Human influence on the world's ecosystems leads to species extinction and loss of biodiversity

Pict source: GreenBiz

In 1964, when the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) created a “red list” of endangered species and began collecting data from around the world, the list has become the preminent global database. Used to map endangered species and an important tool for conservation policy. The United Nations' 2019 report on the biodiversity crisis estimated that extinction threatened more than one million animal and plant species—both identified and unidentified. One researcher in the global assessment said that nature is in trouble, and we are in it.

Ecosystem is the relationship of living things to their environment. or an order of complete and comprehensive unity that occurs between environmental elements that influence each other. Recently biodiversity and global ecosystems have decreased in quality. This is due to three things, namely climate change, extreme weather and human activities. One of the ecosystem studies mapped more than 1000 locations with tropical forest and coral reef ecosystems that have been affected by climate extremes such as hurricanes, floods, droughts and fires.

Tropical forests and coral reefs are critical to global biodiversity, so it is very worrying that they are increasingly being affected by climate disturbances and human activities. There are many local threats by human activities to tropical forests and coral reefs such as deforestation, overfishing, and pollution, which reduce biodiversity and ecosystem functions.

In addition, climate change is causing more intense storms and ocean waves. Such extreme events can reduce live coral reef cover and cause long-term changes to both the corals themselves and the fish community, exacerbated by local threats from human activities. The marine ecosystems, species on land are also experiencing extinction. In the last decade, two mammal species have become extinct, namely bats and mice.

IUCN records there are more than 200 species of mammals that are threatened with extinction. In some cases, such as the Sumatran rhino or vaquita (a dolphin native to the Gulf of California) only a few individuals remain. Its very sad because what happens to mammals, also applies to almost all other animal groups such as reptiles, amphibians, fish and insects.

Habitat loss—driven by human expansion for residential, agricultural or livestock development—is the greatest threat to the species, followed by poaching and illegal fishing. Although the habitat has not been completely destroyed, it has changed so much that it is difficult for animals to adapt. Heavy equipment felling trees, breaking up migration corridors; pollution makes rivers toxic; pesticides kill indiscriminately. Global threats such as illegal trade which eventually spread diseases and invasive species from one place to another. Climate change also affects every species on Earth—starting with the animals that live in cold or Arctic regions. Some of these threats indirectly make it difficult for biodiversity to survive, most can adapt but the rest will disappear.

Each of us plays a role in maintaining the biodiversity on Earth so that its number does not decrease. because most people depend on the environment for food and income. So all living things must work together to prevent the destruction of nature. starting from small things from the environment where we live, such as not littering in rivers, forestation, not throwing factory waste in the sea, terracing and others. And of these things make humans aware that nature is the most important home for living things in the world.