In Earth's 5.5 billion year history, there have been five major "mass extinctions" recorded in the fossil record, the most recent of which, 65 million years ago, killed the last of the true dinosaurs. Scholars believe that we are currently experiencing extinction rates rivaling or exceeding the rates of the prehistoric mass extinctions. Although 99.9% of all animals that once lived on Earth are now extinct, the mass destruction attributable to one species (our own) is apparently unique in the earth's history.

Biodiversity losses can be attributed to the resource demands of our rapidly growing human population. In modern times, the human population has increased from about 1 billion in 1900 to almost 6 billion today. Like other living beings, we use natural resources to survive, but we are far more resourceful and destructive to other life-forms than any species previously known. As the world's human population increases, all the organisms on Earth (including ourselves) must share the same limited resources (food, water, space). Yet there is less and less natural habitat remaining as land is developed for human habitation and activities.

This web site was developed by the New York State Biodiversity Project
and is maintained by the New York State Biodiversity Research Institute