiversity varies from place to place around the world depending on lots of different factors, it will also vary in different areas of the school playground. There may be worms, woodlice and mini-beasts in the soil. In flowerbeds you may have different kinds of flowers and insects. You may be growing vegetables to eat. There may be bushes or trees with birds living in them. Each area, whether a shady corner or open space, provides the right environment for certain types of plants. Different plants or areas of land provide a home and a source of food for different animals. 

 

Local Biodiversity 

 

Dumfries and Galloway has a Biodiversity officer who works to take care of the variety of life in the region. There are a number of plans in place to make sure that certain habitats and certain animals are taken care of. Dumfries and Galloway has its own Local Biodiversity Action Plan (LBAP). A LBAP involves recording what is there already, actively taking care of what is there and monitoring how it changes. There are many really interesting places in Dumfries and Galloway that are recognised locally, nationally or internationally as important places.

 

Find out more about Kirkconnel Flow, a raised peat bog here

 

Find out about Carrafran an ancient native woodlands project

 

Find out about Caerlaverock by clicking here

 

The Problem

  

 

Animals and plants throughout history have gone extinct. This is a natural process. However, human beings can change the environment very quickly and we are causing many plants and animals to go extinct all over the world. The problem with extinction is that it is forever, there’s no coming back!

 

One reason biodiversity is reduced is when humans take too much of something that they want. The wood felled throughout Britain and the world is one example of this. Wood is used for building and for paper products. Sustainable forests are one solution to meeting the demand for wood. A sustainable source of wood means that when a tree is cut down, at least one more tree is planted. This ensures that we do not run out of trees. Deforestation of the rainforest is a serious problem as it is not just the trees but also the plants and animals that live with the trees that are lost.

 

Loss of biodiversity can happen when the land use changes. Land changes naturally over time and is affected by climate change too. Human actions change land use at a faster rate. Farming has had a big impact on Scotland. Land has been drained and cultivated for crops and livestock. Some plants and animals cannot survive the changes to the land. In our schools we can see land use changes happening on a small scale. When there is tarmac on the ground, plants cannot grow and animals cannot really live on it. When we can take action to make our school grounds a better environment for plants and animals, we can see biodiversity increase.

 

 

Introducing a plant or animal to somewhere that it is not found naturally can be problematic, especially if the newcomer likes their new home. This can happen when the seeds from a foreign plant are brought to Scotland and planted in the soil here. Animals too, can be introduced to new areas and this often has very serious consequences. The grey squirrel is unfortunately a good example of a troublesome introduction. The North American Grey Squirrel has been introduced to the UK and rather likes it. In fact, the native Red Squirrel is not coping very well with the competition from this aggressive newcomer and numbers are declining.

 

What Can You Do?

  

 

If your school chooses to work on biodiversity you will learn a lot about native plants and animals and global biodiversity issues. You can also increase the variety of plants and animals at your school, increasing biodiversity and making it look beautiful too.  Here are some ideas for you to try:

 

·        Carry out an outdoor site survey: work with what you’ve got. It is important to investigate what kind of biodiversity already exists in the school grounds.

 

·        From the outdoor survey you may discover plants or animals that you would like to encourage to stay. If you have big grassy areas, you may decide to make part of this space a wildflower meadow and plant some native flowers. Planting nectar-rich flowers to attract butterflies, or fruit-bearing trees and shrubs to attract birds, in the garden can bring in more species. 

 

·        You may decide to create new areas to increase biodiversity. If your school has a lot of tarmac there are still plenty of ways to do so. You could try flowerbeds and plants in pots. A window-ledge bird table will attract a surprising range of birds, and help sustain them through severe winter weather. There are all sorts of compact devices to encourage bugs and beasties.

 

·        Get in touch with some experts for inspiration and advice. Have a look at the links for contact details.