International Journal of Ecology and Environmental Sciences
Thar Desert Bioresources: Significance, Conservation and Sustainable Management in Anthropocene
Abstract
‘Anthropocene’, the era of earth’s history during which human (Homo sapiens) have become a dominant geological force. The anthropogenic activities have irreversibly impacted the globe, the atmosphere, and therefore the climate system as a whole. The global warmings associated with climate changes and other constraints such as small landholdings, lower land productivity, water stress, especially in drylands increased vulnerabilities to the local inhabitants. Indian Thar Desert, a unique stressed ecosystem, harbours diverse life-forms (plants, animals and microbes) having acquired mechanisms of survival under fragile conditions (biotic and abiotic stress, especially recurring droughts). These extremes in the climatic, edaphic and topographic regimes provided the exceptional natural environmental conditions for origin, growth, adaptation and evolution of variety of life-forms. Desert specific species harbours traits/genes such as heat, drought, salt tolerance, etc. that may be important to answer the challenges being caused by anthropogenic disturbances. The natural resource management through agroecology and agroforestry systems practiced by the native people is the best option as an insurance in case of crop failure due to environmental circumstances. In this paper, we review the present scenario of biological diversity of desert, human induced/anthropogenic threats/constraints to arid/semi-arid ecosystem and geo-ecological parameters. The possible solutions to some of these problem through intervention of innovative technologies are also discussed.
Keywords
References
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