'A leading scientific journal says the world could face a mass extinction of species over the next 100 years.
The analysis by Nature found that despite conservation efforts around the world, habitat loss, degradation and human hunting were only increasing leading to thousands of animals facing extinction at alarming rates.
Nature found 41 percent of all amphibian species are threatened with extinction, 26 per cent of mammal species and 13 per cent of bird species are also threatened.
'Of the species that have populated Earth of some time over the past 3.5 billion years, more than 95% have vanished,' Nature reported.
The Red List of Threatened Species, compiled by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, counts around 46,000 critically endangered species.' http://tvnz.co.nz/world-news/faces-mass-extinction-species-within-century-new-report-6206320
Research shows that there have been several waves of mass extinction. The last one wiped out the dinosaur world 65 million years ago and was probably due to a meteorite collision.
But the recent one seems to be significantly influenced by humans with a reported elimination of three animal or plant species every hour. news.softpedia.com/news/The-Rate-of-Extinction-3-Species-per-Hour-55411.shtml
At the same time, the theory of evolution says that extinction is a good thing.
'Natural selection works by giving individuals who are better adapted to a given set of environmental conditions an advantage over those that are not as well adapted.'
Human beings are part of the natural world, and we are causing species to die out. But isn't that the process that the science of evolution supports?
The species that survive any process of extinction are the best adapted to the prevailing circumstances and - so the theory goes - will exhibit the most desirable characteristics as a result of surviving. Are we therefore preventing natural selection (evolution) by keeping alive the creatures who cannot survive on their own?
What do you think?
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It is proposed that endangered species should be left to naturally become extinct