68% of wild animals have been destroyed by humans; this has happened during the last 50 years.
Today, the 'Living Planet Report' has been published by the WWF. The Living Planet report is now published every two years by the WWF. The WWF started the Living Planet Report in 1998.
This report analyzes the health of our planet and the health of our natural world. It also analyzes how humans are affecting our natural world and how we are affecting the animals of the world.
The last Living Planet Report by the WWF was published in 2018. In that report, the WWF found that there had been a 60% decline in vertebrate species from 1970 to 2014.
The 2020 Living Nature Report
Sadly, things seem to have gotten worse for nature.
This year's Living Nature Report is the 13th Living Nature Report. The number 13 is often seen as being an unlucky number, and, in this case, that seems to be the case - that with the 13th report, things look direr for nature today than ever before.
The WWF says that 'our relationship with nature is broken'. And, going by the findings of the Living Nature Report 2020, it is hard to argue with that - our relationship with nature, is, broken, sadly.
This new report has found that there has been a significant decline in nature for the last 50 years. The WWF has found that there has been a massive decline in the natural world - there has been a 68% decline in animal populations over the last 50 years. This massive decline in animal populations within nature has been caused by humans; our treatment of the natural world and animal populations have been catastrophic.
Some continents have seen more population declines than others. Especially one continent - that continent is South America. In South America, animal populations have declined by a staggering 94%. The continent with the second-highest population decline has been in Africa. In Africa, there has been a 64% decline in animal populations. The third highest decline area is in the Asia-Pacific - which includes the two continents of Asia and Australasia - where there has been a 45% decline in animal populations. The forth continent is North America, which has seen a 33% decline in animal populations. And, finally, the fifth continent(s) is Europe and Central Asia, which has seen a 24% decline in animal populations.
What Have The Animal Population Declines Been?
The 68% decline in animal populations have been seen in a wide variety of animals. This includes - mammals, fish, birds, amphibians and reptiles.
These declines have taken place between 1970 and 2016.
This report includes all areas of the world - animal populations are declining in every continent across the world. However, the report also shows that animal populations are declining at different rates across the world; the rate of the decline depends on where the animals are from in the world.
The Decline Of Wetlands
The Decline Of Wetlands
The Living Planet Report 2020, also shows that there has been a very significant decline in wetlands.
The report shows that 84% of wetlands have been lost since 1970. This means that the vast majority of the world's wetlands have been lost. This is a staggering amount of wetlands to lose.
The total number of wetlands that have been recorded to have been lost is 90% of wetlands. The report states that 90% of wetlands have been lost since 1700.
The report doesn't just focus on the wetlands themselves, but also the species of animals who live within the wetlands and rely on the wetlands for their existence. The report found that megafauna has suffered a dramatic decline too. Megafauna includes animals such as hippos, beavers and dolphins. There has been a 78% decline in megafauna species between the years of 2000 and 2015. This means that large and medium-sized animals that live within water ecosystems have seen a significant decline in their populations.
How Many Species Are In The Report?
The Living Report 2020 includes the analysis of 21,000 populations of mammals, fish, reptiles and amphibians.
The report this year also includes 400 new species.
The Decline Of Insect Populations
It looks as if insect populations are declining too.
Most of the studies about insects have been based on analyzing insects in the Northern hemisphere; particularly in Europe.
They have found that there are declines in insect populations and biomass. The decrease in the insect population, have been found in places such as the UK, Ireland, North America, North Africa and Australia. There have also been decreases reported in other parts of Europe and the far-east.
Planet Life Declining
Animals and ecosystems are not the only ones seeing declines; plant life is also seeing declines.
The WWF has found that 22% of plant species are at risk of extinction today. That means that one-in-five plant species are at risk of extinction today. This means that the extinction risk in plants is the same as the extinction risk the world's mammals face.
They also found that most of the plant species that are facing extinction are in the tropics. Therefore, that probably means that most of the plants that are facing extinction today, come from places like the world's tropical rainforests.
What Is Causing These Declines?
Several things have been causing these declines in nature. These several things are all interconnected with one another.
A few of the reasons for the declines in animal populations, plant species populations and ecosystem populations over the last 50 years, include things such as - the human population significantly increasing, alongside global trade and our consumption.
