The answer to the question of what is endemic in geography, for example, will be very easy to find, but it will be better to turn to biology and consider this concept from the biological side.
Definition, description of endemic
Endemic species are called biological species - representatives of both flora and fauna that live in fairly isolated or limited areas. Often such territories are those that are separated from the rest of the world by environmental or geographical factors. In addition, these sites are characterized by conserved habitats, that is, those where the conditions for the existence of endemic species have not changed over a long period of time.
Due to the extensive human activity, many modern plant and animal species are gradually moving into the rare or endemic section, which encourages people to form national parks and reserves in order to preserve and increase the population of the remaining individuals. It is difficult for humanity to understand what endemic is for our future. The more species are endemic, the more we limit their habitats, arranging colonies for animals and plants.
Endemic classification
It is worth noting that endemic species that live on the territory of only one desert (amazing velvichia, growing exclusively in the Namib desert), one island or one mountain range (there is a subspecies of hummingbird living on the only Mount Chimboraso located in South America) are called narrowly endemic. In order to finally understand what endemics are, you should familiarize yourself with the main classification according to which such species are divided into neoendemic (progressive endemic) and paleoendemic (relic endemic).
Neo-endemics are called such biological taxa (species) that developed in parallel with their "relatives", but in isolated areas, for example, on islands remote from the mainland. So, in Madagascar, 65% of all vegetation is endemic, in Hawaii their number increases to 90%. Also, some species that live in Crimea, on Lake Baikal, Seychelles, St. Helena, the British Isles, etc. belong to these. Well, and, of course, how to talk about what are endemic, if not to mention their most famous representatives: Kangaroo and koalas. They are part of the infraclass, living exclusively in Australia.
Paleoendemic species are species that appeared as a result of their almost complete extinction in large areas of their former habitats. The remains of these ancient representatives survived, mainly due to their thorough isolation from the more developed. Relic endemics are often called living fossils, since they are mainly representatives of more ancient groups that lived many years ago. These include cysterae fish (coelacanth), beak-headed reptiles (hatteria), crocodiles, horseshoe crab, bipedal fish (protopter), monotreme (echidna, platypus), etc.
Endemic America
North America, in its diversity of endemic species, deserves attention. One of the most recognizable plant species belonging to those located in the United States is the giant sequoia tree, some of which locals have even named by their own names. Endemic plant species also include Balfura pine, Huron tansy, Pachycormus multicolor, de-negri oregon, etc. From the fauna of the endemic world of North America, one can distinguish forest bison, puma, Baribala, Mississippi alligator, as well as a bull frog (reaches a length of a bull frog (reaches 20 cm) and a California condor.
Baikal - the pearl of Siberia
To understand what the endemic of Lake Baikal is, it is worth noting that the flora and fauna of this lake consists of endemic species for 65%. So, from 2600 species and subspecies living here, just over 1000 taxa, about 95 genera, about 10 families are representatives of the endemic world. One of the most famous endemics of Lake Baikal can be safely called the Baikal seal (seal), one of the only freshwater species of seals in the world. Also endemic to Lake Baikal are the following species and families: golomyanka, yellow-winged (deep-sea fish), Baikal omul (Salmon family), Baikal epishura (crustaceans, reaching an average size of about 1.5-2 mm) and, as mentioned above, the Baikal seal.