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Subject: Biodiversity

1. Ecology & Ecosystems
2. Indian Biodiversity

  • MoEFCC clears rail track in Western Ghats despite red flags

    The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has cleared a rail project in the Western Ghats spread across Goa and Karnataka, which can endanger its wildlife.

    About the project:

    • The project is the doubling the track of Hospet-Hubballi-Londa-Vasco Da Gama railway line by the Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd (RVNL).
    • It involves doubling of the 353-kilometre-long railway track in Karnataka and Goa passing through the Western Ghats.

    Western Ghats:

    • The Western Ghats mountain range runs along the western side of India.
    • The Ghats are older than the Himalayas.
      • The range is known as Sahyadri in Maharashtra and Karnataka.
    • It runs, about 1600 km, North to South, along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau.
    • It originates near the border of Gujarat and Maharashtra, and runs through the states of Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, finally ending at Kanyakumari.
    • These hills form the catchment area for complex riverine drainage systems that drain almost 40% of India.
    • Height:
      • The average elevation is about 1,200 m.
      • Anaimudi (2695 m), is the highest peak of the Western Ghats, situated in Eravikulam National Park, Kerala.
    • Rocks found:
      • Basalt is the predominant rock found in the hills reaching a thickness of 3 km.
      • Other rocks: Granite gneiss, metamorphic gneisses with detached occurrences of crystalline limestone, iron ore, dolerites and anorthosites.
    • Major gaps in the range:
      • Goa Gap between the Maharashtra and Karnataka sections.
      • Palghat Gap on the Tamil Nadu and Kerala border between Nilgiri Hills and Anaimalai Hills.
    • Recognitions:
      • It is one of the eight hottest hotspots of biological diversity in the world.
      • In 2012, thirty-nine places in the Western Ghats region have been declared as World Heritage Sites by the UNESCO.
    • Flora and Fauna:
      • There are at least 139 mammal species.
      • It includes the critically endangered Malabar large-spotted civet and the endangered lion-tailed macaque.

  • Proposal to amend animal cruelty Act: strict measures suggested

    India’s antiquated animal cruelty law may finally get some teeth after around sixty years after its enactment.

    What are the amendments?

    • The Centre’s Animal Husbandry department has suggested adding to the 1960 legislation a stringent new section that addresses the killing of animals and “gruesome cruelty” towards them.
    • This section calls for imprisonment of up to five years and steep penalties that may go up to Rs 75,000.
    • The department has also proposed amending the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act to hike the penalty for first-time offenders from the paltry “minimum of Rs 10 to maximum of Rs 50” to “not less than Rs 750 extended up to Rs 3,750 per animal”.
    • The Union Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying set the ball rolling for the amendment of the legislation with Joint Commissioner (AH) Dr S K Dutta inviting suggestions from stakeholders at a webinar.

    Its proposed new section, meanwhile, has the following provisions—

    • 11 (A): Gruesome cruelty or life-threatening cruelty against animals, for which the penalty is Rs 50,000 per animal or the cost of the animal as determined by a jurisdictional veterinarian. This carries imprisonment of one year which may extend to three years or both.
    • 11 (B): Killing of an animal for which the penalty is Rs 75,000 per animal or three times the cost of the animal as determined by the jurisdictional veterinarian, whichever is more, with imprisonment of three years which may extend to five years or both.
    • 11 (C): Exceptions (exemption to section 11 (B) killing of an animal): i) accident ii) in defence of self or property (iii) by an act of god or war (iv) any other unforeseen circumstance outside the control of any person in general.

    Steps taken for welfare of animals in India:

    • The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960 recognises that animals can suffer physically and mentally, and is applicable to ‘all living creatures’.
    • The Constitution also enshrines the principle of ahimsa and mandates to all citizens of India to ‘have compassion for living creatures’.
    • The Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI) is the central body responsible for animal welfare in the country.
    • The National Institute for Animal Welfare created in 1999, has the broad mandate to improve animal welfare through research, education and public outreach.

  • Meghalaya records India’s first bat with sticky disks

    About the species

    • A team of scientists from the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) and a few European natural history museums stumbled upon very specialised small bat with “disk-like pads in the thumb and bright orange colouration”.
    • The flattened skull and sticky pads enabled the bats to roost inside cramped spaces, clinging to smooth surfaces such as bamboo internodes.
    • The disk-footed bat was also found to be genetically very different from all other known bats bearing disk-like pads.

    Significance

    • Meghalaya has yielded India’s first bamboo-dwelling bat with sticky disks, taking the species count of the flying mammal in the country to 130.
    • The disk-footed bat has raised Meghalaya’s bat count to 66, the most for any State in India.
    • It has also helped add a genus and species to the bat fauna of India.
    • There are a couple of other bamboo-dwelling bats in India.
    • But the extent of adaptation for bamboo habitat in this species is not seen in the others.

