Answer:
Essay written by Applepi101
Biodiversity, and Humanity's Threat to Life.
A variation in genetics, species, and of course, an ecosystem level, biodiversity is the single most important thing we must preserve in order for the food chain to be in balance, and for one species to not overtake the scale. This is what makes Earth unique from every other planet on the solar system. Biodiversity provides everyone's needs for food and water, shelter and much more. The importance of this single word is astounding, not only because of the fact that it is needed to conserve humans, but all life on Earth. Biodiversity comes from two words. The first part, "Bio" meaning "life" and the second part, "diversity" meaning "variety". Combine the two, and you have the variety of life.
It is important to understand that biodiversity can be studied on a global scale, or microscopically, genetically, or environmentally. One example is genetic biodiversity in the cross-breeding of dogs, and environmental biodiversity is how diverse the ecosystems around us are. Preserving this is what humans have the task of while living on this beautiful planet. Although humans are widely consumer based, taking from the environment, the question is how much longer can the Earth sustain the rapid population increases while taking and modifying the Earth's environment?
Zooming in on our oceans, which cover over 70 percent of the earth's surface, they are becoming increasingly polluted and threatened each year, with climate change, fishing, commercial agriculture, pollution, and oil spills. Studies show that in 2050, there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish. In the oceans, coral reefs are the most biologically diverse ecosystem in the world, seeing that they have a number of fish communities to tend to. But our reefs are dying, which means less fish, which means less animals that eat the fish, like birds, and less animals that eat the birds, and so on, which I see as a ripple effect, one drop on the pond shakes the whole pond, the whole food chain, the whole scale, but not as much humans.
At the same time, large parts of the Amazon are being cut down and burnt. Tree clearing has cut down the forest by 15 precent already. In Brazil, which has half the forest, 19 percent has disappeared. Those number are just numbers though, but when we have no trees to look at, no flowers to smell, no grass to play in, it will be too late. Many have warned that at one point, the rainforest that contains over 3 million known species, will turn into nothing but a dry scrubland, and we don't have a clue when it will reach it's tipping point.
How can we help? Reducing, reusing, and recycling is just the beginning, started climate strikes, campaigns, and protests is a great way to get started. Volunteering for non-profits that are dedicated to taking young interns to help weed, garden, and grow plants is another effective way. The future depends on us, starts with us, and it is our responsibility to commit ourselves to making sure that we should not need a list to keep track of endangered or extinct species, and we must act now.
Hope this helps!!
--Applepi101