Biodiversity ConservationConservation is the philosophy and policy of managing the environment to assure adequate supplies of natural resources for future as well as present generations. Through the conservation of biodiversity the survival of many species and habitats which are threatened due to human activities can be ensured. Other reasons for conserving biodiversity include securing valuable Natural Resources for future generations and protecting the well being of eco-system functions.

We are an integral part of nature; our fate is tightly linked with biodiversity, the huge variety of other animals and plants, the places they live and their surrounding environments, all over the world. We rely on this diversity of life to provide us with the food, fuel, medicine and other essentials we simply cannot live without. Yet this rich diversity is being lost at a greatly accelerated rate because of human activities. This impoverishes us all and weakens the ability of the living systems, on which we depend, to resist growing threats such as climate change.

Earth is composed of many different ecosystems and each one is a “dynamic complex of plant, animal, and micro-organism communities interacting with the non-living environment as a functional unit. These ecosystems are an intricate part of the human lifecycle as they provide us with our water, food and energy. Since mankind is in a take and take some more relationship with the ecosystems, many of them have had their natural processes disrupted, not to mention the added pollution and excessive use. According to the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, "Over 60% of all ecosystems on the globe are overexploited and have entered into a degradation cycle with often unknown consequences" (2004).

All life forms interact with each other and balance the web of nature but it is the man who has disrupted this web in a race of introducing technology to live a more complacent life. It is well said that "Modern technology owes ecology, an apology".

The difference between animals and humans is that animals change themselves for the environment, but humans change the environment for themselves. Man must feel the earth to know him and recognize his values. God made life simple. It is man who complicates it.

To be simple, we have to make a change in our lifestyle; we should also be responsible of handling natural resources such as land, water, soil, plants and animals focusing on its present and future generations, so that we can be able to preserve the biodiversity. In order to have a sustainable environment, we have to make strategies like comprehending the processes of nature including ecosystem, water, and soils using appropriate and adapting management systems in local situations and cooperation between scientists that have knowledge and resources and local people that have knowledge and skills. There are some other things, we have to follow to give our action for the biodiversity and as our responsibility over it such as; examine impacts of local decisions in a regional context, plan for long-term change and unexpected events, preserve rare landscape elements and associated species.

Pakistan, officially Islamic Republic of Pakistan, republic in South Asia, marking the area where South Asia converges with Southwest Asia and Central Asia. The capital of Pakistan is Islamabad; Karachi is the country’s largest city. Depending on the topography, there is an extreme variation in the temperature of Pakistan. The country is essentially arid except for the southern slopes of the Himalayas and the sub-mountainous tract where the annual rainfall varies between 760 and 1270 mm. This area has humid sub-Tropical climate. In the extreme north - because of great heights - Highland climate prevails. Within a relatively small area, it has the equivalent of many of the world’s most important climatic and vegetation zones or biomes. Moving from permanent snow and cold desert habitats, through alpine, mountain temperate forests and tropical deciduous forests to the alpine dry steppes, the arid subtropical/desert habitats, thorn forest, the refrain plains of the Indus and its tributaries and finally a rich mangrove and associated systems along the coast.

The mountainous areas embracing the Himalayan, Karakorum and Hindukush Ranges are rich in fauna and flora, as compared to other parts of the country. These areas provide an excellent habitat for wildlife in the form of alpine grazing lands, sub-alpine scrub and temperate forests. These habitats support a variety of wild animals. Some of the main wildlife species are the snow leopard, the black and the brown bears, otter, wolf, lynx, Himalayan ibex, markhor, bharal, Marco Polo's sheep, shapu, musk deer, marmots, tragopan and monal pheasants. The snow partridge and snowcock reside at higher elevations. The Rhesus monkey, common langur, red fox, black bear, common leopard, a variety of cats, musk deer (over a limited area), goral, several species of flying squirrels, chakor, partridge and pheasants (koklass, kaleej and cheer) live in the lower elevations. Amongst these the snow leopard, musk deer, Marco Polo's sheep, and the brown bear are endangered. The Tibetan wild ass and the blue sheep populations have been reduced drastically. The cheer pheasant is reported to be extinct from within Pakistan's boundaries, and is included in the IUCN Red Data Book. The western horned tragopan was reported to have disappeared from within Pakistani territory, but has now been relocated to Indus Kohistan, although its numbers are low.

