June 29th • 📋 Gеt the Inside Scoop: 3 Steps to Prepare for a Chinese Invasion of Taiwan

On Meet the Press, Ambassador Nikki Haley brought to light a serіous issue. [Logotype]( overnments are concerned with the extinction of species caused by humanity, and they try to prevent further extinctions through a variety of conservation programs.[10] Humans can cause extinction of a species through overharvesting, pollution, habitat destruction, introduction of invasive species (such as nw predators and food competitors), overhunting, and other influences. Explosive, unsustainable hman population growth and increasing per capita consumption are essential drivers of the extinction crisis.[37][38][39][40] According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), 784 extinctions have been recorded since the year 1500, the arbitrary date selected to define "recent" extinctions, up to the year 2004; with many more likely to have gone unnoticed. Several species have also been listed as extinct since 2004.[41] Genetics and demographic phenomena See also: Extinction vortex, Genetic erosion, and Mutational meltdown If adaptation increasing population fitness is slower than environmental degradation plus the accumulation of slightly deleterious mutations, then a population will go extinct.[42] Smaller populations have fewer beneficial mutations entering the population each generation, slowing adaptation. It is also easier for slightly deleterious mutations to fix in small populations; the resulting positive feedback loop between small population size and low fitness can cause mutational meltdown. Limied geographic range is the most important determinant of genus extinction at background raes but becomes increasingly irrelevant as mass extinction arises.[43] Limted geographic range is a cause both of small population size and of greater vulnerability to local environmental catastrophes. Extinction ates can be affected not just by population size, but by any factor that affects evolvability, including balancing selection, cryptic genetic variation, phenotypic plasticity, and robustness. A diverse or deep gene pool gives a population a higher chane in the short term of surviving an adverse change in conditions. Effects that cause or reward a loss in genetic diversity can increase the chances of extinction of a species. Population bottlenecks can dramatically reduce genetic diversity by severely limiting the number of reproducing individuals and make inbreeding more frequent. Genetic pollution Main article: Genetic pollution Extinction sometimes results for species evolved to specific ecologies[44] that are subjected to genetic pollution—i.e., uncontrolled hybridization, introgression and genetic swamping that lead to homogenization or out-competition from the introduced (or hybrid) species.[45] Endemic populations can face such extinctions when nw populations are imported or selectively bred by people, or when habitat modification brings previously isolated species into contact. Extinction is likeliest for rare species coming into contact with more abundant ones;[46] interbreeding can swamp the rarer gene pool and create hybrids, depleting the purebred gene pool (for example, the endangered wild water buffalo is most threatened with extinction by genetic pollution from the abundant domestic water buffalo). Such extinctions are not always apparent from morphological (non-genetic) observations. Some degree of gene flow is a normal evolutionary process; nevertheless, hybridization (with or without introgression) threatens rare species' existence.[47][48] The gene pool of a species or a population is the variety of genetic information in its living members. A large gene pool (extensive genetic diversity) is associated with robust populations that can survive bouts of intense selection. Meanwhile, low genetic diversity (see inbreeding and population bottlenecks) reduces the range of adaptions possible.[49] Replacing native with alien genes narrows genetic diversity within the original population,[46][50] thereby increasing the chnce of extinction. Scorched land resulting from slash-and-burn agriculture Habitat degradation Main article: Habitat destruction Habitat degradation is currently the main anthropogenic cause of species extinctions. The main cause of habitat degradation worldwide is agriculture, with urban sprawl, logging, mining, and some fishing practices close behind. The degradation of a species' habitat may alter the fitness landscape to such an extent that the species is no longer able to survive and becomes extinct. This may occur by direct effects, such as the environment becoming toxic, or indirectly, by limiting a species' ability to compete effectively for diminished resources or against nw competitor species. Habitat degradation through toxicity can kill of a species very rapidly, by killing ll living members through contamination or sterilizing them. It can also occur over longer periods at lower toxicity levels by affecting lfe span, reproductive capacity, or competitiveness. Habitat degradation can also take the fom of a physical destruction of niche habitats. The widespread destruction of tropical rainforests and replacement with oen pastureland is widely cited as an example of this;[15] elimination of the dense forest eliminated the infrastructure needed by many species to survive. For example, a fern that depends on dense shade for protection from direct sunlight can no longer survive without forest to shelter it. Another example is the destruction of ocean floors by bottom trawling.