ey Everyone,
I apologise for the lateness of my post. I have been battling and losing the battle against bronchitis to the point where I was pretty much useless for almost a week. That being said, here is my post for this week's discussion.
Which biodiversity hotspot did you choose to write about? (Give the name)
This week I decided to write about the Mediterranean Basin. I have lived in parts of France and Greece where this hotspot is located.
Where is it located? (Give the world, region and country)
The Mediterranean Basin covers from Portugal to Jordan going east to west and Italy to Morocco covering north to south ("Mediterranean Basin," 2010). The hotspot covers parts of Spain, France, the Balkan states, Greece, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon,
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The Iberian lynx inhabits mainly Spain but have found to been in main parts throughout the Mediterranean basin ("Iberian lynx videos, photos and facts", n.d.). The Iberian lynx is important because it acts as a disease control mechanism because of its preference in prey. Iberian lynx mainly preys on European rabbits which are highly prone to diseases and thus by the lynx feeding on this particular species, and being immune to the diseases that the rabbit contracts, they are limiting the spread of disease to other species within the ecosystem ("Ecosystem Roles - Iberian Lynx", …show more content…
I would have assumed areas around the Mediterranean but not such a large area. Another interesting fact I learned the Mediterranean Basin hotspot is number of vascular plant species (22,500) where around 52% of these species are found no where else in the world ("Mediterranean Basin," 2010). To imagine how many species are distinctly found in only one area of the world and no where else on the planet is amazing. Finally, an interesting fact about the Mediterranean Basin would be the population in that area that is approximating 300 million individuals ("Mediterranean Basin," 2010). Thinking about Greece and France, I think about how many tourists are there but not necessarily the inhabitants, that number surprises