Log In | Register
When scientists try to gauge the impact of humans on bird populations since 1500--the time Europeans began to explore the world in earnest--they often cite estimates that, on average, one species has gone extinct every 4 years. Now, a group of researchers says that figure may be far too low. The good news is that conservation efforts in the 20th century have prevented many extinctions, but the authors warn that continued destruction of habitat makes even more birds likely to vanish forever in the next 100 years.
Bird Extinctions Worse Than Thought
Seeded on Thu Jul 6, 2006 8:33 AM EDT
Article Source: Science: Current Issue- Enjoy this article? Help vote it up the 'Vine.
- Public Discussion (2)
Very interesting and relevant seed. Much of the problems with measuring extinction rates is that most of the species that exist on this planet have yet to be discovered, let alone cataloged and studied. Conservation efforts have really helped, but more needs to be done.
- 2 votes
#1 - Thu Jul 6, 2006 2:04 PM EDTIf you follow the link at the bottom of the article, you can view the species of birds that went extinct by regions in the world, along with the believed reason why they did. Take a look at how many birds have gone extinct in New-Zealand by introduction of new organisms.
New-Zealand is not only renowned for such "mistakes", but it provides a really interesting, and secluded, region for studying extinctions by introduced organisms. It is such a healthy and defenseless ecosystem that the introduced species, more often than not, find itself without any predators and an island full of preys. Take the Kiwi birds vs Possums story for example. Within the past 100 years or so, it went from a healthy population of about 500 000 Kiwi Birds to less than 70 000.
- 2 votes
#2 - Wed Aug 2, 2006 12:07 AM EDTYou're in Easy Mode. If you prefer, you can use XHTML Mode instead. |
As a new user, you may notice a few temporary content restrictions. Click here for more info.