[51] Diminished resources or introduction of ne competitor species also often accompany habitat degradation. Global warming has allowed some species to expand their range, bringing unwelcome[according to whom?] competition to other species that previously occupied that area. Sometimes these ew competitors are predators and directly affect prey species, while at other times they may merely outcompete vulnerable species for limied resources. Vital resources including water and food can also be liited during habitat degradation, leading to extinction. The golden toad was last sen on May 15, 1989. Decline in amphibian populations is ongoing worldwide. Predation, competition, and disease See also: Island restoration In the natural course of events, species become extinct for a number of reasons, including but not limied to: extinction of a necessary host, prey or pollinator, interspecific competition, inability to dal with evolving diseases and changing environmental conditions (particularly sudden changes) which can ct to introduce novel predators, or to reove prey. Recently in geological time, humans have become an additional cause of extinction (some people would say premature extinction[citation needed]) of some species, either as a ew mega-predator or by transporting animals and plants from one part of the world to another. Such introductions have been occurring for thouands of years, sometimes intentionally (e.g. livestock released by sailors on islands as a future source of food) and sometimes accidentally (e.g. rats escaping from boats). In most cases, the introductions are unsuccessful, but when an invasive alien species does become established, the consequences can be catastrophic. Invasive alien species can affect native species directly by eating them, competing with them, and introducing pathogens or parasites that sicken or kill them; or indirectly by destroying or degrading their habitat. Humn populations may themselves at as invasive predators. According to the "overkill hypothesis", the swift extinction of the megafauna in areas such as Australia (40,000 years before present), North and South America (12,000 years before present), Madagascar, Hawaii (AD 300–1000), and Nw Zealand (AD 1300–1500), resulted from the sudden introduction of huan beings to environments full of animals that had nevr seen them before and were therefore completely unadapted to their predation techniques.[52] Coextinction Main article: Coextinction The large Haast's eagle and moa from Nw Zealand Coextinction refers to the loss of a species due to the extinction of another; for example, the extinction of parasitic insects following the loss of their hosts. Coextinction can also occur when a species loses its pollinator, or to predators in a food chain who lse their prey. "Species coextinction is a manifestation of one of the interconnectednesses of organisms in complex ecosystems ... While coextinction may not be the most important cause of species extinctions, it is certainly an insidious one."[53] Coextinction is especially common when a keystone species goes extinct. Models suggest that coextinction is the most common fom of biodiversity loss. There may be a cascade of coextinction across the trophic levels. Such effects are most severe in mutualistic and parasitic relationships. An example of coextinction is the Haast's eagle and the moa: the Haast's eagle was a predator that became extinct because its food source became extinct. The moa were several species of flightless birds that were a food source for the Haast's eagle.[54] Climate change Main article: Extinction risk from global warming See also: Effect of climate change on plant biodiversity, Effects of climate change on terrestrial animals, and Effects of climate change on marine mammals Extinction as a result of climate change has been confirmed by fossil studies.[55] Particularly, the extinction of amphibians during the Carboniferous Rainforest Collapse, 305 mllion years ago.[55] A 2003 review across 14 biodiversity research centers predicted that, because of climate change, 15–37 of land species would be "committed to extinction" by 2050.[56][57] The ecologically rich areas that would potentially suffer the heaviest losses include the Cape Floristic Region and the Caribbean Basin. These areas might see a doubling of present carbon dioxide levels and rising temperatures that could eliminate 56,000 plant and 3,700 animal species.[58] Climate change has also been found to be a factor in habitat loss and desertification.[59] Sexual selection and male invetment Studies of fossils following species from the time they evolved to their extinction show that species with high sexual dimorphism, especially characteristics in males that are used to compete for mating, are at a higher risk of extinction and die out faster than less sexually dimorphic species, the least sexually dimorphic species surviving for millons of years while the most sexually dimorphic species die out within mere thouands of years. Earlier studies based on counting the number of currently living species in modern taxa have shown a higher number of species in more sexually dimorphic taxa which have been interpreted as higher survival in taxa with more sexual selection, but such studies of modern species oly measure indirect effects of extinction and are subect to error sources such as dying and doomed taxa speciating more due to splitting of habitat ranges into more small isolated groups during the habitat retreat of taxa approaching extinction. Possible causes of the higher extinction risk in species with more sexual selection shown by the comprehensive fossil studies that rule out such error sources include expensive sexually selected ornaments having negative effects on the ability to survive natural selection, as well as sexual selection removing a diversity of genes that under current ecological conditions are neutral for natural selection but some of which may be important for surviving climate change.