A picture is worth a thousand words. And biodiversity is only one word. An important one, yes, but one that people have trouble understanding. Use these five biodversity infographics to help explain what biodiversity is and why it’s important.

Global Biodiversity – Reuters
This infographic summarizes the basic numbers for global species diversity, including proportions of species in various categories of extinction risk, the decline in vertebrate species since 1970 and the most threatened biodiversity hotspots. Source graphic

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
This disarmingly simple infographic shows globally where species have gone extinct (‘dead’) and where they’re threatened (‘please help) or endangered (I can’t last much longer). Source graphic

Diversity of “Species” in the Rainforest – Oro Verde
This spoof poster illustrates different types of machines that are used in removal of rainforest, whether for lumber or just for clearance. It’s a testament to human ingenuity if not our common sense. Source graphic

Marine Species Diversity
This map clearly illustrates biodiversity for various marine animal groups. Source graphic

Endangered species – Top 20 countries
A map of the world has countries colored according to the number of species at risk. The list of countries includes icons to show the number of endangered species in each group of animals. Ecuador is top of the list because of large numbers of endangered amphibians and also plants (shown a separate chart) while the U.S. is second with numerous endangered mollusk and fish species. Source graphic