We share our planet with several million other species. When I said that I value life, I'm including them. The image from the Tree of Life Web Project, showing how interconnected we all are.

Sadly, we're exterminating those other species at an alarming rate. Without us, only a few species would go extinct each year. Thanks to us, tens to thousands do. This is due to a number of factors, nicely summed up by the acronym "HIPPO": Habitat loss, Invasive species, Pollution, Population (ours), and Overexploitation (hunting). Pollution in the form of greenhouse gas emissions is having perhaps the most famous effect in the form of global climate change. The size of our population amplifies the others, which are easily recognized as consequences of our consumption, just as population is multiplied by per capita consumption to result in total consumption.

By the way, these numbers come from several sources: The 2M figure is rounded from a recent estimate of known species; the rate of 40 was derived from recent news about a possible overcount in habitat-related extinction; and the other numbers are commonly cited (however, see SourceWatch's excellent overview).

 

 

© Copyright 2011 Bradley Jarvis. All rights reserved.