Life Changing Trees: Save a Tree and Change Your Life

Part 7: Without Trees, Earth Would Lose 80% of its Biodiversity

(Previous parts at the end of the article)

Did you know that nearly half of all known species (emphasis on known) species live in forests, which includes 80% of biodiversity on land?

The variety of wildlife is particularly pronounced and spectacularly colorful in tropical rainforests (thinks parrots, frogs and even apes).

However, you should also take into account how all forests are alive with life all over the planet. Bugs and worms are also busy working nutrients into the soil, the birds, bees and squirrels spread seeds and pollen and species like wolves and big cats keep the herbivore population in check.

But what if there if there were no trees? No nuts, no berries, no mushrooms and no fruit could mean a lack in the aforementioned herbivores and if they are eliminated from the food chain, then carnivores like wolves and big cats will also starve.

Let's take a close look at one particular species of tree and the amazing ecosystem that it is.

The Common English Oak (Quercus Robur) can support (and be home to) hundreds of different species, including 284 types of insects and 324 variants of lichens. These insects and lichen are the food source for lots of birds and small mammals.

An interesting fact is that the acorns on an oak tree don't appear until the tree is at least 40 years old. Acorns are food for dozens of species, like deer, wild boar, pigs, ducks, mice, badgers and of course squirrels.

What really pulls at my heartstrings though, would be where would the owls live if there were no trees?

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