Ecology, Biodiversity and Protected Areas

Ecosystem basics

• An ecosystem = living parts (plants, animals, microbes) + non-living parts (air, water, soil, sunlight) interacting.
• Producers (green plants) → primary consumers (herbivores) → secondary/tertiary consumers (carnivores). Decomposers (bacteria, fungi) recycle nutrients.
• 10% law (Lindeman): only about 10% of the energy passes from one trophic level to the next, so food chains are short.

• The pyramid of energy is always upright. The pyramid of biomass can be inverted in the ocean (phytoplankton vs zooplankton).
• Biomagnification: toxins (e.g. DDT, mercury) concentrate more at higher trophic levels.

Biodiversity

• There are three levels: genetic, species and ecosystem diversity.
• India is one of the 17 megadiverse countries. It has about 2.4% of the world's land but roughly 7–8% of recorded species.
• India has parts of 4 of the world's 36 biodiversity hotspots: Himalaya, Indo-Burma, Western Ghats & Sri Lanka, and Sundaland (Nicobar Islands).

Protected areas (Wildlife Protection Act, 1972)

• Ex-situ conservation = outside the habitat (zoos, seed banks). In-situ = in the natural habitat (parks, sanctuaries).
• The IUCN Red List categories include Critically Endangered, Endangered and Vulnerable.
• Projects: Project Elephant (1992); the cheetah reintroduction at Kuno National Park (2022).

Background: ecology basics

An ecosystem includes living (biotic) and non-living (abiotic) components interacting together.

Energy flow:

• energy enters through producers (green plants), then passes to herbivores, carnivores and decomposers;
• only about 10% of energy passes from one trophic level to the next (Lindeman's 10% law);
• this is why food chains are short and pyramids of energy are always upright.

Nutrients cycle (carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus). Energy does not cycle – it flows one way.

Biodiversity – India's richness

India has 2.4% of the world's land but about 7–8% of recorded species. It is one of 17 megadiverse countries and has 4 of the 36 global biodiversity hotspots: Himalaya, Indo-Burma, Western Ghats–Sri Lanka, and Sundaland (which includes the Nicobar Islands).

Threats ("HIPPO"):

• Habitat loss;
• Invasive species (Lantana, Prosopis juliflora, water hyacinth);
• Pollution;
• Population;
• Overexploitation (poaching, overfishing).

Climate change adds to all of these.

IUCN Red List categories: Extinct → Extinct in the Wild → Critically Endangered → Endangered → Vulnerable (these three are "threatened") → Near Threatened → Least Concern. Examples from India: the Great Indian Bustard (critically endangered; power lines in Rajasthan are a threat), the Gharial (critically endangered) and the Asiatic Lion (endangered; found only in Gir).

Conservation – in situ and ex situ

National park vs sanctuary: national parks have stricter protection – no human activity such as grazing; boundaries can be altered only by the legislature. Sanctuaries allow some regulated activities.

Laws and policies:

• the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 (amended 2022 – adds CITES provisions; schedules rationalised to four);
• the Forest Conservation Act 1980 (amended 2023 as the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam);
• the Biological Diversity Act 2002 (National Biodiversity Authority in Chennai, State Biodiversity Boards, Biodiversity Management Committees with People's Biodiversity Registers; amended 2023);
• Project Tiger (1973), Project Elephant (1992), Project Cheetah (2022 – Kuno), Project Dolphin.

Causes and effects – the human–wildlife conflict

Causes: habitat fragmentation, corridors cut by roads and railways, crop-raiding, prey depletion, and growing wildlife populations in some reserves.

Effects: loss of lives and crops; retaliatory killings; negative attitudes to conservation.

Solutions:

• wildlife corridors and eco-bridges (underpasses on NH-44 through Pench);
• early-warning systems;
• quick compensation;
• crop insurance coverage;
• community-based conservation.

Case study: Project Tiger – from crisis to recovery

Launched in 1973 with 9 reserves, Project Tiger now covers 55+ tiger reserves, managed by the NTCA (statutory since 2006). The All India Tiger Estimation 2022 found about 3,682 tigers (mean estimate) – roughly 75% of the world's wild tigers. It uses camera traps and the M-STrIPES app. Lessons: protecting a flagship species protects whole ecosystems (water sources of major rivers originate in tiger forests). Challenges include relocating villages fairly, corridors, and the Sariska (2005) local extinction.

Common misconceptions

• "National parks and biosphere reserves are the same." – Biosphere reserves are larger landscapes with people living in the buffer and transition zones; they often contain national parks within their core.
• "An invasive species is any foreign species." – An invasive species is a non-native species that spreads and causes harm.
• "Energy and nutrients both cycle." – Nutrients cycle; energy flows one way.

How UPSC asks it

Prelims very frequently asks about national parks by state, IUCN status, Ramsar sites, biosphere reserves, ecological concepts, and conservation laws. Mains themes include human–wildlife conflict, conservation vs development, community participation, and invasive species.

Mains answer framework

Q-type: "Discuss the role of local communities in biodiversity conservation, with examples."

• Intro: India's biodiversity and the people–forest relationship.
• Examples: Bishnois (Khejarli 1730), the Chipko movement, sacred groves, Mendha-Lekha, Khonoma (Nagaland – India's first "green village"), BMCs and PBRs.
• Legal support: the FRA, the Biological Diversity Act (access and benefit sharing), community reserves.
• Challenges: exclusionary conservation, conflicts, weak BMCs.
• Conclusion: "fortress conservation" should give way to people-centred conservation (Kunming-Montreal GBF – the 30x30 target with rights).

Protected areas: legal categories

Biodiversity hotspots in India

India has parts of four of the world's 36 hotspots: the Himalaya, Indo-Burma, the Western Ghats and Sri Lanka, and Sundaland (Nicobar Islands).

Mains practice question

Q. Can conservation and the rights of forest communities be reconciled? Outline: fortress conservation versus community-based conservation; Forest Rights Act, 2006 and community forest resource rights; examples of community-led protection; need for scientific management, fair relocation where necessary, and benefit sharing.

Check your understanding

1. What is an ecotone? A transition zone between two ecosystems, often rich in species.
2. What is Project Tiger? A conservation programme launched in 1973; tiger reserves are now overseen by the NTCA.