Re: Re: Why preserving BioDiversity is Extropian (was re: Environmental Degr

CurtAdams@aol.com
Mon, 16 Feb 1998 20:49:13 EST


In a message dated 2/16/98 12:54:29 PM, organix@hotmail.com wrote:

>Curt Adams wrote:
>
>>Can you name even one organism that needs biodiversity to survive?
>
>
>Just about every single flower on the planet would be a good start.
>(ex: a cactus flower in Arizona requires the help of both a moth and a
>bat in order to pollinate)

It doesn't need diversity, it just needs those particular organisms.
Any organism that needed biodiversity in the desert wold be in a
bad way - deserts have relatively low biodiversity.

What flower is that, anyway? I'd never heard of any that needed
more than one species of pollinator, just of ones that could
use multiple species.

>Take away the diverse zoo of plankton found in the oceans, and the
>entire ocean dies.

A few plankton participate in trace element chemical cycles, and
they genuinely are important. Most, though, are like plants,
and readily substitute for each other.