Biodiversity: so much more than legs and leaves

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dc.contributor.authorCowan, Donald A.
dc.contributor.authorRybicki, Edward P.
dc.contributor.authorTuffin, Marla
dc.contributor.authorValverde, Angel
dc.contributor.authorWingfield, Michael
dc.date.accessioned2015-11-19T13:26:59Z
dc.date.available2015-11-19T13:26:59Z
dc.date.issued2013
dc.description.abstractMicroorganisms inhabit virtually every possible niche on Earth, including those at the outer envelope of survival. However, the focus of most conservation authorities and ecologists is the ‘legs and leaves’ side of biology – the ‘macrobiology’ that can be seen with the naked eye. There is little apparent concern for the preservation of microbial diversity, or of unique microbial habitats. Here we show examples of the astounding microbial diversity supported by South Africa’s ecosystems and argue that because microbes constitute the vast majority of our planet’s species they should be considered seriously in the future protection of our genetic resources.en_US
dc.description.accreditationWeb of Scienceen_US
dc.identifier.citationCowan, D.A. et al. (2013). Biodiversity: so much than legs and leaves. South African Journal of Science, 109 (11/12): 1-9en_US
dc.identifier.issn0038-2353
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10566/1984
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.privacy.showsubmitterfalse
dc.publisherAOSIS OpenJournalsen_US
dc.rights© 2013. The Authors. Published under a Creative Commons Attribution Licence.
dc.source.urihttp://dx.doi.org/10.1590/sajs.2013/a0037
dc.status.ispeerreviewedtrue
dc.subjectBacteriaen_US
dc.subjectEndemismen_US
dc.subjectFungien_US
dc.subjectGenetic resourcesen_US
dc.subjectVirusesen_US
dc.subjectMicroorganisms
dc.subjectMicrobial diversity
dc.subjectSouth Africa
dc.titleBiodiversity: so much more than legs and leavesen_US
dc.typeArticleen_US

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