Biodiversity: Vulnerable, Threatened, Endangered & Extinct
Image Credit: Nature.com
Our planet’s biodiversity issue is no secret.
Every so often we hear about yet another animal species that is vulnerable, threatened, endangered or worse.
We keep writing articles on extinct animals, you keep reading said articles, and the ever-inclining number of extinct species continues to baffle researchers.
(Click on the graph for an expansion and more information!)
The bad news is that scientists aren’t sure how bad the problem is. Even though more than 95% of species that have populated Earth at some point have now disappeared due to mass extinctions (loss of 75% of species), we still don’t know how much life exists today and how fast it will all vanish.
The main problem is that researchers have only sampled a tiny portion of Earth’s biodiversity. Without a reliable and complete sample, nobody can know exactly how dire the decline truly is.
Recognizing these pitfalls, Nature compiled some data to give us a graphic example of life on Earth. Check out these sobering infographics:
The rate of extinction varies greatly. It ranges from hundreds all the way to thousands of species that will disappear each year.
And how’s this for scary: if that trend continues, it could lead to a mass extinction over the next few centuries.
But why are we losing so many animal species?
Conservation efforts help slow extinction trends, but they do not half trends by any means.
Even though the state of Earth’s animals is steadily declining, researchers see a light at the end of the tunnel. Scientists say they need to devote more time and energy to figuring out current and future risks to biodiversity.
They could develop comprehensive computer models that can forecast how human activities can alter ecosystems.
These general ecosystem models, or GEMs, are brand new and making a big impact. Results from the first study using these models will be published this year.
So we have a proposition for you: we’ll stay up on developments concerning declining animal species and GEMs, and you take any opportunity to further your knowledge on biodiversity and do your part to save animals.
Sound good?
