An epidemic of extinctions: Decimation of life on earth

Species are dying out at a rate not seen since the demise of the dinosaurs, according to a report published today – and human behaviour is to blame. Emily Dugan counts the cost

The Independent 16 May 08;

The world's species are declining at a rate "unprecedented since the extinction of the dinosaurs", a census of the animal kingdom has revealed. The Living Planet Index out today shows the devastating impact of humanity as biodiversity has plummeted by almost a third in the 35 years to 2005.

The report, produced by WWF, the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) and the Global Footprint Network, says land species have declined by 25 per cent, marine life by 28 per cent, and freshwater species by 29 per cent.

Jonathan Loh, editor of the report, said that such a sharp fall was "completely unprecedented in terms of human history".

"You'd have to go back to the extinction of the dinosaurs to see a decline as rapid as this," he added. "In terms of human lifespan we may be seeing things change relatively slowly, but in terms of the world's history this is very rapid."

And "rapid" is putting it mildly. Scientists say the current extinction rate is now up to 10,000 times faster than what has historically been recorded as normal.

As nations meet for the Convention on Biological Diversity in Bonn, these alarming figures will cast a shadow over government pledges to make a "significant" reduction in biodiversity loss by 2010. In fact, the report's authors say that global inaction has already made such a goal totally unattainable.

"It's very damning for the governments that are party to the convention that they are not able to meet the target they set for themselves," said Mr Loh. "The talk doesn't get translated into action. We are failing, and the consequences will be devastating."

Tracking nearly 4,000 species between 1970 and 2005, the team has not only revealed the destruction of the Earth's wildlife, but also pointed the finger at the perpetrators of this devastation.

Ben Collen, extinctions researcher at ZSL, said: "Between 1960 and 2000, the human population of the world has doubled. Yet during the same period, the animal populations have declined by 30 per cent. It's beyond doubt that this decline has been caused by humans."

The study picked out five reasons for species decline, all of which can be traced back to human behaviour: climate change, pollution, the destruction of animals' natural habitat, the spread of invasive species, and the overexploitation of species. At a time when America has finally added the polar bear to the endangered species list, it is emerging that the scale of species destruction reaches far beyond the headline animals. But as in the case of the polar bear, mankind's behaviour needs to be radically changed in order to stop this pillaging of the Earth's biodiversity.

The Yangtze river dolphin is a case in point. Scientists believe it is extinct, as successive searches for the freshwater mammal have proved fruitless. There are many reasons for its rapid path to extinction: collisions with boats, habitat loss and pollution. These factors all point back to one perpetrator: mankind.

Aside from tackling global emissions, the report recommended two ways that species decline could be combated – by avoiding the destruction of animals' natural habitat by overdevelopment or cultivation; and in avoiding the over-farming or fishing of individual species.

The implications of such drastic reductions in biodiversity are already having an impact on human life. "Reduced biodiversity means millions of people face a future where food supplies are more vulnerable to pests and disease and where water is in irregular or short supply," said James Leape, director general of WWF.

"No one can escape the impact of biodiversity loss because reduced global diversity translates quite clearly into fewer new medicines, greater vulnerability to natural disasters and greater effects from global warming. The industrialised world needs to be supporting the global effort to achieve these targets, not just in their own territories where a lot of biodiversity has already been lost, but also globally."

World wildlife numbers down 25% in three decades
David Adam, The Guardian 15 May 08;

More than one in four of all individual animals, birds and fish on the planet have disappeared in just over thirty years, according to a report that highlights a massive loss of biodiversity across the world. Human activities are to blame, say the authors.

The study of 4,000 separate populations of hundreds of different species across land, marine and freshwater habitats reveals they shrunk by an average of 27% between 1970 and 2005. Large sea fish such as the swordfish and the scalloped hammerhead were hit particularly badly, losing 28% of their numbers in the last decade alone. Environment group WWF, which compiled the figures with experts from the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), said they were "alarming". It said there was no little chance that the world would meet a UN target to significantly slow the rate of biodiversity loss by 2010.

Colin Butfield, head of campaigns at WWF-UK, said: "Biodiversity underpins the health of the planet and has a direct impact on all our lives, so it is alarming that despite an increased awareness in environmental issues, we continue to see a downward trend."

The WWF Living Planet Index surveys the health of populations of 241 fish, 83 amphibian, 40 reptile, 811 bird and 302 mammal species. It combines published surveys of everything from polar bear dens in Russia and green turtle nests in Costa Rica, to the estimated population of sperm whales in the North Pacific. It does not include all species or populations, but the experts say the results are robust enough to "assess the state of global biodiversity".

It finds that land species have lost a quarter of their number since 1970, marine species populations have declined by 28% and freshwater species by 29%.

Jonathan Loh, of the ZSL, said: "We have seen a precipitous decline in the number of animals, birds and fish since 1970, while the human population has doubled. Those two trends are not unrelated."

Loss of natural habitat and over-exploitation of species, such as over-fishing, are to blame for the collapse, the report says. Pollution and the spread of invasive species are also responsible. Climate change is thought to have played a minor role so far, but could become "the greatest threat to biodiversity over the next few decades".

