Botanists Warn of Mass Extinctions

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WORLDWIDE FOREST/BIODIVERSITY CAMPAIGN NEWS

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8/6/99

OVERVIEW & COMMENTARY by EE

An extinction crisis is occurring in both terrestrial and marine

ecosystems. Current trends indicate we may lose as much as 2/3 of

many mammal, butterfly, plant species by the end of the next century.

5% of the World's rainforest is expected to remain by the year 2050,

and vast areas of ocean are already becoming dead zones. It is

difficult to imagine a program to address these issues that is

comprehensive enough.

g.b.

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Title: Botanists at U.S. meeting warn of mass extinctions

Source: Reuters

Date: August 2, 1999

ST. LOUIS, Aug 2

(Reuters) - Human beings are causing the extinction of species on the

order of the mass extinctions that wiped out the dinosaurs 65 million

years ago, botanists warned on Monday.

``We are predicting the extinction of about two-thirds of all bird,

mammal, butterfly and plant species by the end of the next century,

based on current trends,'' said Peter Raven, President of

the International Botanical Congress, which is meeting in St. Louis

this week.

At the current pace of habitat destruction, only 5 percent of the

world's tropical rain forest will be left by the middle of the next

century. The most species loss is occurring in the tropics of South

America, Africa and Asia, and with it the chance to discover new foods

and medicines, Raven said.

``Hundreds of species are becoming extinct when only one should,'' he

said, based on his readings of the fossil record and estimates of

species loss. ``The projected rate of extinction for the next 100

years is equal to 65 million years ago.''

A widely held theory holds that the dinosaurs and many other species

were wiped out 65 million years ago when an asteroid slammed into

Earth, casting up a cloud that cut off the sun's rays and halting

plant photosynthesis -- one of five mass extinction to destroy a

significant portion of life on Earth.

This time, the destruction is piecemeal as mankind encroaches on the

natural environment and leaves only fragments of forest that cannot

sustain many species, Raven said.

The oceans too are under siege, with vast ``dead zones'' where

oxygenated water and life are scarce, other botanists said at the

meeting.

In an assessment of the ``human footprint on Earth,'' researcher

Jane Lubchenco of Oregon State University and two colleagues from

Stanford University presented their findings that the oceans are being

altered by man as well as the land.

There are now some 50 ``dead zones'' in the world's coastal areas, the

largest in the Gulf of Mexico caused by excess nitrogen and phosphorus

flowing down the Mississippi River.

``We're degrading the water, changing our coastlines, filling in our

estuaries, and changing our rivers,'' Lubchenco said in a statement.

``We're witnessing many signals of the problems that will result from

these changes, including toxic algal blooms, coral bleaching and

sudden disappearance of fish from key fisheries,'' she said.

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