What Is True About The Current Extinction Rate

The current extinction crisis is entirely of our own making.

There have been five mass extinction events in the earth s history each wiping out between 70 and 95 of the species of plants animals and microorganisms. Historically overexploitation of some species by humans has led to their extinction. Species on islands are particularly vulnerable to extinction. Human activities such as release of pollutants destruction of habitat and the introduction of nonnative species can result in a decrease in biodiversity.

They also predict that future rates may be as much as. More recently scientists at the u n. The millennium ecosystem assessment which involved more than a thousand experts estimated an extinction rate that was later calculated at up to 8 700 species a year or 24 a day. What they have found is startling.

Using that estimate researchers can compare it to the current extinction rate over for example the last two decades. Scientists estimate we re now losing species at 1 000 to 10 000 times the background rate with literally dozens going extinct every day 3. More than a century of habitat destruction pollution the spread of invasive species overharvest from the wild climate change population growth and other human activities have pushed nature to the brink. The most recent 66 million years ago.

RELATED ARTICLE :

• what does the infinity symbol mean in christianity
• what does the lion mean in the bible
• what does the nautilus shell do in minecraft

The current rate of extinction of species is estimated at 100 to 1 000 times higher than natural background extinction rates. These processes generally are responsible for extinction of large number of species in a single event. Thus experts can estimate a background rate of species extinction. Examples are deforestation nuclear explosion explosion of natural gases forest fire and other processes.

Convention on biological diversity concluded that. The current rate of species extinction is abnormally high. Although extinction is a natural phenomenon it occurs at a natural background rate of about one to five species per year. Every day up to 150 species are lost.