GEF

Unit 5  |  The Importance of Biodiversity 108 5.2  Biodiversity as Nature’s Risk Management Tool Wise investors understand the importance of maintaining a diverse portfolio. It is considered highly risky to put all funds into one or two stocks. Similarly, ecosystems with few species are unstable. There are different ways to think about biodiversity. Species diversity refers to the number of different species of an eco- system. There is natural variation in species diversity between different ecosystems. Ecosystems nearer to the poles contain fewer species on average than tropical ecosystems. For exam- ple, there are about ten tree species per acre of British forest, SPECIES DIVERSITY The amount of variation between species. WATCH & LEARN http://bit.ly/2rW5Tk2 Watch the video then answer the questions below. 1. With a partner or as a class, make a list of places in the biosphere where there might be organisms that have not been discovered. 2. Draw a picture of an organism you might discover someday. video: Ecological Niches within the Biosphere