Washington, (Notimex) .- US researchers concluded that the Earth had entered a new period of extinction, to find that the rate of disappearance of vertebrate species is 114 times greater than in times above.
An investigation by the universities of Stanford, Princeton and Berkeley found that current extinction rates are well above rates ‘background’ that prevailed in the five extinctions Mass previous .
The statement that Earth is entering a sixth mass extinction phase is based on the rapid disappearance of species, say scientists in a Writing in the journal Science.
The researchers analyzed historical rates of the extinction of vertebrates by evaluating the fossil record and compared with today.
According to their findings, the rate is now 114 times higher than during periods when the Earth was not in times of extinction, and pointed out that from 1900 to date have gone over 400 vertebrates.
Since this loss is usually seen during a period of up to 10 thousand years, specialists investigated whether the causes of the rapid disappearance were related to human activities.
they found that climate change, pollution and deforestation favor the rapid disappearance of vertebrates, including humans, and other species now considered endangered, like bees.
At least 50 animal species are close to extinction each year and according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), about 41 percent of all amphibians and 25 percent of mammals are threatened with extinction.
These findings reveal an ‘exceptionally rapid loss’ of biodiversity in recent centuries, indicating that a sixth mass extinction is underway, researchers say.
They say avoid a dramatic decline of biodiversity and the consequent loss of ecosystem services is still possible through intensified conservation efforts, but also that window of opportunity is closing fast
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