We are plunging towards the sixth mass extinction (and no, it's not an alarmist threat)

    We are plunging towards the sixth mass extinction (and no, it's not an alarmist threat)

    In the last 500 years, about 200.000 animal species have been lost. A demonstration of man-made damage to the environment

    He is about to end up run over, his mother saves him

    Researchers sound the alarm: about 500 animal species have been lost in the last 200.000 years. A demonstration of man-made damage to the environment





    In the history of terrestrial biodiversity there are five events of mass extinction, all caused by dramatic but natural phenomena. Now some scientists claim that a sixth mass extinction, this time caused by human behavior, may be underway and soon lead to the disappearance of all forms of life on the Planet: in this regard, the extinctions of numerous animal and plant species that humanity is witnessing helplessly are mentioned.

    But are we really one step away from extinction? According to the scientific community, yes. The loss of biodiversity is unfortunately a concrete phenomenon and its effects are tangible in every corner of the world: we are all aware of animals in danger of extinction or which, in recent years, have become extinct (the red list drawn up by the IUCN, constantly updated, it keeps track of the disappearance of animals across the planet). The new interpretation of the phenomenon, which has "authorized" scientists to give the alarm, was that of include invertebrates among the extinct or endangered animals, which alone account for the majority of terrestrial biodiversity. By recovering data on invertebrates extinct in the last 500 years or currently in danger of extinction and elaborating on these data the estimates, the authors of a new study on the subject have estimated a biodiversity loss of between 7,5% and 13% - between 150.000 and 260.000 species!

    (Read also: "Close to the sixth mass extinction." New study reveals that we are on the brink)

    The situation is not equally serious in all habitatsIn fact, there are ecosystems, such as marine ones, which seem to be less affected by the biodiversity crisis - despite being constantly exposed to threats such as pollution, water heating, intensive and wild fishing, marine traffic. Likewise, on land, species living in continental regions appear to be less fragile than those living in coastal regions. Finally, the rate of extinction of plant species appears to be slower than that of animal species.



    Unfortunately, there is a minority of the scientific community (as well as public opinion and the media) who do not believe the alarm raised by the experts to be true and who it therefore denies the gravity of the phenomenon and the existence of the sixth mass extinction: the extinction of the species we are witnessing would be nothing more than a natural evolutionary trajectory that is occurring independently of human action and therefore there is no need to worry. According to the authors of the study, however, it is precisely man who is the main culprit of the environmental disaster that is unfolding before our eyes: our species is the only one that has power over other living species on the planet and that can concretely do something to try to save them.

    This is demonstrated by the various conservation plans for endangered species, which in recent years have saved animals that were in danger of disappearing forever - such as the panda. But not all endangered species are the object of protection and controlled reproduction programs, and moreover it is not enough to save this or that species if we then continue to pollute and destroy ecosystems with our wicked actions. We need to change our behaviors, our lifestyles, if we really want to try to save the world, and ourselves, from what could be the last mass extinction in the history of Planet Earth.

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    Fonte: Biological Reviews


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