The Holocene extinction, popularly called the 6^th Mass extinction, is an ongoing extinction event of species and biodiversity during the present Anthropocene epoch due to human activities.

Problems of Extinction

Evolution & extinction are intertwined. The Global Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (2019) by IPBES shows that the current rate & scale of extinction is unprecedented, being caused majorly by humans. It says, 1 million animal & plant species face extinction and will be extinct within decades. About 40% of amphibian species are threatened with extinction. Since 1900, number of native species in most habitats have declined by 20%. Another study suggests, the Earth has already lost between 7.5 – 13% of its 2 million known species – a staggering 150,000 – 260,000 species. The WWF’s Living Planet Report 2020 says that Asia Pacific region lost 45% of its vertebrate species in 4.5 decades, while the global average loss is 68%. The loss of vertebrates is highest in Caribbean & Latin America (94%), followed by Africa (65%).

For India, the loss can be higher than the global average with 12% wild animals, 19% amphibians, and 3% birds lost over the past 5 decades. Of about 0.1 million animal species recorded in the country, about 6800 are vertebrates, of which more than 550 species fall in critically endangered, endangered and vulnerable categories, according to ZSI.

Causes

Living Planet Report 2020 points to 5 major reasons behind biodiversity loss across planet – (a) changes in land & sea use ; (b) overexploitation of species; (c) invasive species & diseases ; (d) pollution and (e) climate change.

Asia-Pacific, including India, is experiencing species loss at a rate higher than the global average with habitat degradation being the biggest trigger, followed by species overexploitation, invasive species & diseases. The role of pollution & climate change is higher at 16%.

Thus, large-scale species extinction is a grave threat to the planet’s biodiversity. Interdependence of intertwining species is what holds the existing system together. Each has a definite ecosystem service (ecological niche) of its own. If one fails, the entire rhythm falls disrupted. So, it is pertinent that expedient restrictive measures must be taken to curb destructive anthropogenic activities & preserve species diversity, if we are to pass a healthier planet to our coming generations.

Impact

• Species do not exist in isolation; they are interconnected. 
  • A single species interacts with many other species in specific ways that produce benefits to people, like clean air, clean water, and healthy soils for efficient food production. 
  • When one species goes extinct in an ecosystem or its population numbers decline so significantly that it cannot sustain its important function, other species are affected, impacting the way the ecosystem functions and the benefits it provides. 
  • Serious declines in populations of species are an indicator that the ecosystem is breaking down, warning of a larger systems failure.
• Currently, the species extinction rate is estimated between 1,000 and 10,000 times higher than natural extinction rates—the rate of species extinctions that would occur if we humans were not around. 
  • While extinctions are a normal and expected part of the evolutionary process, the current rates of species population decline and species extinction are high enough to threaten important ecological functions that support human life on Earth, such as a stable climate, predictable regional precipitation patterns, and productive farmland and fisheries.
• It also exacerbates the challenges associated with food production that stress species, while creating conditions that make their habitats inhospitable.
•  Increased droughts and floods have made it more difficult to maintain crops and produce sufficient food in some regions. 
  • The intertwined relationships among the food system, climate change, and biodiversity loss are placing immense pressure on our planet.

Steps to be taken to prevent the mass extinctions

• Humans can be the driving force: The world is awash with scientists, conservationists and environmentalists working in the laboratory, in conservation areas and in political battlegrounds to protect endangered species.
• Legislation: From tackling global pollution emissions in the 2016 Paris Agreement to the U.K.''s Global Resource Initiative that combats deforestation, legislation will always be at the forefront of the fight against mass extinction.
  • We can ramp up our commitments to cutting carbon emissions under the Paris Agreement and limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
• Regulating wildlife markets: In the wake of the current pandemic, wildlife markets have been thrust into the spotlight as not only being environmentally irresponsible, but potentially dangerous to human health through zoonotic diseases that jump from animals to humans such as COVID-19. These markets, trading live exotic animals or products derived from them, are found throughout the world.
• Monitoring species population: One of the best ways to help prevent species from becoming extinct is to monitor their populations and identify any problems before it''s too late to help. Currently camera traps and surveys conducted on foot or from aircraft are the main method of data collection.
• Saved by cloning: Another potential solution to combat extinction could be to clone species. In 2021, scientists revealed they had successfully cloned a black-footed ferret from an animal that had died more than 30 years ago.
  • Native to North America, these small mammals were thought to be extinct until a small colony was found in the early 1980s, which were entered into a breeding program and reintroduced around the United States. 

• 30X30. Our leaders can support the America the Beautiful initiative to conserve 30% of US lands and waters by 2030.
• UN Biodiversity Summit. US leadership can play a critical role beside 195 other countries and agree to new ambitious global goals on biodiversity and how they can be financed and implemented.
• Grassroots action. While the federal government can set high-level policies to conserve nature, businesses, communities, and individuals have a powerful role to play in shifting corporate behaviour with their consumer choices and demanding accountability from political leaders.