Assignment on Biodiversity Depletion

Biodiversity influences people’s economic, social and cultural development and hence their quality of life; The knowledge, cultural traditions, innovations, and management practices of indigenous communities, and the traditional practices of farmers, and rural communities concerning biodiversity constitute the basis for sustaining both biodiversity and human life. However, biodiversity is being threatened in Bangladesh by the destruction of natural habitats due to the failure to recognize the social, economic, and cultural value of biodiversity. This threat and the concomitant destruction are likely to increase as population growth continues. It is believes that the problem may minimized through effective implementation of ecosystem based conservation of biodiversity involving community peoples.

“Biological Diversity” means the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems, and the ecological complexes of which they are part; it includes diversity within species between species, and of ecosystems (Article II, CBD, 1992). Literal meaning of biodiversity is the diversity of all life forms on earth. This includes the various races and species of all microbes, plants, and animals that live on earth, including their genetic difference, i.e. the gene pool of each species.

Bangladesh is a transitional zone of flora and fauna, because of its geographical settings and climatic characteristics.

This country is rich in fish and aquatic resources, and other biodiversity (Table-1) Bangladesh’s inland water bodies are known to be the habitat of 266

Table-1 Flora and Fauna Recorded in Bangladesh

Category	Total Number of Species
Flora
Angiosperms	5000
Gymnosperms	5
Algae/seaweed	168
Fauna
Sponges	3
Corals	66
(Marine+freshwater) molluscs	(336+26)362
Insects	2493
Mites	19
Shrimp/prawns	56
(Marine + Fresh water) crabs	(11+4) 15
Lobsters	3
Echinoderms	4
Marine + fresh water) Fish	(442+266) 708
Amphibians	22
(Marine + inland) Reptiles	(17+109) 126
Birds	628
(Marine + inland) Mammals	(3+110) 113

Source: Khan: 1991: Ahmed and Ali, 1996; Alam 1967; IUCN, 2000

Species of indigenous fish, 13 exotic fish, 56 prawns, about 26 fresh water molluscs, and 150 birds.

The marine water bodies (200 nautical miles along the coast) are also remarkable for being habitat of 442 species of fish. There are at least 36 species of marine shrimp. About 336 species of molluscs, covering 151 genera have been identified from the Bay of Bengal. In addition, several species of crabs, and 31 species of turtles and tortoises, of which 24 live in freshwater, and found in Bangladesh (Sarker and Sarker, 1988; and Ali, 1997), Ahmed and Ali (1996) published a species list of 168 seaweeds, 3 sponges, 15 crabs, 3 lobsters, 10 frogs, 3 crocodiles, 24 snakes, 3 otters, I porcupine, 9 dolphins, and 3 species of whale found in Bangladesh (Table-1)

There are numerous invertebrates in the country that are yet to be identified. Various authors have recorded about 70 species of bees, and many species of wasps (Alam, 1967).

In Bangladesh, only about 8-10 per cent of the land area is under good canopy cover. It supports approximately 5000 species of angiosperms, out of which about 300 species are being cultivated. The list of medicinal plants is currently being revised at the Bangladesh National Herbarium (BNH), and is expected to exceed 5000 species. Mia and Haque (1986) showed there are 224 species of timber-yielding plants found in Bangladesh. Khan and Mia (1984) described 130 species of indigenous fiber plants.

The IUCN Bangladesh Red Data Book (2000) has described 266 species of inland fishes. 17 marine fishes. 22 amphibians. 109 inland reptiles. 17 marine reptiles 388 resident bird. 240 migratory birds. 110 inland mammals, as well as 3 species of marine mammals in Bangladesh.

According to the Red list of IUCN, there are 54 species of inland fishes, 8 amphibians, 58 reptiles, 41 resident birds, and 40 mammals, which are threatened throughout the country. Among the marine and migratory species of animals, 4 fishes, 5 reptiles, 6 birds, and 3 mammals are threatened. So far, the Red Data Book on plants which is under preparation at BNH, lists 96 seed-bearing plant species that are threatened.

 The depletion of biodiversity is the result of various kinds of human development interventions and activities, especially in the areas of agriculture, forestry, fisheries, urbanization, industries, chemicals, minerals, transport, tourism, and energy.

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