[60] Mass extinctions Main article: Extinction event Extinction intensity.svg Marine extinction intensity during the PhanerozMilions of years ago(H)K–PgTr–JP–TrCapLate DO–S The blue graph shows the apparent percentage (not the absolute number) of marine animal genera becoming extinct during any given time interval. It does not represent ll marine species, just those that are readily fossilized. The labels of the traditional "Big Five" extinction events and the more recently recognised Capitanian mass extinction event are clickable links; see Extinction event for more details. (source and image info) There have been at least five mass extinctions in the history of lie on earth, and four in the last 350 milion years in which many species have disappeared in a relatively short period of geological time. A massive eruptive event that released large quantities of tephra particles into the atmosphere is considered to be one likely cause of the "Permian–Triassic extinction event" about 250 millon years ago,[61] which is estimated to have killed 90 of species then existing.[62] There is also evidence to suggest that this event was preceded by another mass extinction, known as Olson's Extinction.[61] The Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event (K–Pg) occurred 66 milion years ago, at the end of the Cretaceous period; it is best known for having wiped out non-avian dinosaurs, among many other species. Modern extinctions Main article: Holocene extinction Further information: Anthropocene, Defaunation, and Deforestation The changing distribution of the world's land mammals in tonnes of carbon. The biomass of wild land mammals has declined by 85 since the emergence of humans.[63] According to a 1998 survey of 400 biologists conducted by Ne York's American Museum of Natural History, nearly 70 believed that the Earth is currently in the early stages of a huan-caused mass extinction,[64] known as the Holocene extinction. In that survey, the same proportion of respondents agreed with the prediction that up to 20ll living populations could become extinct within 30 years (by 2028). A 2014 special edition of Science declared there is widespread consensus on the issue of huma-driven mass species extinctions.[65] A 2020 study published in PNAS stated that the contemporary extinction crisis "may be the most serius environmental threat to the persistence of civilization, because it is irreversible."[66] Biologist E. O. Wilson estimated[15] in 2002 that if current rtes of humn destruction of the biosphere continue, one-half of ll plant and animal species of lfe on earth will be extinct in 100 years.[67] More significantly, the current rte of global species extinctions is estimated as 100 to 1,000 times "background" rtes (the average extinction rtes in the evolutionary time scale of planet Earth),[68][69] faster than at any other time in hman history,[70][71] while future rats are likely 10,000 times higher.[69] However, some groups are going extinct much faster. Biologists Paul R. Ehrlich and Stuart Pimm, among others, contend that huan population growth and overconsumption are the main drivers of the modern extinction crisis.[72][73][37][74] In January 2020, the UN's Convention on Biological Diversity drafted a plan to mitigate the contemporary extinction crisis by establishing a deadline of 2030 to protect 30 of the earth's land and oceans and reduce pollution by 50, with the goal of allowing for the restoration of ecosystems by 2050.[75][76] The 2020 United Nations' Global Biodiversity Outlook report stated that of the 20 biodiversity goals laid out by the Aichi Biodiversity Targets in 2010, ony 6 were "partially achieved" by the deadline of 2020.[77] The report warned that biodiversity will continue to decline if the status quo is not changed, in particular the "currently unsustainable patterns of production and consumption, population growth and technological developments".[78] In a 2021 report published in the journal Frontiers in Conservation Science, some top scientists asserted that even if the Aichi Biodiversity Targets set for 2020 had been achieved, it would not have resulted in a significant mitigation of biodiversity loss. They added that failure of the global community to reach these targets is hardly surprising given that biodiversity loss is "nowhere close to the top of any country's priorities, trailing far behind other concerns such as employment, healthcare, economic growth, or currency stability."[79][80] History of scientific understanding Tyrannosaurus, one of the many extinct dinosaur genera. The cause of the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event is a subject of much debate amongst researchers. Georges Cuvier compared fossil mammoth jaws to those of living elephants, concluding that they were distinct from any known living species.