Wildlife populations 'plummeting'

Between a quarter and a third of the world's wildlife has been lost since 1970, according to data compiled by the Zoological Society of London.



Populations of land-based species fell by 25%, marine by 28% and freshwater by 29%, it says.



Humans are wiping out about 1% of all other species every year, and one of the "great extinction episodes" in the Earth's history is under way, it says.



Pollution, farming and urban expansion, over-fishing and hunting are blamed.



River dolphin



The Living Planet Index, compiled by the society in partnership with the wildlife group WWF, tracks the fortunes of more than 1,400 species of fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals, using scientific publications and online databases.





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It said numbers had declined by 27% in the 35 years from 1970 to 2005.



Some of the worst hit are marine species which saw their numbers plummet by 28% in just 10 years, between 1995 and 2005.



Populations of ocean birds have fallen by 30% since the mid 1990s, while land-based populations have dropped by 25%.



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

James Leape

Director general, WWF UK



Among the creatures most seriously affected have been African antelopes, swordfish and hammerhead sharks.



Another, the baiji - or Yangtze River Dolphin - may have been lost altogether.



The findings were released ahead of a meeting of the Convention on Biodiversity in the German city of Bonn.



The convention was signed in 1992 with the aim of stabilising the loss of species. In 2002, member states pledged to achieve a "significant reduction" in the current rate of biodiversity loss by 2010.



But the Zoological Society said governments had since failed to put in place policies necessary to achieve that goal.



It said that while species' decline does appear to have flattened off in recent years, it is "very unlikely" that the 2010 target will be reached.



Impact on humans



The WWF said that over the next 30 years, climate c

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• Comments (1)

roop_910 posted on 5/17/2008 3:18:52 AM

No one seems to really care so long as the population of their communtiy/religious group increases. .. This entitles them to an ever-increasing quota!

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