Biodiversity

Estimates of the Earths genetic reservoir vary between 5 and 80 million species.  Significant controversy surrounds these estimates.  For a global perspective on the importance of biological diversity explore the website of the Convention of Biological Diversity.

In the temperate zone, the southern Applachian region is  considered a center of biological diversity (Meier and others 1996, Boone and Aplet 1994).  It is difficult to estimate the total number of species that occur in the southern Appalachians because only a fraction have been documented.  The All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park (GSMNP) hase identified more than 200 species new to science and projects that more than 100,000 species may occur within GSMNP alone.

Regarding biodiversity as a resource, in and of itself, is a concept that has emerged only since the early 1990s.  This new recognition has encouraged thought on how biodiversity is defined, how it is measured, how natural variables affect it, what factors threaten it, and its role in ecosystem functions.

Actively managing for biodiversity is also a relatively new idea. Yet, virtually all management actions, including the decision not to take action, can affect biodiversity at several different scales.  Therefore, forest managers need to be aware of both the positive and negative impacts of management activities on biodiversity.

See also: Importance of Old Growth to Biodiversity