A growing body of evidence suggests the planet is in the midst of a sixth mass extinction.

The phrase "mass extinction" typically conjures up images of the asteroid crash that led to the twilight of the dinosaurs. But we are most likely in the middle of another devastating (though perhaps less obvious) extinction event today. The trend is hitting global fauna on multiple fronts, as hotter oceans, habitat loss, and climate change drive animal populations down on an unprecedented scale (Woodward, 2016).

Today, the United Nations released a summary of a report from its Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), which assessed the state of our planet's biodiversity. The IPBES prepares to unveil a thorough diagnosis of the health of Earth's plant and animal species. So far, the UN's findings are grim (Woodward, 2016)....this is what we already know:

P.S.:The truth of the matter is, the statistics may not be a true reflection of the true status quo globally.

• Two species of vertebrate ( or animals with a backbone) have gone extinct every year, on average, for the past century.

• Scientists say Earth is undergoing a "mass extinction event", the first since the dinosaurs disappeared some 65 million years ago, and only the sixth in the last half-a-billion years.

• About 41% of amphibian species and more than a quarter of mammals are threatened with extinction.
• About half of coral reefs have been lost in the last 30 years, that is a lot :(

• The global populations of 3 706 monitored vertebrate species – fish, birds, mammals, amphibians, and reptiles – declined by nearly 60% from 1970 to 2012.

• 25 821 species of 91 523 assessed for the 2017 "Red List" update were classified as "threatened"(News24, 2018).

• Of these, 5 583 were "critically" endangered, 8 455 "endangered", and 11 783 "vulnerable".

• African elephant numbers dropped to 415 000 in 2016, down about 111 000 over 10 years.

• There are an estimated 8.7 million plant and animal species on our planet. This means about 86% of land species and 91% of sea species remain undiscovered.

• Of the ones we do know, 1 204 mammal, 1 469 bird, 1 215 reptile, 2 100 amphibian, and 2 386 fish species are considered threatened.

• Also threatened are 1 414 insect, 2 187 mollusc, 732 crustacean, 237 coral, 12 505 plant, 33 mushroom, and six brown algae species.

• Annual economic losses as a result of deforestation and forest degradation alone may be as high as $4.5 trillion.

Woodward, A. May 06, 2019. https://www.businessinsider.co.za/1-million-species-could-go-extinct-un-report-2019-5

AFP,. March 16, 2018. https://www.news24.com/Green/News/the-sorry-state-of-earths-species-in-numbers-20180316