12 signs that we are in the middle of a 6th mass extinction

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  • FILE-- This archival photo taken on November 20, 2014 shows an aerial view of the Great Barrier Reef off the Whitsunday Islands, along the central Queensland coast. The coral reefs, which the Tara Pacific study will study on May 28, 2016 in the Pacific, are

    FILE– This archival photo taken on November 20, 2014 shows an aerial view of the Great Barrier Reef off the Whitsunday Islands, along the central Queensland coast. The coral reefs, which the Tara Pacific study is going to study on May 28, 2016 in the Pacific, are "half-half-plant animals and are very much at risk with climate change." Less
    FILE– This archival photo taken on November 20, 2014 shows an aerial view of the Great Barrier Reef off the Whitsunday Islands, along the central Queensland coast. Coral reefs, as the Tara Pacific … more


    Photo: SARAH LAI, AFP / Getty Images


Photo: SARAH LAI, AFP / Getty Images

FILE– This archival photo taken on November 20, 2014 shows an aerial view of the Great Barrier Reef off the Whitsunday Islands, along the central Queensland coast. The coral reefs, which the Tara Pacific study is going to study on May 28, 2016 in the Pacific, are "half-half-plant animals and are very much at risk with climate change." Less
FILE– This archival photo taken on November 20, 2014 shows an aerial view of the Great Barrier Reef off the Whitsunday Islands, along the central Queensland coast. Coral reefs, as the Tara Pacific … more



Photo: SARAH LAI, AFP / Getty Images


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  • The planet is undergoing a sixth mass extinction, the sixth time in the history of life on Earth that the world's wildlife has collapsed in numbers.
  • Historically, massive extinctions have been caused by catastrophic events such as asteroid collisions. This time, human activities are to blame.
  • The main culprits are deforestation, mining and carbon dioxide emissions, responsible for global warming.
  • As a result, insects die at record speeds, animal species undergo "biological annihilation" and invading aliens result in the loss of native species.

The phrase "mass extinction" usually evokes images of the asteroid crash that led to the twilight of the dinosaurs.

On impact, this 10-km-wide space rock caused a tsunami in the Atlantic Ocean, as well as earthquakes and landslides that swept through what is now America. A thermal impulse cooks the Earth and the Tyrannosaurus rex and its compatriots are extinguished, as well as 75% of the species of the planet.


Although this may not be obvious, another devastating mass extinction event is occurring today – the sixth of its kind in the history of the Earth. The trend is affecting the world's wildlife on many fronts, as global warming, deforestation and climate change are leading to unprecedented extinction of animal populations.

Read more: Insects are dying at a record pace – a worrying sign that we are in the middle of a 6th mass extinction

A study conducted in 2017 revealed that animal species around the world were experiencing "biological annihilation" and that our "current mass extinction episode was more advanced than most people assume."

Here are 12 signs indicating that the planet is in the process of making the sixth mass extinction and why human activity is mainly to blame.

The insects are dying at a record speed. About 40% of the world's insect species are in decline.

Hillary Kladke / Getty Images

A study conducted in 2019 found that the total mass of all insects on the planet decreased by 2.5% per year.

If this trend continues unabated, the Earth could no longer have insects by 2119.

"In 10 years you will have a quarter less, in 50 years and in 100 years," said Francisco Sánchez-Bayo, one of the co-authors of the study, at The Guardian.

This is a major problem because insects such as bees, butterflies and other pollinators play a crucial role in the production of fruits, vegetables and nuts. In addition, insects are a source of food for many species of birds, fish and mammals, some of which depend on human food.


The Earth seems to undergo a process of "biological annihilation". Nearly half of the total number of animals that have already shared the Earth with humans has already left.

Michael Kinnaman / Getty Images

A 2017 study looked at all animal populations on the planet (not just insects) by looking at 27,600 vertebrate species, about half of the total we know. They found that more than 30% of them are in decline.

Some species face total collapse, while some local populations disappear in specific areas. This is still of concern, as the authors of the study stated that these local extinctions of the population were a "prelude to species extinction".

Thus, even the decline of animal populations that are not yet classified as endangered is a worrying sign.

More than 26,500 species of the world are threatened with extinction and this number is expected to continue to increase.

DigitalART / Wikimedia Commons

According to the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature, more than 27% of the species assessed on the planet are threatened with extinction. Currently, 40% of the planet's amphibians, 25% of its mammals and 33% of its coral reefs are threatened.

IUCN predicts that 99.9% of critically endangered species and 67% of endangered species will disappear within the next 100 years.


See the rest of the story at Business Insider

See also:

SEE ALSO: Scientists say we are witnessing the sixth mass extinction of the planet – and that "biological annihilation" is the last sign

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