Question

What are biodiversity hot spots? Name the biodiversity hot spots in India.

Answer 1

A biodiversity hotspot is a biogeographic region with significant levels of biodiversity that is threatened with destruction. For example forests are considered as biodiversity hotspots.The Status is designated by Conservation International. To qualify as a biodiversity hotspot on Myers 2000 edition of the hotspot-map, a region must meet two strict criteria: it must contain at least 0.5% or 1,500 species of vascular plants as endemics, and it has to have lost at least 70% of its primary vegetation. Around the world, 35 areas qualify under this definition. These sites support nearly 60% of the world's plant, bird, mammal, reptile, and amphibian species, with a very high share of those species as endemics. The biodiversity hotspots in India are as follows:

1. The Western Ghats and Sri Lanka.
   
2. The Eastern Himalayas.
   
3. Indo-Burma.
   
4. Sundaland.