Hotspots, biodiversity

Myers, N. (2000). Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities. Nature 403(6772), 853-858. 

FIGURE 7.1 Global distribution of 25 biodiversity hotspots. Source Identified by Myers et al. (2000). 

Conservation International - Biodiversity Hotspots-httD //www.biodiversitvhotSDOts.org/xD/HotSDOts/andes/ (accessed 13, December 2004)... 

During the recent past, rising commercial demand for herbal drugs and dependence on produce harvested from the wild has led to the rapid depletion of a number of MAPs (Maikhuri et al., 1998a 2002 Nautiyal et al., 2002). The bulk of the medicinal plant is still harvested from the wild and only a very small number of species are cultivated (FAO, 1993). About 30% of the drugs sold worldwide contain compounds derived from the plants. Thus, it is now essential to focus on the conservation of natural resources, especially the biodiversity hotspots of the world. 

Malaysia and Indonesia, located at the Southeast Asia region, are currently the two major players in the pahn oil market. Together, both countries account to more than 80 % of the global palm oil production. It is also a coincidence that both countries have been identified as the world s biodiversity hotspots, which harbor high numbers of indigenous and endemic species, which mostly inhabit the forests (Sodhi et al. 2004 Peh et al. 2006). Therefore, the excessive expansion of forest areas in Southeast Asia for oil palm activities seems the greatest threat to biodiversity (Noda et al. 2005 Donald 2004). 

Myers N, Mittermeier RA, Mittermeier CG, Fonseca GAB, Kent J (2000) Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities. Nature 403 853-858. doi 10.1038/35002501 Teixeira AMG, Soares BS, Freitas SR, MetzgCT JP (2009) Modeling landscape dynamics in an Atlantic rain forest region implications for conservation. Forest Ecol Manag 257 1219-1230. doi 10.1016/j.foreco.2008.10.011... 

Ribeiro MC, Martensen AC, Metzger JP, Tabarelli M, Scarano F, Fortin MJ (2011) The Brazilian atlantic forest a shrinking biodiversity hotspot In Zachos FE, Habel JC (eds) Biodiversity hotspots. Springer, Berlin... 

The tropical Andes is number one out of a total of 25 global biodiversity hotspots having a total of 20,000 endemic plant species which together comprise 6.7% of all plant species worldwide (Myers et al., 2000). The tropical Andes are also top of the list for endonic vertebrates and Myers et al. (2000) consider the region as a hyper-hot candidate for conservation support Mittenneier et al. 

Helmer, E.H. et al.. Mapping forest type and land cover of Puerto Rico, a component of the Caribbean biodiversity hotspot, Caribb. J. Set, 38, 165, 2002. 

Tropical dry forests of south Horida are within the Caribbean biodiversity hotspot because of extensive deforestation in the region (Myers et al 2000). However, there have been few regional-scale studies that examine species richness, floristic composition and forest structure of remaining fragments of dry forests in south Horida (Ross et al., 2001). This research examines patterns of species richness, floristic composition, natural history characteristics and forest structure of the tropical dry forests of south Horida, and examines the conservation status of native woody plants in stands and reserves in south Horida. Results are compared with those from tropical dry forests in the Caribbean and Neotropics to identify general biogeographical patterns that occur in the region. 

Biodiversity Hotspot (Region) No. of Sites Species Richness No. of Threatened Spp. lUCN Class... 

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