Fraction of land vertebrates including reptiles, birds, and amphibians that are experiencing a decline and losses in local population

Range ~30 %
Organism Biosphere
Reference The Lancet Planetary Health. A sixth mass extinction? Why planetary health matters. Lancet Planet Health. 2017 Aug1(5):e163. doi: 10.1016/S2542-5196(17)30083-9 p.e163 left column top paragraphPubMed ID29851630
Primary Source Ceballos G, Ehrlich PR, Dirzo R. Biological annihilation via the ongoing sixth mass extinction signaled by vertebrate population losses and declines. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2017 Jul 25 114(30):E6089-E6096. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1704949114PubMed ID28696295
Method Primary source abstract: "That conclusion is based on analyses of the numbers and degrees of range contraction (indicative of population shrinkage and/or population extinctions according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature) using a sample of 27,600 vertebrate species, and on a more detailed analysis documenting the population extinctions between 1900 and 2015 in 177 mammal species."
Comments P.e163 left column top paragraph: "According to an article published in July by Gerardo Ceballos and colleagues [primary source], the Earth is experiencing a huge decline in species' populations and a great reduction in their range that could have profound effects on the ecosystems on which human civilisation depends. They found that about 30% of land vertebrates including reptiles, birds, and amphibians are experiencing a decline and losses in local population." Primary source abstract: "In [investigators'] sample, comprising nearly half of known vertebrate species, 32% (8,851/27,600) are decreasing: that is, they have decreased in population size and range. In the 177 mammals for which [they] have detailed data, all have lost 30% or more of their geographic ranges and more than 40% of the species have experienced severe population declines (>80% range shrinkage)."
Entered by Uri M
ID 117263