  • Mahendragiri Hills

    The Odisha government has proposed a second biosphere reserve in the southern part of the state at Mahendragiri, a hill ecosystem having a rich biodiversity.

    The 5,569-square kilometre Similipal Biosphere Reserve is Odisha’s first such reserve and was notified May 20, 1996.

    Mahendragiri Hills

    • Mahendragiri is a mountain in the Rayagada subdivision of the district of Gajapati, Odisha, India.
    • It is situated amongst the Eastern Ghats at an elevation of 1,501 metres.
    • The hill and its surrounding areas are recognized as a biodiversity hot spot due to numerous medicinal plants and other species that are found here.
    • Mahendragiri is inhabited by the Soura people, a particularly vulnerable tribal group as well as the Kandha tribe.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.From the ecological point of view, which one of the following assumes importance in being a good link between the Eastern Ghats and the Western Ghats? (CSP 2018)

    (a) Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve

    (b) Nallamala Forest

    (c) Nagarhole National Park

    (d) Seshachalam Biosphere Reserve

    Why designate it as a biosphere reserve?

    • The area of the proposed Mahendragiri Biosphere Reserve is around 470,955 hectares and is spread over Gajapati and Ganjam districts in the Eastern Ghats.
    • The hill ecosystem acts as a transitional zone between the flora and fauna of southern India and the Himalayas, making the region an ecological estuary of genetic diversities.
    • The rich flora in Mahendragiri represents 40 per cent of the reported flora of Odisha, with around 1,358 species of plants.

    Back2Basics:  Biosphere Reserves

    • A biosphere reserve is an area of land or water that is protected by law in order to support the conservation of ecosystems, as well as the sustainability of mankind’s impact on the environment.
    • Each reserve aims to help scientists and the environmental community figure out how to protect the world’s plant and animal species while dealing with a growing population and its resource needs.
    • To carry out the complementary activities of biodiversity conservation and sustainable use of natural resources, biosphere reserves are traditionally organized into 3 interrelated zones, known as:
      1. the core area
      2. the buffer zone and
      3. a transition zone or ‘area of cooperation

  • Species in news: Nacaduba sinhala ramaswamii Sadasivan

    The discovery of the species Nacaduba sinhala ramaswamii Sadasivan in the Agasthyamalais in the Western Ghats a decade ago has now found a place in the Journal of Threatened Taxa.

    William Shakespeare’s words hold true! Really “Whats in a name!”

    Nacaduba sinhala ramaswamii Sadasivan

    • The new taxon of Lycaenid butterflies belonging to the Nacaduba genus had been first sighted by a team of Bombay Natural History Society.
    • Line Blues are small butterflies belonging to the subfamily Lycaenidae and their distribution ranges from India and Sri Lanka to the whole of southeastern Asia, Australia and Samoa.
    • It is the first time that a butterfly species was discovered by an all-Indian research team from the Western Ghats.

    Try this PYQ from CSP 2020:

    Q.With reference to India’s Biodiversity, Ceylon frogmouth, Coppersmith barbet, Gray-chinned minivet and White-throated redstart are

    (a) Birds

    (b) Primates

    (c) Reptiles

    (d) Amphibians

  • What are the Diatoms?

    The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad has relied on a forensic test known as diatom tests for leads in an alleged murder case of a person inviting high stage political drama.

    What are Diatoms?

    • Diatoms are photosynthesizing algae that are found in almost every aquatic environment including fresh and marine waters, soils, in fact, almost anywhere moist.
    • Diatoms have cell walls made of silica, each species has a distinct pattern of tiny holes in the cell wall (frustule) through which they absorb nutrients and get rid of waste.
    • A diatom is a photosynthetic, single-celled organism which means they manufacture their own food in the same way plants do.

    Diatoms are important as they:

    • provide the basis of the food chain for both marine and freshwater micro-organisms and animal larvae
    • are a major source of atmospheric oxygen responsible for 20-30% of all carbon fixation on the planet
    • can act as environmental indicators of climate change
    • form the basis of some household goods such as pest/mite prevention and mild abrasive

    Never underestimate UPSC. Try this PYQ before you reach any conclusion.

    Q.Which one of the following is the correct sequence of a food chain?

    (a) Diatoms-Crustaceans-Herrings

    (b) Crustaceans-Diatoms-Herrings

    (c) Diatoms-Herrings-Crustaceans

    (d) Crustaceans-Herrings-Diatoms

    What is a diatom test?

