Temperature can be helpful for many plants and animals. Plants and animals mostly will live in areas that are just right for life to be sustained. Researchers are finding that temperature plays a role in biodiversity.
Life on Earth is mostly found in regions where the temperature is moderate enough for life. Areas with extreme temperatures don't have as much life as there is in more moderate temperature. That is why the polar regions and desert areas have a little diversity in life unlike in areas that are less extreme.
Many scientists are still wondering why such distribution of life isn't even. Professor Ingolf Steffan-Dewenter from the University of Wurzburg has said that ecologists have been wondering why this is so. Ecologists are still debating what is causing this.
There are several theories why a moderate temperature is more conducive to life. One factor being considered is habitat itself. As illustrated by ecologist Dr. Marcell Peters, a larger habitat can support more species than a smaller one. Another theory is that temperature dictates the rate of evolution, so there would be more life in moderately hot areas than in extremely hot ones.
The team of Peters has studied this in the area surrounding Mt. Kilimanjaro in Africa, according to the University of Wurzburg's site. Peters has observed that the area has so much plant and animal life living in parallel. Eight groups of plants and 17 groups of animals have been studied by the team.
The area that has been studied was from the savannahs near the mountain all the way to altitudes of 4,500 meters. Around 38 scientists from Germany and other countries joined in the study. They were supported by 50 local people who did a variety of tasks, as Science Daily reports. Peters has stated that the team has not only studied biodiversity in the area, but also the communities around them.
Biodiversity is important for a thriving ecosystem. Temperature plays a role in biodiversity. A fungal infection that causes white nose syndrome is spreading among bats.
