Since 1970, wildlife populations have decreased by 60 percent. Per world-leading experts, the annihilation of wildlife is now considered an emergency and a threat to civilization.
This estimate was detailed in a report by the World Wildlife Federation, which involved 59 scientists from around the world. Earth’s life forms are being destroyed by the global population’s vast and growing consumption of food and resources. Humans rely on natural resources for all things life-sustaining, including water and clean air.
Make Barrett, executive director of science and conservation at WWF, stated: “If there was a 60% decline in the human population, that would be equivalent to emptying North America, South America, Africa, Europe, China and Oceania.”
Barrett stressed that this is about more than losing “the wonders of nature,” but that “nature is our life-support system” and its loss jeopardizes humanity’s future.
Professor Johan Rockström, a global sustainability expert at Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research in Germany, holds a similar view: “Only by addressing both ecosystems and climate do we stand a chance of safeguarding a stable planet for humanity’s future on Earth.”
A sixth mass extinction of the world may be underway, some scientists believe, and it’s the first to be caused by humans. The recent analysis holds that since the dawn of civilization, 83% of all mammals have been destroyed by humankind, and it would take five to seven million years for the natural world to recover if the damage ended now.
Using data on 16,704 populations of mammals representing 4,005 species of birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians, the Zoological Society of London produced the most recent bi-yearly Living Planet Index for WWF. Its purpose is to track the decline of wildlife, and the latest findings, which measure between 1970 and 2014, show that populations fell by an average of 60 percent.
The deforestation of wild habitats for the creation of farmland is the biggest cause of wildlife losses, and the next-biggest cause is killing for food.
If humans continue along this trajectory, the only thing we can be sure of is that our existence will be finite. Put simply, the future of humankind is contingent upon the survival of our planet’s ever-shrinking wildlife, and we must urgently work to develop a plan for sustainability.
I raised my son to not eat dead animals, or hunt.
And to have great compassion & humility for all life on earth.
The Galarneau family
I raised my son not to eat meat, hunt and hold all life with great compassion & humility.
Namaste
Deb Galarneau
Many Humans just enjoy killing life, and not just animals. Look how many un-born human babies are murdered every DAY across the globe! And those who comment this murder of the innocent declaring their right to kill an unborn unwanted baby( and I do mean baby- those who profit from killing these defenseless children like to soften the truth with their lies , that It is only a fetus). This it has a beating heart, needs food and nourishment to thrive and oxygen, just like a real baby born does. They wipe out life animals and humans, and water and environment.. What will they do when there is nothing left to kill?????
This is heart breaking. How humans continue to consume the resources of this planet with no care or responsibility is so sad. Where will it end! It seems nothing has any value to some individuals other than their own personal gain.
This is very wrong. A civilized country would not allow it.
for shame.
WHY HAVE HUMANS BECOME SO EVIL ???
When Adam & Eve Disobeyed God. And rtheir wrong doing was passed unto every living soul born after that.
Humans will destroy the world. Why cant they destroy each other and leave poor animals alone. There was bullfighting near where we live on Saturday in Albox, Spain. How cruel is that? As is fox hunting in the UK. Just to name a few.
Humans, the most dangerous predators on earth. This species invades, destroys, and consumes ALL! This species even destroys its own kind for vicious, intolerant reasons. And, those who think nothing of supporting the vicious cruelty and slaughter of millions of animals for palate pleasure are equally complicit since NOBODY (!) needs to consume the bodies of defenseless species for health or life. As societal puppets, we are complicitors.
What a disgrace.Humans have no regard for wildlife and the suffering they endure. Kill, kill, kill and money, money, money is all they think about. It’s a sad world for animals.
I appreciate all of the wise comments.
Even if it’s possible that the numbers are wrong, we all must still heed the warning. Most people need to WAKE UP to realize and care about what is happening to Earth whether there could be a flaw in the figure or not: the point is still valid.
How may of us take it for granted that the world is ours? This is part of the problem. When we treat the earth and all of its inhabitants responsibly and compassionately, then we will realize that we co-inhabit the Earth),
Even if 60% is what seems to be true, since none of those species has been seen recently, the fact that humans are destroying the natural world by over-breeding, over-consuming, and over-polluting, is a fact, one that the headline encapsulates.
Humans are the most ignorant, selfish, destructive and dumb species on earth.
Every other animal learns from mistakes and evolves for the better, but humans continue to make the mistakes of the past and appear to be de-evolving.
They will not be happy until everything is destroyed.It wont be war or natural disasters that wipe out humans and destroy the planet, we will do it to ourselves.
I am ashamed to be apart of this species.
The only hope I have, is that there are people out there making a difference by rescuing and helping to free animals from human torture. It is these people who bring a little light to the dark.
Well said, Rebecca.
What goes around comes around. You are right Rebecca, it’s only a matter of time we are getting close to our destruction when we are destroying our nature and animals
We are the most destructive species ever. We destroy everything in our paths. 😡😠🤬
We are nothing but a cancer on the Earth.
We consume/destroy everything we touch, all because some books told us we could.
What a great way to justify acts of greed, stupidity, and arrogance
Hope we’re wiped out before we destroy everything in our path..
You are right – we humans are a cancer on the Earth. I look at the history of the settlement of the USA (BTW, I’m an American, born 1957) as a metaphor of human destruction of the planet. The white settlers came to the “New World” and exploited from east to west, leaving destruction in their wake. No need to conserve anything – just push on westward, leave what you had sullied behind you and go take what was fresh and unexploited.
The few of us who want to try to conserve, reduce, reuse, recycle – drive a hybrid car, etc are sometimes victims of idiots “rolling coal” or “Prius repellent.”
God help the wildlife.
So very sad . . .
I know most people are taught to view the survival of animal species for how it relates to our own survival, and the planet. We tend to only view the human species on a level of individual suffering. The nightmare of horrors going on in laboratories and slaughterhouses, fur farms, etc., should be on our minds. Millions of individual animals are suffering physical pain and absolute terror, daily, because of us.
Agreed, Sue, and there’s nothing the WWF fears much more than losing their animal “resources,” with WWF being all about people’s need for plenty of animals to hunt down and kill, or kidnap, imprison, experiment on, etc., etc. They lament the unfortunate “need” for people to still use animals for chemical testing, etc., which is a huge load of disgusting nonsense. They support “proper” hunting as in no poaching, no canned hunts, but “regular, survival” hunting, oh yes, they love it. How else are people gonna eat, after all (sob). I consider the “loss” of any species who are thus no longer stuck on this spinning hell domineered by “humans” as a great thing for those species. Maybe once people get past the tipping point of wiping out nature’s balancers, people will finally have begin their own extinction.
“begun” not “begin.” 😖
Wish we’d wipe most of ourselves out BEFORE we destroy everything in our path.
The number is wrong. Science today assumes that we know half of all living animals in the country. So that number refers to just half of all animals. On land.
We only have 5% knowledge of the processes in water.
So we have no idea how many species we have actually eradicated on land and in the water. We can no longer capture extinct species. They are irretrievably lost.
Translated with google, which is why I apologize for the poor quality please
Your comment is fine – we can understand you 🙂