Question

Define endemic species and give one example.

Answer 1

Hint: Endemic species are those species whose distribution is confined to a narrow geographic location such as an island, state, or another habitat. These species are found nowhere else. A high number of endemic species are criteria for determining hotspots in an area.

complete answer:
-Endemic species are highly prone to extinction.
-Their population size is small and has less genetic variability.
-Their adaptations are highly unique. They cannot spread to other areas or to different environments.
-It is not necessary that the organism has evolved at the same place where it is currently found.
-There are some species that are endemic to a large continent but in other cases, they are endemic to an island. Eg., Tortoises of Madagascar.

Additional information:
-Norman Mayers developed the concept of hotspot in1988 to designate priority areas for in situ conservation.
-Areas with a high degree of endemism and a high degree of threat in terms of habitat loss are considered hotspots.
-34 hotspots are currently identified in the world out of which 3 are in India. These areas are rich in flowering plants, reptiles, amphibians, mammals and show a high degree of endemism.
-$33\%$ of flowering plants recorded in India are endemic.
-Maximum endemic amphibian species are found in western ghats.
-22nd May is the world biodiversity day.
-The year 2010 is declared as Biodiversity Conservation Year by UNO.

Note:
Hotspots together cover $1.4\%$ of the earth’s land area. About $20\%$ of the human population lives in these areas. They play a significant role in reducing the mass extinction by $30\%$. Western ghats and SriLanka, Indo Burma and Himalaya form India’s three biodiversity hotspots.