The association: we are in the midst of the sixth mass extinction with an extinction rate of animal and plant species 1,000 times higher than the natural one
We are in the midst of the sixth mass extinction, considering the first five as phenomena belonging to previous geological eras, with a extinction rate of animal and plant species 1,000 times higher than the natural one. The alarm comes from the WWF with the new report ‘Extinctions: we do not send the planet in red’.
“Between 1970 and 2016, 68% of the monitored populations of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish suffered a sharp decline, an account ‘in the red’ that the planet is presenting to us together with its consequences on health and well-being, conditions that are only possible with healthy ecosystems – warns the association – The most important factor in the loss of biodiversity on terrestrial systems has been and still is the change in land use, starting from the conversion of primary habitats (such as primeval forests) transformed into land for agricultural production. In the oceans, biodiversity loss is caused by overfishing. In the future, more and more will also be added impacts of climate change with increasingly devastating phenomena, starting with fires. Extinction then generates extinction since the loss of one species causes a ‘domino’ effect that favors the disappearance of others “.
Among the animals that symbolize the ‘red’ account of the Planet is the polar bear (Ursus maritimus): “its habitat is compromised to the point that if the melting trends of the polar caps and the disappearance of an environment suitable for moving and procuring food will continue as in the last decades, in just 35 years we risk losing up to 30% of the polar bear population“warns the WWF.
Source-www.adnkronos.com