Earth Has 8.7 Million Species

The earth has 8.7 million species of plant and animal, according to a new study in the journal PLoS Biology—and only 14 percent, so far, have been identified. The vast majority—about 7.7 million—are animals, while the remainder includes plants, fungi, and protozoa. Previous estimates put the number of species anywhere between 3 and 100 million; scientists calculated the new figure by analyzing well known taxonomies, like mammals, and then applying the patterns there to other branches of life. At the current rate of discovery, it would take 1,000 years to identify all the species.