    • Diagnosis of death by drowning is deemed as a difficult task in forensic pathology.
    • A number of tests have been developed to confirm the cause of such deaths with the diatom test emerging as one of the most important tests.
    • The test entails findings if there are diatoms in the body being tested.

    The science behind

    • A body recovered from a water body does not necessarily imply that the death was due to drowning.
    • If the person is alive when he enters the water, the diatoms will enter the lungs when the person inhales water while drowning.
    • These diatoms then get carried to various parts of the body, including the brain, kidneys, lungs and bone marrow by blood circulation.
    • If a person is dead when is thrown in the water, then there is no circulation and there is no transport of diatom cells to various organs.

  • Seabuckthorn plantations in Himachal Pradesh

    The Himachal Pradesh government has decided to start planting Seabuckthorn in the cold desert areas.

    What is Seabuckthorn?

    • It’s a shrub that produces an orange-yellow coloured edible berry.
    • In India, it is found above the tree line in the Himalayan region, generally in dry areas such as the cold deserts of Ladakh and Spiti.
    • In Himachal Pradesh, it is locally called Himalayan chharma and grows in the wild in Lahaul and Spiti and parts of Kinnaur.
    • According to the Seabuckthorn Association of India, around 15,000 hectares in Himachal, Ladakh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh are covered by this plant.

    Try this PYQ from CSP 2019:

    Q.Recently, there was a growing awareness in our country about the importance of Himalayan nettle (Girardinia diversifolia) because it is found to be a sustainable source of

    (a) anti-malarial drug

    (b) biodiesel

    (c) pulp for paper industry

    (d) textile fibre

    Benefits of the Seabuckthorn plant

    (1) Medicinal benefits

    • As a folk medicine, Seabuckthorn has been widely used for treating stomach, heart and skin problems.
    • In the last few decades, scientific research worldwide has backed many of its traditional uses.
    • Its fruit and leaves are rich in vitamins, carotenoids and omega fatty acids, among other substances, and it can help troops in acclimatizing to high-altitude.

    (2) Ecological benefits

    • Besides being an important source of fuelwood and fodder, Seabuckthorn is a soil-binding plant that prevents soil-erosion, checks siltation in rivers and helps preserve floral biodiversity.
    • In the Lahaul valley, where willow trees are dying in large numbers due to pest attack, this hardy shrub is a good alternative for protecting the local ecology.

    (3) Commercial benefits

    • Seabuckthorn also has commercial value, as it is used in making juices, jams, nutritional capsules etc.
    • But wild Seabuckthorn cannot sustainably supply raw material to the industry, and the plant needs to be cultivated on a large scale as is being done in China.

    What is the latest project?

    • The Seabuckthorn association wants the forest departments of various Himalayan states/UTs to plant Seabuckthorn on arid and marginal lands using compensatory afforestation or CAMPA funds.
    • Recently, the union ministry of environment, forest and climate change asked these states to submit proposals for taking up such plantations.
    • This is in the light of reduced water flow from Himalayan glaciers and their impact on ecology.

  • Why insects are crucial for ecological balance?

    This newscard is an excerpt from the original article published in the DownToEarth.  It talks about the ecological importance of insects.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.Consider the following:

    1. Birds
    2. Dust blowing
    3. Rain
    4. Wind blowing

    Which of the above spread plant diseases?

    (a) 1 and 3 only

    (b) 3 and 4 only

    (c) 1, 2 and 4 only

    (d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

    Various threats to insects

    • Insects are increasingly susceptible to extinction due to increasing climate crisis.
    • They form the basal part of the food pyramid and impact our agriculture ecosystems as well as human health.
    • Their extinction can have a cascading effect on the upper levels of the food pyramid.
    • Rampant and indiscriminate use of chemicals in commercial agricultural practices, mainly monocropping systems, has been taking a toll on insects in the vicinity of farmlands and plantations.
    • While everyone is talking about sustainability in agriculture, the role of insects has largely been ignored.

    A few common insects whose existence is taken for granted and their ecological relevance are:

    (1) Butterflies

    • They are important pollinators like bees.
    • Species diversity and density of butterfly indicate a good diversity of plants in an area. Several types of butterflies have specific host plants.
    • Climate change, forest degradation, habitat loss, unavailability of hosts and nectar plant species are among major reasons for a decline in butterfly population.
    • This leads to loss of plants species that depend on the butterflies for pollination.
    • Backyard gardening and growing host plants in public spaces are important strategies to conserve butterfly species.

