LETHAL SPECIES

Humanity Has Destroyed 60% of Animal Populations Since 1970: Report

Mammals, birds, fish, and reptiles.

Human beings have killed—or lead to the deaths of—60 percent of Earth’s mammals, fish, birds, and reptiles since 1970, according to an estimate published in a report by the World Wide Fund for Nature. The study was created by 59 different scientists from around the world, who say the rapid consumption of resources and food by humans has crippled the globe’s web of life, The Guardian reports. Together, those animals created a system that ultimately has kept humans thriving on food, clean air, and water. “This is far more than just being about losing the wonders of nature, desperately sad though that is,” Mike Barrett, executive director of science and conservation at the WWF, told the newspaper. “This is actually now jeopardizing the future of people. Nature is not a ‘nice to have’—it is our life-support system.” He added, “We are sleepwalking toward the edge of a cliff.”