Wildlife Decline
As the human population grows and consumes more of the planet’s resources, the number of wild animals and plants declines. Encounters with insects outdoors and in our homes is falling rapidly. Birds numbers are falling, and wild mammals are disappearing.
“The Living Planet Index tracked 20,811 populations of 4,392 vertebrate species and it recorded a 68 percent decline between 1970 and 2016. Over-consumption by humans is primarily to blame, particularly deforestation and agricultural expansion–Niall McCarthy, Data Journalist.
I’ve reported on this issue in many posts over the past few years. In fact, most of my posts relate to this issue. Like the rest of the world’s citizens concerned with nature, I’ve been an ineffectual nag. I have come to believe that even if we had 100 Greta Thunbergs demonstrating for nature, we would fail to stop the human calamity. My message of hope is for a distant future recovery. Caught in the whirlpool of human nature, we can still hope that remnants of nature will survive to reseed Earth’s living complexity and beauty once again.
