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Scientists say we're heading into a mass extinction event caused by humans
Signs are pointing to an upcoming mass extinction event, scientists say
https://ca.news.yahoo.com/blogs/geek...203844364.html
https://ca.news.yahoo.com/blogs/geek...203844364.html
We’ve all heard of the natural doomsday events caused by volcanoes and giant asteroids that wiped out most of the world's flora and fauna millions of years ago. Now scientists are warning we may be poised for the next great wave of extinctions, but this time humans may trigger the apocalypse.
In a series of sobering studies published in the Science journal this week, scientists are cautioning that we may be at a tipping point in terms of a potential catastrophic loss of the world’s biodiversity.
They are pointing to the decline of some 320 vertebrates that live on land in just the last 500 years. Populations of many major large-sized species, like elephants and polar bears, are at the greatest risks currently, with their numbers nose-diving by 25 per cent. In fact around 16 to 33 per cent of all vertebrate species are considered threatened or endangered.
The situation for invertebrates, like insects and worms, is even more worrisome: in just the last four decades we've seen a decline of about 45 per cent in their global abundance. These tiny creatures, while not as glamorous, are the backbone of entire ecosystems, say researchers, and their loss can signal the eventual breakdown of the entire system.
Making matters worse, increasing human populations lead to habitat loss. Animals will soon be running out of places to hide from the growing numbers of hunters and poachers.
One of the studies focused on the cascading effects of the removal of the larger species from ecosystems. Predation rates are found to drop while disease-carrying vermin numbers increase.
In a series of sobering studies published in the Science journal this week, scientists are cautioning that we may be at a tipping point in terms of a potential catastrophic loss of the world’s biodiversity.
They are pointing to the decline of some 320 vertebrates that live on land in just the last 500 years. Populations of many major large-sized species, like elephants and polar bears, are at the greatest risks currently, with their numbers nose-diving by 25 per cent. In fact around 16 to 33 per cent of all vertebrate species are considered threatened or endangered.
The situation for invertebrates, like insects and worms, is even more worrisome: in just the last four decades we've seen a decline of about 45 per cent in their global abundance. These tiny creatures, while not as glamorous, are the backbone of entire ecosystems, say researchers, and their loss can signal the eventual breakdown of the entire system.
Making matters worse, increasing human populations lead to habitat loss. Animals will soon be running out of places to hide from the growing numbers of hunters and poachers.
One of the studies focused on the cascading effects of the removal of the larger species from ecosystems. Predation rates are found to drop while disease-carrying vermin numbers increase.
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