SCIENCE NEWS
October 18, 2002
An Extinction Boom
A new report shows plant and animal species are disappearing from Earth faster than ever
 An endangered Bactrian camel |
The number of plants and animals in danger of extinction (no longer existing) is growing at an alarming rate. The World Conservation Union, an international group of over 7,000 species experts, has released an updated "Red List" of 11,167 threatened species.
Since 2000, it has added 121 species to that list of plants and animal species close to extinction. The list of completely extinct species has grown by five in the past two years. Species that the group says have disappeared forever are the freshwater gastropod mollusk, two hippopotamus species, the sea mink, and the Reunion Island sheld geese.
On the Brink of Extinction
Species now on the "critically endangered" list include the Saiga antelope, which lives in the grasslands and deserts of Central Asia, the Bactrian camel, found in China and Mongolia, the Ethiopian water mouse, and the Iberian lynx.
The World Conservation Union has studied 18,000 species and subspecies all over Earth to make these determinations, and it takes time to gather enough evidence of extinction. The two hippo species recently declared extinct were last seen in 1500! Researchers have plenty of work ahead. About 14 million species live on Earth, and at this point researchers have only been able to document about 1.75 million of them.
The Cause? Us
Many scientists believe that the rate that animals and plants are becoming extinct is 1,000 to 10,000 times higher than the rate it should be under natural conditions. What’s the main reason animals and plants are disappearing so quickly? Humans. Human activities like fishing, expanding cities, and cutting down forests affect habitats where animals and plants once thrived.
Welcome Back, Stick and Vole!
There is some good news. The Lord Howe Island stick insect and the Bavarian pine vole were believed to be gone forever, but have recently been rediscovered. The group announced that it was glad to move the two species they thought had been extinct for years back to the endangered list.