    (2) Dragonflies

    • They are one of the most widely recognised insects, need clean aquatic systems and are hence a good indicator of the health of local aquatic systems.
    • These, along with damselflies, are well-known biological predators with both larvae and adults acting as natural bio-control agents.
    • They are highly sensitive to changes in their habitats and are declining due to increasing habitat loss, anthropogenic activities, pollutants, climate change and rapid urbanisation.
    • For their conservation, use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides has to be prohibited or minimized in agriculture systems.

    (3) Grasshoppers

    • They feed on different plants and can cause serious damage to economic crops.
    • However, in a biodiversity-rich region, they are an important component of the food chain, being an important food source for many birds.
    • Grasshoppers and insects such as crickets are often consumed by people as they are rich in protein.

    (4) Ants

    • They are in the most abundance. Ants act as scavengers/decomposers by feeding on organic wastes and other dead animals.
    • Ants also aerate the soil.
    • Heavy use of chemicals in agriculture causes harm to ants.

    (5) Wild honey bees

    • They play a major role in the pollination of forest species affecting cross-pollination and maintenance of variability within species.
    • Wild honey is also a food source for humans and many wild animals.
    • When forest covers are lost, wild bees tend to migrate to newer areas where they may or may not adapt.
    • With the possibility of commercial apiaries, wild bees need to be left alone and honey tapping from wild hives discouraged.
    • This can help sustain the natural processed of pollination among forest species and maintain diversity in plants conventionally propagated through seeds.

    (6) Rainbow leaf beetles

    • They are found in forests, woodlands and mountain grasslands.
    • They mostly depend on leaves and flowers of some specific plant family like Apocynaceae.
    • These are listed as endangered species in International Union for Conservation of Nature from 1994.
    • The species is also known to be poisonous to its predators for they feed on dogbane that contains poisonous cardenolides.

    (7) Fireflies

    • They are a good indicator of a healthy environment, especially a good aquatic system. They avoid regions with chemical toxicity.
    • They are good pollinators and natural pest control agents in several ecosystems.

  • Species in news: Wild Sun Rose (Portulaca Laljii)

    Botanists have discovered a new species of wild Sun Rose from the Eastern Ghats in India.

    Try this PYQ from CSP 2018:

    Q.Why is a plant called Prosopis juliflora often mentioned in the news?

    (a) Its extract is widely used in cosmetics.

    (b) It tends to reduce the biodiversity in the area in which it grows

    (c) Its extract is used in the pesticides.

    (d) None of the above

    Portulaca Laljii

    • The new species named Portulaca laljii was discovered from the Prakasam district of Andhra Pradesh.
    • It has unique features such as a tuberous root, no hair in its leaf axils, a reddish-pink flower, prolate-shaped fruits, and copper brown seeds without luster.
    • Portulaca Laljii has been named to honor the contribution of Lal Ji Singh, an eminent botanist of the Botanical Survey of India.
    • The species has been placed under the ‘Data Deficient’ category of the IUCN List of Threatened Species because very little information is available about the population of the species.

    Morphological features

    • These morphological features distinguish the species from other species of the genus Portulaca.
    • The flowers, which are reddish-pink in color, are very minute, at about 0.5mm.
    • The plant was found growing in rocky crevices at an altitude of about 1,800 meters above mean sea level, very close to the ground, at about less than 10 cm.
    • The plants belonging genus Portulaca are classified in the category Sun Rose because they flower in bright sunshine.
    • The genus was described by Linnaeus in 1753 as a type genus of the flowering plant family Portulacaceae.

  • Species in news: Himalayan trillium

    The Himalayan trillium (Trillium govanianum), a common herb of the Himalayas was declared ‘endangered’ by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) last week.

    Try this MCQ:

    Q.Recently, there was a growing awareness in our country about the importance of Himalayan nettle (Girardinia diversifolia) because it is found to be a sustainable source of-

    (a) Anti-malarial drug

    (b) Bio-diesel

    (c) Pulp for paper industry

    (d) Textile fibre

    Himalayan trillium

    • In recent years, the plant has become one of the most traded commercial plants of the Himalayan region, due to its high medicinal quality.
    • It is found in temperate and sub-alpine zones of the Himalayas, at an altitude from 2,400-4,000 metres above sea level.
    • Their existence has also been traced across India, Bhutan, Nepal, China, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
    • In India, it is found in four states only- Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Sikkim, and Uttarakhand.
    • Often called Nagchatri, in local areas this herb grows to a height of 15-20 cm.

    Various applications

    • It has been used in traditional medicine to cure diseases like dysentery, wounds, skin boils, inflammation, sepsis, as well as menstrual and sexual disorders.
    • Recent experiments have shown that the rhizome of the herb is a source of steroidal saponins and can be used as an anti-cancer and anti-ageing agent.
    • This increased its market value and has now become an easy target for poachers.