Gone, But Not Forgotten: Species We’ve Lost in the Last 10 Years

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.care2.com/causes/gone-but-not-forgotten-species-weve-lost-in-the-last-10-years.html



by Abigail Geer February 3, 2014 5:30 pm

Editor’s note: This post is a Care2 favorite. It was originally published on July 11, 2013. Enjoy!

Mankind has the honor of quite possibly being the most destructive force to ever hit Mother Nature. With 150 to 200 species of life ceasing to exist every 24 hours, a mass extinction is looming, and biodiversity is in crisis.

Periods of extinction are nothing new in the planet’s history, but species extinction in the past 10 years is far greater than anything the world has experienced in the past 65 million years. Humankind’s unsustainable production and consumption are without a doubt the major contributing factor. For the first time since the disappearance of the dinosaurs, humans are driving both animal and plant species to extinction faster than new ones can evolve.

Although we can’t honor them all, here’s a glimpse at just some of the beautiful creatures that we’ve lost forever in the last decade:

West African Black Rhinoceros

Officially declared extinct in 2011, the majestic West African Black Rhino was a victim of rampant poaching. Hunted for its horn, which is believed by some in China and Yemen to possess aphrodisiacal qualities, conservationists searched for signs of its last remaining habitat in Cameroon in 2006, but were unable to find any traces. The West African Black Rhino was one of four subspecies of rhinoceros. The other three remaining subspecies are all critically endangered.

FULL story at link.

[BrotherIvan]

1. Population, population, population

Over-consumption, over-consumption, over-consumption

See: Malthus

[NCarolinawoman]

2. Stupid needless cruel tragedy!