Wildlife in ‘catastrophic decline’ due to human destruction, scientists warn

Wildlife populations have been reduced by more than two-thirds in less than 50 years, according to a major report by the conservation group WWF.

The report says this “catastrophic decline” shows no signs of slowing down.

And it warns that nature is being destroyed by humans at a rate never seen before.

Wildlife is “in free fall” as we burn forests, overfish our seas and destroy wilderness areas, says Tanya Steele, executive director of WWF.

“We are destroying our world, the only place we call home, risking our health, safety and survival here on Earth. Now nature is sending us a desperate SOS and time is running out.”

What do the numbers mean?

The report analyzed thousands of different wildlife species monitored by conservation scientists in habitats around the world.

They recorded an average drop of 68% in more than 20,000 populations of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish since 1970.

The decline was clear evidence of the damage human activity is causing to the natural world, said Dr Andrew Terry, director of conservation at the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), which provides the data.

“If nothing changes, populations will undoubtedly continue to decline, driving wildlife to extinction and threatening the integrity of the ecosystems we depend on,” he added.

The report says that the Covid-19 pandemic is a stark reminder of how nature and humans are intertwined.

Factors believed to lead to pandemics, including habitat loss and wildlife use and trade, are also some of the factors driving declines in wildlife.

New modeling evidence suggests that we can halt and even reverse habitat loss and deforestation if we take urgent conservation action and change the way we produce and consume food.

British television host and naturalist Sir David Attenborough said that the Anthropocene, the geological age during which human activity has come to the fore, could be the time when we strike a balance with the natural world and become stewards of our planet.

“Doing so will require systemic changes in the way we produce food, create energy, manage our oceans and use materials,” he said.

“But above all it will require a change in perspective. A change from seeing nature as something optional or ‘nice to have’ to being the single greatest ally we have in restoring balance to our world.”

Sir David presents a new documentary on extinction to air on BBC One in the UK on Sunday 13th September at 20:00 BST.

How do we measure the loss of nature?

Measuring the variety of all life on Earth is complex, with several different measurements.

Together, they provide evidence that biodiversity is being destroyed at a rate unprecedented in human history.

This particular report uses an index of whether wildlife populations are increasing or decreasing. It does not tell us the number of species lost or extinctions.

The greatest decreases are in tropical areas. The 94% drop for Latin America and the Caribbean is the largest in the world, driven by a cocktail of threats to reptiles, amphibians and birds.

“This report looks at the global landscape and the need for early action to begin reversing these trends,” said ZSL’s Louise McRae.

The data has been used for modeling work to see what might be necessary to reverse the decline.

Research published in Natures magazine suggests that to change course we must transform the way we produce and consume food, including reducing food waste and consuming food with less environmental impact.

UCL professor Dame Georgina Mace said that conservation actions alone would not be enough to “bend the curve of biodiversity loss.”

“It will require actions from other sectors, and here we show that the food system will be particularly important, both from the agricultural sector on the supply side and from consumers on the demand side,” he said.

What do other measures tell us about the loss of nature?

The extinction data is compiled by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which has assessed more than 100,000 species of plants and animals, with more than 32,000 species in danger of extinction.

In 2019, an intergovernmental panel of scientists concluded that one million species – 500,000 animals and plants and 500,000 insects – are in danger of extinction, some within decades.

• Humans ‘threaten 1 million species with extinction’

The WWF report is one of many state of nature assessments to be released in the coming weeks and months in preparation for a major summit next year.

The UN will reveal its latest assessment of the state of nature around the world on Tuesday.

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