The passenger pigeon flew with grace, speed, and agility. The bird had a small head and neck. The tail was elongated and wedge-shaped. The wingspan was broad and the wings were pointed and powered by large breast muscles that gave it capability for prolonged flight. The average length of the male was …
Anthropocene Epoch: The Age of Humans
Dutch chemist, Paul Crutzen popularised the term Anthropocene, the Age of Humans, that represent this human dominated geological epoch. His argument was based on the facts, 18 years ago, that human activity had transformed between a third and a half of the land surface area of the planet.
The Great Auk Extinction Story – Extinct in 1844
The Great Auk was eighty centimetres tall, weighed around five kilos and looked like a large penguin. They spent most of their lives at sea but returned to land to nest. The great auk was a flightless bird and a fantastic swimmer and lived in the northern hemisphere. This bird ranged from Norway to …
Sixth Mass Extinction of Life on Earth Caused by Humans
Human activity and exploitation as well as climate change and ocean acidification is causing populations of vertebrate animals and their habitats to crash. The study’s research reveals that this is in fact happening at an accelerated rate. We will soon enter a time period where most of the animal populations will reach unsustainably low numbers segregated in their terminally degraded habitats scattered around the globe.
Northern White Rhinoceros – Functionally Extinct 2018
It is estimated that 8,000 rhinoceros have been killed by humans in the last 10 years alone. There are 21,000 rhinoceros left in the world today. The evolutionary history of rhinoceros goes back 50 million years. The Northern White Rhinoceros is a subspecies of the White Rhinoceros that is said to be descended from Ceratotherium praecox that lived around seven million years ago.
Living Planet Report 2018 – a Safe Zone for all Species
Living Planet Report: humanity’s survival depends on healthy ecosystems, yet we continue to destroy the health of nature at an alarming rate.
Life on Earth – Catastrophic Disruption of Nature
Life on Earth – A healthy natural environment and the equitable distribution of wellbeing amongst human communities, go hand in hand. You cannot have one without the other.
Insects Populations & Biodiversity Global Apocalypse
“The world’s insects populetion are crashing and on the way to extinction, threatening a “catastrophic collapse of nature’s ecosystems”.
The Great Acceleration and the Not-So-Living Planet
This Great Acceleration has only been possible because of Nature. Without healthy natural systems we are like a car driving at an insane speed towards a brick wall.
2018 Living Planet Report – The End of Civilisation
The recently published World Wildlife Fund 2018 Living Planet Report reveals that we have killed 60% of all wildlife in the last 40 years. I would remind readers that as recently as 200,000 years ago we would have considered our ancestors wildlife by any of today’s definitions.