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What threatens biodiversity?

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Some of the main threats to biodiversity are: 

1. Habitat loss and deforestation, 2. Climate change, 3. Overexploitation of resources, 4. Environmental pollution, 5. Invasive species.

1. Habitat loss and deforestation: The dramatic alteration of habitats directly threatens biodiversity. When such habitats are lost due to deforestation and other anthropogenic activities such as mining, the respective environments are unable to provide shelter, food, water, or breeding grounds for the living organisms.

2. Climate change: The global climatic changes throughout the history of the plant have definitely modified life and ecosystems in the planet. As an outcome, crucial habitats have been destroyed and a number of species have gone extinct with a huge majority at the verge of extinction. It therefore means that if the global temperatures continue to change drastically, especially due to anthropogenic activities that accelerate the process, the threats to biodiversity will continue to expand as ecosystems and species will not be able to adapt.

3. Overexploitation of resources: On the account of the ever rising human population, there has been a correlational increase in demand for manufactured products, essential goods and services. The high demands of these things have resulted in overfishing, overhunting, over-harvesting and excessive mineral resource extraction which has highly contributed to biodiversity loss. Mineral extraction, poaching, excessive logging and other forms of resource exploitation for profit has heightened the risks of species extinction. It has also altered natural habits therefore destroying food chains and interfering with the ecological balance.

4. Environmental pollution: Pollution has continued to harm the biosphere by releasing and depositing toxic chemicals into the atmospheric, terrestrial and marine systems. With the high levels of pollution every year, it is gradually disrupting the Earth’s ecosystems as the chemicals released potentially influences species’ habits and ecosystems. Pollution has also depleted ozone levels, created dead zones in marine habitats due to toxicity and acid rains, altered species feeding and breading habits, and even caused the death of many species due to oil spills or the consumption of plastic and other toxic substances.

5. Invasive species: Invasive species are the non-native species that invade normal and healthy ecosystems and threaten the survival of the native species either by attacking them or competing for the habitat’s resources. Accordingly, they upset the native biota and ecosystems thereby causing extinctions and massive threats to biodiversity.

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