Conserving Megadiversity In Australia

Every living organism on our planet, both plants (Flora) and animals (Fauna), are included when determining biodiversity. On our planet, there are 13.6 million species of plants, animals and micro-organisms, and Australia has about 7% (one million) of these (Australian Museum, 2017). Australia has a vast biodiversity because it is classed as a ‘megadiverse country’. Megadiversity is when a country has high levels of biodiversity. One way to measure Australia’s biodiversity is by looking at taxonomic groups. By looking at taxonomic groups, scientists can monitor the breeding rates of animals and compare them to recent years to see if their population has flourished or declined. Conserving biodiversity isn’t just about conserving endangered species, it’s about conserving entire habitats and ecosystems (Environment.gov.au, 2017). Some ways Australia is preserving their biodiversity is by introducing national policies for the management of Australia’s biological resources, whole farming linked to regional or catchment plans and catchment management such as for the Murray-Darling Basin (Environment.gov.au, 2017).
Even with these new policies, there are still animals that are
These events are known as the 5 Mass Extinctions, and scientists believe we are now on the precipice of the sixth. Researchers say that humans are the only ones that are causing the sixth extinction. How are humans causing this? Habitat destruction, an ever growing population, agricultural production and air pollution are all contributing to the latest extinction. These activities are causing even more species to become extinct. The thought of the sixth extinction is scary, but we can still stop it from happening. The important thing is to not give up. If we give up, the world as we know it will