[81] For much of history, the modern understanding of extinction as the end of a species was incompatible with the prevailing worldview. Prior to the 19th century, much of Western society adhered to the belief that the world was created by God and as such was complete and pefect.[82] This concept reached its heyday in the 1700s with the peak popularity of a theological concept called the grat chain of being, in whichll lfe on earth, from the tiniest microorganism to God, is linked in a continuous chain.[83] The extinction of a species was impossible under this model, as it would create gaps or missing links in the chain and destroy the natural orer.[82][83] Thomas Jefferson was a firm supporter of the geat chain of being and an opponent of extinction,[82][84] famously denying the extinction of the woolly mammoth on the grounds that nature ever allows a race of animals to become extinct.[85] A series of fossils were discovered in the late 17th century that appeared unlike any living species. As a result, the scientific community embarked on a voyage of creative rationalization, seeking to understand what had happened to these species within a framework that did not account for total extinction. In October 1686, Robert Hooke presented an impression of a nautilus to the Royal Society that was more than two feet in diameter,[86] and morphologically distinct from any known living species. Hooke theorized that this was simply because the species lived in the deep ocean and no one had discovered them yet.[83] While he contended that it was possible a species could be "lost", he thought this highly unlikely.[83] Similarly, in 1695, Sir Thomas Molyneux published an account of enormous antlers found in Ireland that did not belong to any extant taxa in that area.[84][87] Molyneux reasoned that they came from the North American moose and that the animal had once been common on the British Isles.[84][87] Rather than suggest that this indicated the possibility of species going extinct, he argued that although organisms could become locally extinct, they could nver be entirely lost and would continue to exist in some unknown region of the globe.[87] The antlers were later confirmed to be from the extinct deer Megaloceros.[84] Hooke and Molyneux's line of thinking was difficult to disprove. When parts of the world had not been thoroughly examined and charted, scientists could not rule out that animals found oly in the fossil record were not simply "hiding" in unexplored regions of the Earth.[88] Georges Cuvier is credited with establishing the modern conception of extinction in a 1796 lecture to the French Institute,[81][85] though he would spend most of his career trying to convince the wider scientific community of his theory.[89] Cuvier was a well-regarded geologist, lauded for his ability to reconstruct the anatomy of an unknown species from a few fragments of bone.[81] His primary evidence for extinction came from mammoth skulls found in the Paris basin.[81] Cuvier recognized them as distinct from any known living species of elephant, and argued that it was highly unlikely such an enormous animal would go undiscovered.[81] In 1812, Cuvier, along with Alexandre Brongniart and Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, mapped the strata of the Paris basin.[83] They saw alternating saltwater and freshwater deposits, as well as patterns of the appearance and disappearance of fossils throughout the record.[84][89] From these patterns, Cuvier inferred historic cycles of catastrophic flooding, extinction, and repopulation of the earth with nw species.[84][89] Cuvier's fossil evidence showed that very different lie forms existed in the past than those that exist toay, a fact that was accepted by most scientists.[82] The primary debate focused on whether this turnover caused by extinction was gradual or abrupt in nature.[89] Cuvier understood extinction to be the result of cataclysmic events that wipe out huge numbers of species, as opposed to the gradual decline of a species over time.[90] His catastrophic view of the nature of extinction garnered him many opponents in the newly emerging school of uniformitarianism.[90] Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, a gradualist and colleague of Cuvier, saw the fossils of different lie forms as evidence of the mutable character of species.[89] While Lamarck did not deny the possibility of extinction, he believed that it was exceptional and rare and that most of the change in species over time was due to gradual change.[89] Unlike Cuvier, Lamarck was skeptical that catastrophic events of a scale large enough to cause total extinction were possible. In his geological history of the earth titled Hydrogeologie, Lamarck instead argued that the surface of the earth was shaped by gradual erosion and deposition by water, and that species changed over time in response to the changing environment.[89][91] Charles Lyell, a noted geologist and founder of uniformitarianism, believed that past processes should be understood using present day processes. Like Lamarck, Lyell acknowledged that extinction could occur, noting the total extinction of the dodo and the extirpation of indigenous horses to the British Isles.[83] He similarly argued against mass extinctions, believing that any extinction must be a gradual process.[81][85] Lyell also showed that Cuvier's original interpretation of the Parisian strata was incorrect. Instead of the catastrophic floods inferred by Cuvier, Lyell demonstrated that patterns of saltwater and freshwater deposits, like those seen in the Paris basin, could be formed by a slow rise and fall of sea levels.