Sarah Amato Bio lab Section 038 August 29, 2015 Biodiversity is the diversity in plant and animal species in a particular environment or ecosystem. Biodiversity is when there are different kinds of plants, animals and microorganisms in an environment that acquire different characteristics that affect the ecosystem in different ways. Biodiversity is essential for our survival. It prevents living organisms from harm and keeps them healthy. Biodiversity greatly affects the way living organisms live and without it the circle of life as we know it would not exist. Biodiversity is useful to many aspects of life, such as the ecosystem, medicinal discoveries, and the economy. Ecosystems provide recycling and storage for nutrients, regulate drainage …show more content…
The number that is obtained is then put into proportion with the number of living organisms in that same area/environment. This method can although be difficult and time consuming since some species living in the area are so small and cannot be seen with the naked eye. Each and every day there are threats to biodiversity. One event that had a big impact on biodiversity was the Deep-water Horizon oil spill that happened in the Gulf of Mexico in April 2010. It was one of the biggest gas explosions that killed many sea organisms and animals in the environment and even affected living organisms outside the environment. In nine square miles around the explosion site there was a decrease of biodiversity by thirty percent. The entire Gulf ecosystem was greatly affected by the impacts to the deep-sea environment. For example, bottom of the sea provides food and energy for other organisms such as fish. The deep sea is not only important for the food cycle but also recycles organic matter and produces new nutrients for the environment. The organisms that live in the deep sea also help maintain productivity and the climate. Many organisms died that were not directly hit and were affected after the explosion because of all the oil and gas leakage in the water. The loss of this biodiversity was extremely important because it affected the entire Gulf of Mexico by disturbing the food cycle, production and recycling of nutrients. The damage that was done from the BP Gulf oil spill took years to recover from. (Deep sea impacts BP Gulf oil spill,