Migration, Reforestation and Recycling- Class 8 Science Guide

Migration, Reforestation and Recycling- Biology Guide for Class 8

Information about Migration, Reforestation and Recycling

Title	Migration, Reforestation and Recycling
Class	Class 8
Subject	Class 8 Biology
Topics Covered	Migration Afforestation Recycling of Paper

Migration

Migration is the periodic movement, of a species of animals or birds, from the place where it has been living, to a new area and its subsequent return journey back to the original home. When animals and birds migrate, it is usually to find abundant food and a favourable place to breed. 

• The precise methods, by which animals navigate and know where to go, are still obscure.
• Birds have much sharper eyesight and better visual memory of ground clues than humans.
• However, in long-distance flights, they appear to navigate with the help of the Sun and stars, possibly in combination with a 'reading' of the Earth's magnetic field.
• This is achieved through an inbuilt 'magnetic compass', which is a tiny mass of tissue, between the eye and the brain, in birds. 

Reforestation

Reforestation, also referred to as afforestation, is the process of restoring and recreating areas of forests that once existed but have been deforested, or otherwise removed or destroyed.

• This practice is rapidly gaining momentum in order to promote conservation practices.
• It is, however, important to keep in mind that, while selecting the plants for reforestation, one should be careful that these are the same species of plants that were there at that area earlier.
• This promotes the rapid re-establishment of both flora and fauna in that deforested area; this helps to make it a forest again. 

Recycling of Paper

Paper recycling is the process of recovering waste paper and remaking it into new paper products. Paper, suitable for recycling, is called scrap paper.

• Today, 90 per cent of paper pulp is made from wood. Paper production accounts for about 35 per cent of felled trees.
• Recycling of newsprint, therefore, saves a lot of wood. 
• It has been estimated that recycling of even half of the world's paper would avoid the deforestation of 20 million acres (80,000 km') of forestland. 
• We all can contribute in this process. We should reduce wastage of paper and try to reuse paper whenever, and wherever, possible.

Important Points

• afforestation: planting trees and creating forests in an area where none existed before.
• biodiversity: variety of living organisms found on earth.
• biosphere reserve: an international protected area (designated by UNSECO); meant to have a balanced relationship between man and nature, along with promoting sustainable development.
• conservation: protection, preservation, restoration and management of natural resources.
• deforestation: removing, or destroying, the forests existing in an area.
• desertification: the process by which an area gets converted into a desert.
• ecosystem: a natural self-sustaining unit, comprising of living organisms that constantly interact with one another and the surrounding environment.
• endangered: a species of plant, or animal, which is at a high risk of extinction in the near future.
• endemic: plants and animals that are found only in one particular geographical area, and nowhere else.
• extinct: a plant, or an animal, which is now not found anywhere in the world.
• flora: all the naturally occurring, or indigenous, animal life in an area.
• migration: seasonal movement of animals, or birds, to a new area; undertaken to find food or favourable breeding places.
• national park: an area, owned and protected by the national government, for conservation of biodiversity. Human activity is not permitted therein.
• red data book: books, published by the IUCN; these contain a list of threatened plants and animals. They are classified according to the degree of the perceived risk to their existence.
• species: a group of organisms that can interbreed freely under natural conditions and give rise to fertile offsprings.
• vulnerable species: a plant, or an animal which runs the risk of soon becoming endangered, and finally extinct, in times to come.
• wildlife sanctuary: areas, marked by the government, for protection of wild animals. Limited human activity is allowed therein.

1. A bird species-sooty shearwaters—migrates, in search of food, nearly 64,000 kilometres (40,000 miles) a year, flying from New Zealand to the North Pacific Ocean, and back, every summer.
2. The Forest Conservation Act (1980) is one of the most effective legislations contributing to reduction in deforestation. This was enacted to reduce indiscriminate diversion of forest land for non-forestry purposes, and to help regulate and control the recorded forest land-use changes.