Final answer:
Flora refers to plant life, while fauna refers to animal life in a certain region. Secondary forests show differences in the species composition of both compared to old-growth forests, with faunal species showing more variation in response to land-use changes.
Step-by-step explanation:
The difference between flora and fauna is that flora refers to all the plant life present in a particular region or time, typically the naturally occurring or indigenous plants. Fauna, on the other hand, encompasses all the animal life of any particular region or time. For example, in secondary forests, more than 60% of the species of birds, grasshoppers, and moths (which are part of the fauna) were never recorded in old-growth forests. In contrast, elements of the flora, such as certain orchid bees and fruit flies, are more consistent across different forest types, indicating that some fauna can adapt to changes in the landscape, while some flora remains stable.
Landscapes can therefore be seen as mosaics with differing habitat qualities affecting the distribution and survival of both flora and fauna. This includes various land-use types, like live fences and pastures with dispersed trees, which support diverse assemblages of fauna such as birds, bats, dung beetles, and butterflies. These assemblages interact with the flora, which together form an ecosystem reflecting both natural and human-influenced land uses that have conservation value.