Our consumption could, and probably does, include numerous things. From the food we eat to the furniture we use; everything that we use comes from nature in one way or another. A growing human population has increased our demand for food, land and other things that we consume.
We are taking more from the earth than the planet can cope with.
The Last Wildernesses Of The Earth
Our destruction of the natural world has resulted in there not being that many true wildernesses left on the earth.
Most of the earth has lost its wilderness.
The few exceptions to this are places such as the Amazon rainforest, Siberia, Northern Canada, parts of Africa, a part of Asia and parts of Australia.
The most damaged continent is Europe which has lost its wilderness and is highly damaged from the way that humans have treated the continent.
The Risk Posed By Climate Change
Habitat destruction is not the only risk facing the natural world. Another human created-risk facing the natural world is climate change.
Over the last 4 years, the world has lost its first mammal to climate change. In 2016, a small animal called the Bramble Cay Melomys was declared extinct in Australia. The Bramble Cay Melomys was declared extinct because of climate change.
Sadly, there is a risk that other animals could become extinct because of climate change too. There are a lot more species at risk of extinction just because of climate change. It is estimated that one-fifth of species that are at risk of extinction because of climate change.
One of the animals that have in recent years being affected by climate change is Flying Foxes. Flying Foxes have sadly been dying in significant numbers in recent years this had been because of an increase in temperatures. From 1994 to 2007, there have been 30,000 plus Flying Foxes which have died because of very warm temperatures caused by heatwaves. To put that number into perspective, the Flying Fox population is less than 100,000 Flying Foxes.
This Effects Humans Too
The destruction of the natural world, whether to do with climate change or habitat loss, doesn't just affect animals and ecosystems; it affects humans too. It affects humans because we rely on nature for things like a stable climate and food security. We also rely on nature for our water.
There is another big reason why nature is important to us - nature is important for our health. Nature has been showing to be a positive force for our physical health and mental health.
Our destruction of nature is bad for our health. It takes away ecosystems like forests which can help us to feel better when we spend time them. Our destruction of nature also risks pandemics - such as the recent COVID-19 pandemic. There have also been other warnings that if we continue to destroy nature, then we could see other pandemics.
The Future
The future of human health, animals existing on this planet, healthy ecosystems, climate change and an overall healthy planet, depend upon what we do now and in the future.
Our future and the future of animals can be a lot brighter if we make it so. Animals deserve to live on this planet just as much as we do - the earth is the home of animals too, they deserve to be protected. By saving places like forests, meadows and other ecosystems, we give animals a place to live. By rewilding the planet, we can give spaces for animals to live and help their population bounce back.
We can all do our part to help animals and the earth. We can do this from the way we choose to live our life and the way we interact with nature. We can also do this through the way we choose to live in our homes, from the products we consume to the way we use our gardens.
How You Can Help Animals And Nature At Home
You can help animals and nature at home in several ways.
One of the ways that you can help animals, is by being more conscious of the products you consume. You could try consuming products which are organic and more eco-friendly or try reducing waste, especially things like plastic waste in your life. These sorts of changes can help the environment and the animals of the world.
You can also do things like changing the products you use. You could do this by doing stuff like using eco-friendly washing detergents, to eco-friendly shampoos and soaps. Sometimes the little changes we make like this can end up making a big difference; especially if millions of us change our lives to live in this way.
Another great way that you can help animals, is through your garden. Having a lawn and planting flowers is beneficial to animals like birds and incests. Having trees in your garden and bushes can help animals like squirrels, hedgehogs and birds. Putting bird, hedgehog, bee, butterfly and bat houses in your garden, is a way to give animals somewhere to live. You could also install a pond to give animals a place to drink and amphibians a place to live. And finally, you could provide food for animals, like bird seeds, to help animals. Feeding animals like this will help them get through the seasons, especially in Winter. when food is scarce.
Our gardens can be mini-habitats for animals. Our gardens are a great way to help animals. So, if you are looking for a way to help animals, why not turn your garden into a mini-habitat for animals and encourage others to do the same? If millions of us do this, it would tremendously help nature and animals.
Together, we can create a better world for animals, people, ecosystems and the planet as a whole. Our future can be much brighter, but we have to actively create a brighter future, not sometime in the future, but, today.
Thank you.
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