Back to: MBOSE Social Science Class 10

Examples of endemic species

• Wild pig of Andaman Island
• Mithun of Arunachal Pradesh.
• Pitcher plants of Meghalaya

The unclassed forest is that forest which has not been grouped into different classes.They mainly consist of inaccessible forests or unoccupied wastelands. They may belong to the government, private and communities. The unclassed forest is mostly found in the North Eastern India and Gujarat regions.
Estimated forest cover in India is 21.05 % (692, 027 sq km). Madhya Pradesh has the largest area under permanent forests. The permanent forests constitute about 75% of the state total forest area.
Biodiversity can be defined as the presence of the different living organisms (different species of plants and animals) in an area and there were complicated interactions between species of organisms or between organisms of the same species and the ecosystem itself.

Difference Between Extinct Species and Endangered Species

Extinct Species	Endangered Species
The Species which are no longer found in the place where they used to be found are called extinct species.	Endangered species are those species that are very close to be extinct.
Species can be extinct from the region, continent or from the entire earth surface	Proper conservation strategies have to be adopted to prevent them from extinction.
Examples: Asiatic CheetahPink Head duckMountain quail	Examples Indian RhinoIndian wild AssCrocodile

Difference between Endemic Species and Rare Species

Endemic Species	Rare Species
The Species that are found only in some areas and cannot be found anywhere else in the world are called endemic species	Rare Species are those species which has only small population and they become vulnerable if proper care was not taken to conserve them.
Examples : Wild pig of the Andaman, Mithun of Arunachal Pradesh	Examples: Asiatic BuffaloHimalayan Brown BearHornbill

Beej Bachao Andolan is also known as “Save the seed movement”. This movement has taken place in the Tehri and Navdanya districts of the state of Uttrakhand in India.
The introduction of the newly developed seeds by the government and the use of chemical fertilizers was seen by the people of Uttrakhand as dangers to the environment and their own traditional crops. Hence the Beej Bachao Andolan was formed with the objectives to re-introduce, collect, tests, distribute and popularise the indigenous crop variety in the region.
The movement advocates the discontinuation of the use of the chemical dependent seeds and the use of the synthetic fertilizers.

There are five major reasons which are responsible for depletion (destruction) of flora and fauna in India.

• Agricultural expansion After Independence agricultural expansion becomes the major causes of depletion of forest resources. Between 1951 and 1980, according to the Forest Survey of India over 26,200 sq. km of forest area was converted into agricultural land all over the India.
• Mining It is another major factor behind deforestation, e.g. dolomite mining has seriously threatened the Buxa Tiger Reserve in West Bengal. This ongoing mining has disturbed the natural habitat and blocked the migration route of great Indian elephant.
• Large-scale development projects since 1951; over 5000 sq km of forest was cleared for River Valley Projects. Narmada Sagar Projects in Madhya Pradesh has inundated 40000 hectare of forest.
• Rapidly expanding industrial-urban economy increasing consumption of forest based product such as rubber, medicines, dyes, fuel wood has increased the depletion of forest resources.
• Over population in the third world countries it is often cited as the cause of environmental degradations. However an average American Consumed 40 times more resources than an average Somalian. Similarly 5 per cent richest Indians cause more ecological damage than poorest 25 per cent.

The project tiger conservation programme was initiated in 1973 in the Corbett national park of Uttarakhand for the purpose of saving the Tiger population from extinction in India. The objective of this project was to ensure the survival and maintenance of the Tiger population in India. This is one of the success stories of wildlife conservation in the whole world. An estimated of the Tiger population in India at that turns of the century place the figure upto 40,000. Subsequently the first ever all India Tiger census was conducted in 1972 which revealed the existence of only 1827 tigers.

The project of conservation of tiger population was launched by the government of India with the help of international Agencies like World Wildlife Fund etc. Nine Tiger Reserves in 9 states with the total area of 13,017 km² were set aside with a Tiger population of about 300.

The main achievements of this project are excellent recovery of the habitat and consequent areas from a mere 268 in 9 reserves in 1972 to 2,226 in 27 reserves in 2015. Out of the total area an area of 4,9 36 km² is set apart as a core zone free from all human interference. Cattle grazing in this area have been stopped and many villagers have been moved out.

The main objective of tiger conservation project is:

• To conserve Bengal tigers in their natural habitat.
• Protecting them from extinction.
• Maintaining the balance of ecosystem.
• Preserving the areas of biological importance as natural habitat.

The effect of Project tiger is now more Bengal tigers are conserved and thus which maintains the balance of ecosystem.

Wildlife conservation is the practice of protecting plant and animal species and their habitats. As part of the world’s ecosystems, wildlife provides balance and stability to nature’s processes. By conserving wildlife, we’re ensuring that future generations can enjoy our natural world and the incredible species that live within it.

One compelling benefit that comes from wildlife conservation efforts is that it ensures food security. Protecting forests from deforestation and rebuilding forest habitats to preserve biodiversity aids in the carbon-sequestering process, provides new economic opportunities, and guards against erosion.

Role of local communities in the conservation of forest with the help of examples. : Indian forests are home to some of the traditional communities who are dependent on forests for their livelihood. These local communities are struggling to conserve forests along with government officials in some areas and in many areas, villagers themselves are protecting the habitats and explicitly rejecting government involvement.

• In Sariska Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan, villagers have fought against mining and destruction of forest by citing the Wildlife Protection Act.
• The inhabitants of five villages in the Alwar district of Rajasthan have declared 1,200 hectares of forest area the Bhairodev Dakav ‘Sonchuri’, enforcing their own set of rules and regulations. They donot allow hunting, and are protecting the wildlife against any outside encroachments. On account of nature worship prevalent mainly among the tribals, several virgin forests have been preserved in their pristine form as ‘Sacred Groves’.
• The Bishnois of Rajasthan are well known for protecting black bucks (chinkara) an endangered species, and herds of black buck, nilgai and peacocks can be seen as an integral part of the community and nobody harms them.
• The famous Chipko Movement in the Himalayas led by local communities, especially women, successfully resisted deforestation in several areas. They have also shown that community afforestation with indigenous species can be enarmously successful.
• Traditional conservation methods are revived through the Beej Bachao Andolan in Tehri and Navdanya. The Joint Forest Management programme furnishes a good, example for involving local communities in management and restoration of degraded forests.

Government has adopted the following methods to conserve forests after independence—

• The government has classified the forest into three types—Reserved forest, Protected forests and Unclassed forests, making it clear which activity can be carried out in which type of forest.
• To give protection to wildlife, as they fully depend on forests – various acts have been enacted like the Indian wildlife (Protection Act) 1972. Subsequently central and many state governments established national parks and wildlife sanctuaries.
• Government has started various programmes like Van Mahotsava to highlight the importance of forests among people of the country.

Sacred Grove: A sacred grove or sacred woods are any grove of trees that are of special religious importance to a particular culture. Sacred groves feature in various cultures throughout the world. Having religious content, these plants species are protected from the local communities and thereby helps in the conservation of the species. Example, Sacred groves of Khejri protected by Bishnoi community of Rajasthan.

The common examples of sacred grooves are Ficus Religiosa (Peepal) tree and Ficus benghalensis (Banyan) tree. Tese trees are considered as religiously important due to their huge production of oxygen and helping in maintaining the balance in the atmosphere.