Young Wrexham

Plants and Animals

Humans would not be able to survive without plants and animals. Plants provide oxygen and food for humans and animals. In order for them to grow they require sunlight, water and animal waste as nutrients. By eating plants, animals help to distribute their seeds.

With wild habitats all over the world fast disappearing because of modern development, many plants and animals are facing extinction. About one in every ten plant and animal species will be extinct by 2050, according to research produced by Leeds University in 2004.

These pages will introduce you to the natural habitats of the different plants and animals in Wales, and how we can care for and protect them, so we can continue to appreciate their beauty for many years to come.

• The word biodiversity refers to the great variety of life on earth and the complex relationships between all living things The variety of plant and animal life on earth is astounding. Thousands of new species are identified every year - but an estimated 40 to 100 species of plants and animals become extinct every day
• Everything we do is in some way related to the biodiversity of the planet, from having clean air and water to making plastics and driving cars
• We are using the Earth's resources more quickly than the planet can replenish them, which is damaging the planet's biodiversity. Intensive farming, pollution of rivers and the sea, destruction of rainforests and wilderness areas are damaging the natural balance of the earth
• In North America and Western Europe, people use approximately four times more of the Earth's resources than the rest of the world put together
• If we continue as we are, we will soon be demanding more resources than are available on Earth and the planet will no longer be able to sustain life as we know it
• You can help by changing simple things about the way you live to try and lessen the demands we make on the Earth
• Choosing organic food means that crops are grown in a sustainable way - land is not intensively farmed and the soil's natural nutrients are not depleted
• Think about what you are throwing away. Landfill sites are 10 per cent food waste, and one million birds and 100,000 sea mammals are killed by plastic waste every year