Sixth Mass Extinction May Have Already Started: Study

Scientists say the next mass extinction may already be under way.

A new study, published in the most recent issue of the journal Nature states just that. And it's man-made.

The theory comes from research done on the state of mammal species today. When man's exponential expansion began 500 years ago mammal extinctions were rare.

But in the past five centuries at least 80 of 5,570 mammal species have gone extinct, according to AFP.

While the number may not seem too large, it could signify the beginning of a larger trend in extinctions.

There have been five previous mass extinctions in the past 540 million years. In each of those mass extinctions 75 percent or more of all animal species were destroyed.

The study also looked at a number of plant and animal species that will likely see a decline in the near future.

From USA Today:

The IUCN lists 18,351 species on its "Red List of Threatened Species," considered the global standard for the conservation status of animal and plant species. All are at risk based on current and projected habitat loss or destruction due to human encroachment and climate change. Of those, 1,940 are listed as critically endangered, meaning the species' numbers have decreased, or will decrease, by 80% within three generations.

However, it's still too early to definitively deem this the next mass extinction. According to the study, the sixth mass extinction is only on track if things continue unabated.

Even unhindered, the magnitude of this mass extinction could take as long as 2,200 years to reach "Big Five" levels, according to USA Today. Or it could take as little as 300.

It's also important to note that it's not certain that many of the endangered species studied will, in fact, go extinct. In turn, the conclusions made based on the data were considered "cautious extrapolations," according to the researchers.

Comments

[MikeyJaii]

09:05 PM on 03/31/2011

As long as we can breed chickens massively in amounts, we'll be fine.

[nomadrdw]

01:29 PM on 03/09/2011

unfortunately this study just focused on mammals, not on plant, fish, reptiles and amphibians. amphibians are being devastated the world over.

[DramaKitteh]

11:53 AM on 03/26/2011

I was thinking the same thing.

[Bera Na Liva]

03:21 AM on 03/09/2011

There's too many of us. The human race is a plague. Nature and the universe will sort it out. They got plenty time. With all we may be trying to do we are only forestalling the inevitable.

[ChimpNchief]

11:44 PM on 03/07/2011

This whole process could accelerate very quickly under the right set of circumstances. Of course humans are busy creating those circumstances as fast as they can. No matter the rate of extinction today, we will find a way to speed it up I promise.

[Kassandra]

07:58 PM on 03/07/2011

Just a couple more Deep Water Horizons oughta do the trick, then it'll be the insects turn.
The meek really shall inherit the earth

[Chuck Fogland]

12:53 PM on 03/06/2011

Wake up!

[ninetailedfox]

03:14 PM on 03/05/2011

A new study, published in the most recent issue of the journal Nature states just that. And it's man-made.

Humans may be "high on the food chain" but dont think for a second we will survive this. We asked for it, be careful what you wish for.

[Anonymous Bosch]

09:05 AM on 03/05/2011

80 mammal species, but how many others? The article provides only a gross underestimate of the current rate of extinctions. Additionally, what simple numbers completely fail to convey is the importance of any particular extinction in relation to the ecosystem. One example will suffice. There have been concerns in recent years about the decline of pollinating insects - particularly bees. Reduced pollination means loss of flora and less food for all species including ourselves.

[osofar]

08:46 AM on 03/05/2011

Intelligent discourse is rapidly going extinct on numerous web sites.

[dragonmaster]

07:15 AM on 03/05/2011

The biggest mass extinction is coming in the 8 decades-

one of those species seeing its numbers drop will be human beings.

[Anonymous Bosch]

09:07 AM on 03/05/2011

Maybe not as long as 8 decades - Google: 'Are Humans Smarter than Yeast?'

[The last sane American]

06:26 AM on 03/06/2011

You are both wrong. 2012; always believe a Mayan.

[HansB]

03:14 AM on 03/05/2011

That old story about me wanting to claim people's souls
really makes me laugh, said the devil.
Everyone knows humans don't have souls.

[ninetailedfox]

03:15 PM on 03/05/2011

I like that quote. Very true indeed.

[HansB]

05:16 PM on 03/05/2011

Thank you! But it's a poem, not a quote.

[Jaxsie]

05:04 PM on 03/07/2011

I also love this!

[luminavi]

06:54 PM on 03/04/2011

There were 18,225 new species discovered in 2008 alone, of which 41 were mammalia. There are approximately 1.9 million known species in the world today.

So within the last 500 years, at least 80 mammal species have gone extinct out of a beginning total of 5,570 known mammalian species. 1.4% species attrition rate versus the overwhelming species accumulation rate?

And they call this the beginning of the 6th mass extinction? Sorry, but sounds more like the 6th mass self-promotion to me.

[Matthew Harrold]

07:33 PM on 03/04/2011

1. We didn't classify animals scientific­ally till the 1700s.
2. You give no indication when those 80 animals died within that time frame. Were they becoming extinct at regular intervals, or weighted towards one particular time frame? I bet you a cold beer many more died in the last 200 years then in the previous 300.
3. Where did you pull 1.4% of species attrition rate from?

[Mississippi Red]

12:15 AM on 03/05/2011

Ah, the sound of ignorance. When a species goes extinct, it is gone forever. When species are discovered, they are not species that just suddenly appeared. In studies such as this, the projected number of undiscovered species is usually accounted for.

[Gavin Saunders]

06:53 PM on 03/04/2011

For days I've resisted clicking on this story because of what appears to me to be some kind of early April fool's photo mash up.

I balk at lame attention-seeking at any cost but I guess it works in the end. Sad really.

[lowery2008]

05:11 PM on 03/04/2011

This is another proof of humanity being a virus that destroys everything on its way to total domination.

[wingnutgator]

05:41 PM on 03/04/2011

So Mr. Virus, when are you offing yourself to save the planet?

[lowery2008]

05:49 PM on 03/04/2011

I'd rather do everything in my power to protect it form the other viruses who are to blind or too greedy to see the damage they are causing.

[Ashleigh VeganThis Mott]

07:24 PM on 03/06/2011

It's looking more and more like that's true every day.

[scottie1321]

03:52 PM on 03/04/2011

80 of 5,570 is 0.01362 %. No matter what side you are on, that is a stat that is far removed from the 75% the article says was lost in the 5 past "major extinctions".

[Matthew Harrold]

04:31 PM on 03/04/2011

In the past 500 years. What it fails to mention though is the rate of extinction. I'm using birds because I have the figures to hand for those:

The actual figures are 128 species of birds have become extinct in the last 500 years, 103 of them since 1800.

So that's a leap of a species every 12 years, to a species every other years. Now there's 182 species described as being critical, which means a 50% chance of surviving for three generation­s or ten years. With even odds that would put make for 91 species in a decade or under. A rate of loss 9 species a YEAR.

[luminavi]

05:30 PM on 03/04/2011

True. But to put it in perspective: from 2000 to 2010 alone, 57 new bird species were discovered:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bird_species_new_to_science_described_in_the_2000s

Extrapolating, that's 570 new bird species discovered in the last 500 years.

[Dave McGrath]

12:11 AM on 03/06/2011

Your math is off by two orders of magnitude: 80 of 5,570 is 1.4362657%. Percents are hard.