Pakistan is home to a number of endangered species, including the woolly flying squirrel, markhor, blue whale, Pakistan sand cat, the ibex wild goat, and several species of birds, whales and turtles. Certain mammals which could be found in abundance at one time have now become the rarest mammals in the world, such as the snow leopard, the Marco Polo sheep and the Indus river dolphin. In response to the decrease in Pakistan's wildlife population, the government plans on increasing the number of national parks. However, for many of the endangered species of Pakistan, it will be too little, too late.

More specific threats to biodiversity are posed by deforestation (estimated at 1% annually), overgrazing, soil erosion, rampant hunting and fishing, and agricultural practices. As a result, it is estimated that at least 12% of the flora is threatened and several of the faunal species are threatened too. However, the real status of most species remains unknown.

Given the recent recognition of Global Climate Change it is imperative to understand that this will have consequences. The Biodiversity Ecosystem Functioning problem is still in its infancy, but science is working hard to understand this issue. It is nevertheless important to remember that even though science does not yet comprehend the intricate biological dynamics, this is not an excuse for not taking the problem seriously.

There are three main strategies for conserving biodiversity which includes:

  1. National Parks.
  2. Wildlife refuge/sanctuaries.
  3. Game Reserves.

A national park is a reserve of natural or semi-natural land, declared or owned by a government, set aside for human recreation and enjoyment, animal and environmental protection and restricted from most development.

The largest national park in the world meeting the IUCN definition is the Northeast Greenland National Park, which was established in 1974.

A wildlife refuge, also called a wildlife sanctuary, may be a naturally-occurring sanctuary, such as an island, that provides protection for species from hunting, predation or competition, or it may refer to a protected area, a geographic territory within which wildlife is protected. Such wildlife refuges are generally officially designated territories, created by government legislation, though the land itself may be publicly or privately owned, whereas a game reserve is an area of land set aside for maintenance of wildlife for tourism and/or hunting purposes. Many game reserves are located in Africa. Most are open to the public, and tourists commonly take sightseeing safaris or hunt wild game.

A game reserve is more than just a piece of land or a place to keep wildlife; it is a place where ecosystems are protected and conservation is a key. Indigenous wildlife in its natural habitat makes for an ideal situation as this helps in providing an environment where growth in numbers at a natural rate can occur.

The biggest attraction is the Big Five game (Africa) - rhinoceros, elephant, buffalo, leopard and lion, named so because of the difficulty in hunting them and not their size, which is why the leopard is on the list and the hippopotamus is not.

National Conservation Strategy (NCS) recognizes that the existing protected areas (P.As) system is incomplete, in that it is not representative of all the ecosystems and plants and animal communities; the boundaries of existing P.As are in most cases not drawn according to ecological criteria; many are too small and isolated; and there are limited management planning capabilities and weak law enforcement programs. There are no plans which identify species hot spots, or the specific management requirements of rare and endangered species. The lack of any significant financial benefits and incentives to local people to participate also constrains biodiversity conservation in the country. As a result of these conditions, much of Pakistan’s biodiversity is severely threatened, and in critical need of attention. To conserve biodiversity, the NCS recommends investing Rs. 1.08 billion in the following seven programs:

  • Management of national parks and protected areas;
  • Development of new national parks;
  • Development of new wetland reserves;
  • A medical botanicals and germ plasm preservation program;
  • Community management of game reserves;
  • Programs for endangered species; and
  • Captive breeding in the private sector.

To conserve the biodiversity, we first need to recognize the areas where the species are endangered or becoming extinct and then transform it into a protected area.

"Till now man has been up against nature, from now on he will be up against his own nature." Dennis Gabor

Biodiversity is rapidly declining, we were born in this world and given the opportunity to experience nature in its beauty, and do we want our children to have the same opportunity as was given to us? If we care about our children, we must care about the world, care about our very own earth and its inhabitants, care about biodiversity!!

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