Half the World’s Wildlife Has Died Out in 40 Years
Wildlife populations worldwide have decreased by more than half since the 1970s and humans, not shockingly, are to blame, according to the new Living Planet Report, released Thursday. The analysis’s bad news doesn’t stop there either: If business continues as usual, the number of wild animals living on earth is predicted to fall by a further 67 percent by 2020.
"For the first time since the demise of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago, we face a global mass extinction of wildlife," Mike Barrett, director of science and policy at World Wildlife-UK told the Associated Press.
Researchers from the World Wildlife Foundation (WWF) and Zoological Society of London (ZSL) compiled the report from scientific data collected from 1970 to 2012 and found that the most common threat to declining animal populations is "loss and degradation of habitat." Other threats include species overexploitation (due to hunting, poaching, and fishing), pollution, and climate change, which can cause migration and reproduction to occur at the wrong time.
Among the animals negatively affected are well-known endangered species like elephants and gorillas as well as lesser-known ones like vultures and salamanders - but the creatures in decline come from all corners of the animal kingdom, The Guardian said.
"We are feeling the impact of a sick planet - from social, economic and climate stability to energy, food and water security - all increasingly suffering from environmental degradation,” said Marco Lambertini, WWF director general.
In order to move toward a healthier and more "resilient," huge changes must be made. Humans need to make a large shift toward more sustainable, renewable energy, and those in wealthier nations, need to eat less animal protein and reduce waste, the report said. "Without action the Earth will become much less hospital to our modern globalized society," the report concluded. "We only have one planet and its natural capital is limited."
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