What are mega biodiversity countries?
The World Conservation Monitoring Centre (WCMC) of the United Nations Environment Program has identified a total of 17 mega-diverse countries: Australia, Brazil, China, Colombia, Ecuador, United States, Philippines, India, Indonesia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Democratic Republic of Congo.
Why India is called mega biodiversity?
The term ‘mega’ represent ‘large’. Thus, megadiversity means a large number of species are present in the ecosystem. As India is rich in the diversity of animals and plants, India is called a mega diversity centre.
What is the most megadiverse country?
Brazil
The most megadiverse country in the world is Brazil due mainly to the presence of the Amazon Rainforest. The Amazon has the most diverse plant and animal life on the planet, with many different life forms not being present anywhere else on earth.
Why is Philippines a megadiverse country?
As a megadiverse country, the Philippines is recognized with its rich biodiversity. It has the most diverse life forms on a per unit area. Its biodiversity, composed of various flora and fauna, provides resources to meet basic needs for human survival, promotes economic development and offers environmental services.
What is mega diversity?
Megadiversity means exhibiting great biodiversity. The main criterion for megadiverse countries is endemism at the level of species, genera and families. A megadiverse country must have at least 5,000 species of endemic plants and must border marine ecosystems.
How many mega diversity are there in India?
India is one of the 12 mega biodiversity countries in the world. The country is divided into 10 biogeographic regions.
Which country is first in biodiversity?
#1: Brazil Brazil is the Earth’s biodiversity champion. Between the Amazon rainforest and Mata Atlantica forest, the woody savanna-like cerrado, the massive inland swamp known as the Pantanal, and a range of other terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, Brazil leads the world in plant and amphibian species counts.
How many mega biodiversity are there?
Seventeen countries
Seventeen countries have been identified as megadiverse countries. They account for 70% of total biodiversity present on Earth. These include most of the tropical rainforests, coral reefs and other biodiversity-rich ecosystems.
Is Philippines is the only mega biodiversity in the world?
Aside from the Philippines, the 16 other megadiverse countries are the United States, Mexico, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela, Brazil, Democratic Republic of Congo, South Africa, Madagascar, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, China, and Australia.
What do you understand by the Philippines as a mega?
Philippines is the world’s second largest archipelago, located in the southeast region of Asia and westernmost Pacific ocean. It is considered to be a mega – diversity country because of the exceptional diversity in ecosystems, species and genetic resources found within its 7,100 island territory.
How many mega biodiversity are there in India?
India boasts of 45,000 plants and 91,000 animals” according to the UN. It is the 12 mega biodiversity countries of the world. With about 45,500 plant species.
Is Philippines a megadiverse country?
The Philippines is one of 18 mega-biodiverse countries of the world, containing two-thirds of the earth’s biodiversity and between 70% and 80% of the world’s plant and animal species.
How many mega biodiversity hotspots are found in world?
Around the world, 36 areas qualify as hotspots. Their intact habitats represent just 2.5% of Earth’s land surface, but they support more than half of the world’s plant species as endemics — i.e., species found no place else — and nearly 43% of bird, mammal, reptile and amphibian species as endemics.
Why are some areas of the Earth called Mega biodiversity Centres?
These places lie around the earth’s equator which is known as the tropics. The reasons that ensure mega biodiversity at these places include ample rainfall, temperature, altitude and the soil texture. The suitable ecosystem also helps sustain the flora and fauna in such places.
How India is a mega diverse country?
India is one of the recognized mega-diverse countries of the world, harbouring nearly 7-8% of the recorded species of the world, and representing 4 of the 34 globally identified biodiversity hotspots (Himalaya, Indo-Burma, Western Ghats and Sri Lanka, Sundaland).
What type of ecosystem is the Philippines?
The different types of ecosystems found in the Philippines are the Terrestrial ecosystem, Freshwater ecosystem, Brakish/Esuarine ecosystem, Saltwater/Marine ecosystem.
How many mega diversity countries are there in India?
India is among 12 megadiversity countries of the world, due to it’s percentage contribution in global. species diversity, that is : A.
Why most of the mega biodiversity countries located in the tropical region?
One of the patterns that dictate where extreme biodiversity occurs is the distance from the equator to the poles of the earth. Therefore, most of the Megadiverse countries are found in the tropics: the areas that surround the Earth’s equator.
Why is ecological diversity important?
Ecosystem diversity boosts the availability of oxygen through photosynthesis among plant organisms living in a certain habitat. For instance, in an aquatic environment, once species are diverse it helps in water purification which is processed by plant varieties for it to be used by humans.
What is biodiversity in the Philippines?
The Philippines is one of 18 mega-biodiverse countries of the world, containing two-thirds of the earth’s biodiversity and between 70% and 80% of the world’s plant and animal species. The Philippines ranks fifth in the number of plant species and maintains 5% of the world’s flora.
What is Megadiversity?
The Megadiversity Or biological wealth refers to the amount of animal and plant species that a zone or nation counts. This, as with economic wealth, is not equitably distributed. In this sense, some countries have more varieties of animal and plant species than others.
What do diversity-focused ecologists do?
Today’s ESA members have organized groups of diversity-focused ecologists who work to heighten awareness of the human dimension in ecological practices and highlight the interests and representation of diverse environmental professionals.
What is Megadiversity or biological wealth?
The Megadiversity Or biological wealth refers to the amount of animal and plant species that a zone or nation counts. This, as with economic wealth, is not equitably distributed.
Why are most of the megadiverse countries found in the tropics?
One of the patterns that dictate where extreme biodiversity occurs is the distance from the equator to the poles of the earth. Therefore, most of the Megadiverse countries are found in the tropics: the areas that surround the Earth’s equator. Why are the tropics the most biodiverse areas in the world?