Human Impacts on Biodiversity | Ecology and Environment | Biology | FuseSchool

Human Impacts on Biodiversity | Ecology and Environment | Biology | FuseSchool

Biodiversity is the variety of life. There are thought to be 8.7 million species on planet Earth. And, as we saw in the video, "Why does biodiversity matter to me?", biodiversity is of utmost importance to humans.

The loss of one key species can have a detrimental impact on many levels; from other species of animals to plants to the physical environment.

Human activities are reducing biodiversity. Our future depends upon maintaining a good level of biodiversity, and so we need to start taking measures to try and stop the reduction.

In this video, we are going to look at how humans are negatively impacting biodiversity.

As the world population has grown from 1.5 billion in 1900 to nearly 7.5 billion people today, unsurprisingly the land use has changed.

Habitats have been destroyed in favour of agriculture, forestry, fishing, urbanisation and manufacturing. Unsurprisingly, habitat loss has greatly reduced the species richness. Habitat fragmentation has also meant that populations have been split into smaller subunits, which then, when faced with challenging circumstances, have not been able to adapt and survive.

After habitat loss, over-harvesting has had a huge effect on biodiversity. Humans historically exploit plant and animal species for short-term profit. If a resource is profitable, we develop more efficient methods of harvesting it, inevitably depleting the resources, as is currently happening with fishing and logging. The exploited species then needs protection. The difficulty is that the demand then outstrips the supply, and so the resource value rises. This increases the incentive to extract the resource and leads to the final collapse of the population, as happened with whales, elephants, spotted cats, cod, tuna and many more species.

Human activities are polluting the air and water. Toxic discharge into the water from industrial processes unsurprisingly has a negative effect on the local aquatic species by killing, weakening or affecting their ability to reproduce. Another big water pollution problem is eutrophication. Phosphorous and nitrogen in fertilisers run-off agricultural fields and pass into rivers. These surplus nutrients cause algae to bloom, which then starves other aquatic species of oxygen and light, causing them to die.

Acid rain is one consequence of humans polluting the air. This causes lakes and water bodies to become more acidic, killing off fish, molluscs, amphibians and many other species.

A huge impact humans have had on planet Earth is the introduction of alien species to habitats. In fact, it is estimated that on any given day there are 3000 species in transit aboard ocean-going vessels! Alien species can cause problems in a number of ways.

Throughout the earth’s history there have been periods of rapid climate change that have led to mass extinction events. We are currently in a period of fluctuating climate, but nearly all scientists agree that human activities, like burning fossil fuels, are speeding up global warming.

We don’t know how much climate change is going to affect biodiversity in future, but it’s predicted to be huge. Loss of sea ice and ocean acidification are already causing huge reductions in biodiversity. Climate change alters temperature and weather patterns, with changing patterns of rainfall and drought expected to have significant impacts on biodiversity.

You can search the internet to find more human-related impacts on biodiversity.

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[yes]

;-; I bet most of you come from your online class hope you guys have a good day and don’t have that much work ;-;

[maeeden]

Imagine a student from 2030 looking through the comments and realizing that we had to do online class bc of corona.

[xyon]

Thank You for being the substitute teacher of our Lazy University Professor
who sent this video to us for Online Class

[unstopable_gaming]

I only saw this video because if was in the link of my online class otherwise I don’t even care about this video. Like if you agree!

[xccuber]

imagine someone from 4020 watching this because their friend from 4 planets away found a random site that get's no attention anymore and they are thinking wow they actually had to deal with this stuff we just move to another planet

[ddsworld]

I bet you are here from an online class..

[Kiara-lljp]

bruh I was sent here by my Biology teacher and I already learnt all of this from TED-Ed, that channel's sickkk. Yall should check it out

[ludwikmeissner]

As your audience includes many non-native speakers, it would really help if your audio were clearer and the speaker slowed down a tiny bit. I teach ESL and would happily use this video in my class. As it is, it is a little too challenging for many of my students (who can already communicate at an advanced level). Otherwise, the video is excellent.

[faitharvizumalfitano]

Im coming from online class bet you are too... i hope you can relax and let this beautiful world fill your peaceful mind.

[gherabay]

Biodiversity is all we need we can't survive without it but then because of the human activities it effect so much on our biodiversity.

We are not the only one who needed it but all living organisms are, we need to stop this instead we protect it, this is for our own good.
- Cyril Mae Belista

[rgingzen]

This Video tell us how humans affects our biodiversity and how to prevent them. We should be alarmed because we are the number 1 cause of different events like global warming, Exploitation, and more.. We need to make a move to conserve our environment and prevent the animals from extinction

[Elijahhh]

XD i dont understand a thing, she talks so fast

like if you agree LOL

Edit: Bruh i had to right i whole list of ways humans are affecting Biodiversity (i had to copy and paste Biodiversity) i am so sad ;w;

[nathaliegutierrez]

I learned that biodiversity are the variety of life in the world or in the particular habitat or ecosystem, meanwhile the stability is the state of being stable or maintaining the status of being equilibrium. I enjoyed watching this blog. Thank you for sharing us your thoughts about this topic. Great job!

[ilovechiefbrodie]

**My school career has left the chat**

[Iuuck]

That’s how Mafia works












Wow, a like

[Dan]

I hate online class ;w; :3 my fav fase

[victorcarvalho]

nice video, iam from brazil, i love this channel

[comradesushi]

Pause and have a look
seconds later*
Ok now lets continue

[joshuavalencia]

Matotonan mo talaga sa biodiversity na dapat pangalagaan ito.

[xylenebulalacao]

Thank you for the information well, every species has the role on ecosystem that helped to balance system. Some of the companies didn't act like a human and just mind their business to be the most profitable in the line of industry. They tend to forget about the other species which help them to survive their every living, industrialization also one of the reason for the destruction. Species died because they don't have habitat to lean on and they don't have food. We should think the the other species living on earth because if we lose them we will never survive.