Biodiversity
What is Biodiversity?
Biodiversity is short for biological diversity and can be used
to describe the variety of species, the richness of their habitats
and genetic variation. Good Biodiversity would have a large number
of different types of plants and animals but poor might only have
one or two.
Why do we all keep going on about Biodiversity?
 In
general there is an interdependency of animals and plants upon
each other for food, shelter and reproduction. Every plant and
animal will provide one or more of these for another animal or
plant. Even you will be a home or a source of food for some
organisms.
Don't believe me? well how many times have you found grass seed
stuck to your socks after a walk in the countryside/ The Grass is
using you to help it reproduce and find new places to grow.
 Plants and
animals tend to fall into one of two groups; generalists or
specific feeders. Generalists can eat a range of foods or use
different types of shelter for example foxes can eat meat and
plants and therefore stand a better chance of surviving a harsh
winter. Specifics tend to have become reliant on another creature
for part of their life cycle. Many plants have flowers have
adapted to only allow certain types of insect to gain nectar. This
in turn allows the plant a better chance of successful
pollination.
Because all animals eat and live in plants or eat other
animals, the more types of plant there are the more types of
animals there can be. For example take the Holly Tree and the
Alder Buckthorn, both provides a good place to nest for birds.
They also provide berries which feed birds and mice through the
cold winter. However the caterpillars of Holly Blue butterfly only
grow up on the Holly Tree and the Caterpillars of Brimstone
butterfly only grow up on the Buckthorn. If we got rid of the
Buckthorn for example, then we would also get rid of all the
animals that just live on buckthorn.
Trafford has seven Biodiversity Action Plans at the moment.
These target the protection of a particular species or habitat and
give details of what is currently being done to protect that
species. Each species or Habitat was chosen to give the widest
protection possible to the characteristic habitats of the borough.
Biodiversity Action Plans & Documents
Biodiversity Action Plans for Trafford
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