Genetic and species diversity

Genetic diversity is the “fundamental currency of diversity” that is responsible for variation. This is the diversity of basic units of hereditary information which are passed down generations found within a species (e.g. different varieties of the same species). Different varieties of mango or rice are examples of genetic diversity within species.

    It is genetic diversity that allows a species to adapt to changing environmental conditions such as a lower rainfall, or a higher temperature year round.

Species diversity means the differences between species (both domesticated and wild). It is the most visible component of biodiversity as implied by the word ‘species’ which literally means outward or visible form. This is why we often tend to describe biological diversity in terms of the number of species in a particular area or at the global level.

      There are different estimates of extant (i.e. currently existing) species on earth which range from about five to 100 million, but a figure of about 12.5 million is the most widely accepted. Of these, only about 1.7 million species have been described as yet. In terms of sheer numbers alone, insects and micro-organisms are the most abundant life forms on earth.

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