human-induced extinction

Many species have become extinct because of hunting and overharvesting, the conversion of wetlands and forests to croplands and urban areas, pollution, the introduction of invasive species, and other forms of human-caused destruction of their natural

…United States; it was rendered extinct by human persecution. The last captive died in the Cincinnati Zoological Garden in 1914, but the last generally accepted observation in the wild was a flock seen in Florida in 1920, although it has been claimed that they existed in South Carolina until 1938.…

…the most well-known examples of human-induced extinction and also serves as a symbol of obsolescence with respect to human technological progress.

… are at risk because of human activities alone. By the early 21st century it could be said that human beings (Homo sapiens) are the greatest threat to biodiversity and are the major drivers of biodiversity loss. The principal threats to species in the wild are:

…and some that have become extinct as a result of human activities are well known. Elephant birds (Aepyornis, Mullerornis, and Vorombe) were massive birds that lived on the island of Madagascar. Carbon dating suggests that the longest-surviving elephant bird species, A.

migratorius), migratory bird hunted to extinction by humans. Billions of these birds inhabited eastern North America in the early 1800s; migrating flocks darkened the skies for days. As settlers pressed westward, however, passenger pigeons were slaughtered by the millions yearly and shipped by railway carloads for sale in…

The current rate of human-induced extinctions is estimated to be between 100 and 1,000 times greater than past natural (background) rates. This situation is largely due to the exponential growth in the number of humans on Earth and their activities. Population has increased from about 1.3 billion people in…

…Earth’s ultimate future is the ongoing mass extinction of the rest of life. We share the planet with a roughly estimated 10 million other species. They are being extinguished at a rate between 100 and 1,000 times faster than before the arrival of our own species. The effect could be…