Discuss the advantages of in-situ and ex-situ conservation.

1. Biodiversity:

(i) The variety of organisms i.e. plants, animals and microorganisms existing on earth is known as biodiversity.

(ii) Each year, 22nd May is celebrated as World Biodiversity Day.

(iii) Various laws like the Forest Conservation Act, 1927 and Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 have been enacted by our government to conserve biodiversity.

(iv) A number of factors are responsible for the loss of biodiversity. Deforestation, excessive grazing, and construction of cities, dams, industries are some reasons.

2. Deforestation:

Human activities which are responsible for deforestation include agricultural expansion, cattle breeding, illegal logging, mining, oil extraction, dam construction and infrastructure development.

3. Afforestation:

(i) Afforestation is the process of planting trees, or sowing seeds, in a barren land to create a forest.

(ii) Afforestation helps the wild animals and even humans to have shelter and to find their food source.

4. Reforestation:

Reforestation is the natural or intentional replanting of the existing forests that have been destroyed through deforestation.

5. Endangered Species:

(i) Species of plants and animals which do not exist any more are called extinct species.

(ii) Species which are restricted to a particular area are called endemic species.

6. Red Data Book:

Red Data Book of India contains the conservation status of animals and plants.

7. Conservation of Biodiversity:

(i) The wise and judicious use of resources is called conservation.

(ii) In India, there are about 73 national parks, 416 sanctuaries and 12 biosphere reserves.

(iii) The conservation of living resources within the natural ecosystem in which they occur is known as in-situ conservation.

(iv) Ex-situ conservation is the conservation of wildlife outside their habitat.

8. PBR (People's Bio Diversity Register):

People’s Biodiversity Register is a document which contains comprehensive information on locally available bio-resources including landscape and demography of a particular area or village.

9. Biomagnification:

(i) When the organisms in the higher food chain feed on the organisms in the lower food chain containing these toxins, these toxins get accumulated in the higher organisms and this is known as biomagnification.

(ii) The agricultural pesticides, insecticides, fertilizers and fungicides released into the rivers, lakes, and other water bodies can cause biomagnification.

10. Animal Welfare Organisations:

CPCSEA stands for ‘The Committee for the Purpose of Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals’.