World species dying out like flies says WWF
Jeremy Lovell, Reuters 15 May 08;

LONDON (Reuters) - World biodiversity has declined by almost one third in the past 35 years due mainly to habitat loss and the wildlife trade, the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) said on Friday

It warned that climate change would add increasingly to the wildlife woes over the next three decades.

"Biodiversity underpins the health of the planet and has a direct impact on all our lives so it is alarming that despite of an increased awareness of environmental issues we continue to see a downtrend trend," said WWF campaign head Colin Butfield.

"However, there are small signs for hope and if government grasps what is left of this rapidly closing window of opportunity, we can begin to reverse this trend."

WWF's Living Planet Index tracks some 4,000 species of birds, fish, mammals, reptiles and amphibians globally. It shows that between 1970 and 2007 land-based species fell by 25 percent, marine by 28 percent and freshwater by 29 percent.

Marine bird species have fallen 30 percent since the mid-1990s.

The report comes ahead of a meeting in Bonn next week of member states of the U.N. Convention on Biological Diversity to try to find out how to save the world's flora and fauna under threat from human activities.

Some scientists see the loss of plants, animals and insects as the start of the sixth great species wipe out in the Earth's history, the last being in the age of the dinosaurs which disappeared 130 million years ago.

Scientists point out that most of the world's food and medicines come initially from nature, and note that dwindling species put human survival at risk.

"Reduced biodiversity means millions of people face a future where food supplies are more vulnerable to pests and disease and where water is in irregular or short supply," said WWF director general James Leape.

"No one can escape the impact of biodiversity loss because reduced global diversity translates quite clearly into fewer new medicines, greater vulnerability to natural disasters and greater effects from global warming.

The head of Britain's world-renowned Kew Gardens in an interview last month likened biodiversity -- the broad array of plants and animals spread across the planet -- to a planetary health monitor.

"First-aiders always check the ABC -- Airway, Breathing and Circulation -- of a patient to see if anything needs immediate attention," Stephen Hopper said.

"Biodiversity is the ABC of life on the planet -- and it is showing it is in deep trouble," he added.

Kew is doing its part through the Millennium Seed Bank project, which is well on the way to collecting and storing safely 10 percent of the world's wild plants.

The next goal -- as yet a wish without any financial backing -- is to raise that total to 25 percent by 2020.

(Editing by Richard Williams)

Wildlife numbers plummet globally: WWF
Yahoo News 16 May 08;

The world's wildlife populations have reduced by around a quarter since the 1970s, according to a major report published Friday by the WWF conservation organization.

Marine species have been particularly hard hit as the human population booms, while numbers of birds and, fish and animals have also gone down, said the WWF in a report.

The study comes ahead of next week's UN convention on biological diversity in the former West German capital Bonn, which will discuss aims to achieve a "significant reduction" in the current rate of biodiversity loss by 2010.

The WWF, the world's largest independent conservation body, said it was "very unlikely" that the UN would meet its targets, despite the decline appearing to flatten off in recent years.

The WWF's Living Planet Index, which tracks the fortunes of nearly 4,000 populations of 1,477 vertebrate species from 1970 to 2005, showed an overall decline of 27 percent.

Over-fishing and hunting, along with farming, pollution and urban expansion, were blamed.

WWF director general James Leape warned: "Reduced biodiversity means millions of people face a future where food supplies are more vulnerable to pests and disease and where water is in irregular or short supply.

"No one can escape the impact of biodiversity loss because reduced global diversity translates quite clearly into fewer new medicines, greater vulnerability to natural disasters and greater effects from global warming."

The marine LPI showed a 28-percent decline with a dramatic drop between 1995 and 2005. The overall freshwater LPI fell by 29 percent between 1970 and 2003.

Swordfish numbers plummeted by 28 percent in the decade from 1995, while ocean birds suffered a 30 percent decline since the mid 1990s.

"Biodiversity underpins the health of the planet and has a direct impact on all our lives so it is alarming that despite an increased awareness of environmental issues we continue to see a downward trend," said Colin Butfield, head of campaigns at WWF-UK.

The British-based conservation charity also warned that a failure to halt biodiversity loss would have negative impacts for humans.

In the next 30 years, climate change is expected to become a significant threat to species, said the WWF.

The declines come at a time when humans are consuming ever more natural resources, and are now using 25 percent more than the planet can replace, it said.

The WWF urged governments to take urgent action to reduce the rate of biodiversity loss by 2010, calling for cross-ministry protection plans.

They should also set up financial incentives to support the establishment and maintenance of protection zones, it said.

"The fact that human activities have caused more rapid changes in biodiversity in the last 50 years than at any other time in human history should concern us all," said Britain's Biodiversity Minister Joan Ruddock.

"Supporting wildlife is critical to all our futures and the UK will continue to give strong support to international action.

"The rate of wildlife loss needs to be slowed both in the UK and internationally.

"International action is needed to tackle the worldwide decline in wildlife, with all countries working together."