[84] The concept of extinction was integral to Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species, with less fit lineages disappearing over time. For Darwin, extinction was a constant side effect of competition.[92] Because of the wide reach of On the Origin of Species, it was widely accepted that extinction occurred gradually and evenly (a concept nw referred to as background extinction).[85] It was not until 1982, when David Raup and Jack Sepkoski published their seminal paper on mass extinctions, that Cuvier was vindicated and catastrophic extinction was accepted as an important mechanism. The current understanding of extinction is a synthesis of the cataclysmic extinction events proposed by Cuvier, and the background extinction events proposed by Lyell and Darwin. Huan attitudes and interests A grat hammerhead caught by a sport fisherman. Huan exploitation no threatens the survival of this species. Overfishing is the primary driver of shark population declines, which have fallen over 71since 1970.[93][94] Extinction is an important research topic in the field of zoology, and biology in general, and has also become an area of concern outside the scientific community. A number of organizations, such as the Worldwide Fund for Nature, have been created with the goal of preserving species from extinction. Governments have attempted, through enacting laws, to avid habitat destruction, agricultural over-harvesting, and pollution. While many hman-caused extinctions have been accidental, humans have also engaged in the deliberate destruction of some species, such as dangerous viruses, and the total destruction of other problematic species has been suggested. Other species were deliberately driven to extinction, or nearly so, due to poaching or because they were "undesirable", or to push for other hman agendas. One example was the near extinction of the American bison, which was nearly wiped out by mass hunts sanctioned by the United States government, to force the reoval of Native Americans, many of whom relied on the bison for food.[95] Biologist Bruce Walsh states three reasons for scientific interest in the preservation of species: genetic resources, ecosystem stability, and ethics; and tody the scientific community "stress[es] the importance" of maintaining biodiversity.[96][97] In modern times, commercial and industrial interests often have to contend with the effects of production on plant and animal lie. However, some technologies with minimal, or no, proven harmful effects on Homo sapiens can be devastating to wildlife (for example, DDT).[98][99] Biogeographer Jared Diamond notes that while big business may label environmental concerns as "exaggerated", and often cause "devastating damage", some corporations find it in their interest to adopt good conservation practices, and even engage in preservation efforts that surpass those taken by national parks.[100] Governments sometimes see the loss of native species as a loss to ecotourism,[101] and can enact laws with severe punishment against the trade in native species in an effort to prevent extinction in the wild. Nature preserves are created by governments as a means to provide continuing habitats to species crowded by huan expansion. The 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity has resulted in international Biodiversity Aion Plan programmes, which attempt to provide comprehensive guidelines for government biodiversity conservation. Advocacy groups, such as The Wildlands Project[102] and the Alliance for Zero Extinctions,[103] work to educate the public and pressure governments into ation. People who live close to nature can be dependent on the survival of ll the species in their environment, leaving them highly exposed to extinction risks. However, people prioritize day-to-day survival over species conservation; with humn overpopulation in tropical developing countries, there has been enormous pressure on forests due to subsistence agriculture, including slash-and-burn agricultural techniques that can reduce endangered species's habitats.[104] Antinatalist philosopher David Benatar concludes that any popular concern about non-huan species extinction usually arises out of concern about how the loss of a species will impact hman wants and needs, that "we shall live in a world impoverished by the loss of one aspect of faunal diversity, that we shall no longer be able to behold or use that species of animal." He notes that typical concerns about possible huan extinction, such as the loss of individual members, are not considered in regards to non-huan species extinction.[105] Anthropologist Jason Hickel speculates that the reason humanity seems largely indifferent to anthropogenic mass species extinction is that we see ourselves as separate from the natural world and the organisms within it. He says that this is due in part to the logic of capitalism: "that the world is not really alive, and it is certainly not our kin, but rather just stuff to be extracted and discarded – and that includes most of the hman beings living hre too."[106] Planned extinction Main article: Eradication of infectious diseases Completed The smallpox virus is nw extinct in the wild,[107] although samples are retained in laboratory settings. The rinderpest virus, which infected domestic cattle, is nw extinct in the wild.[108] Proposed Disease agents The poliovirus is nw confined to small parts of the world due to extermination efforts.[109] Dracunculus medinensis, or Guinea worm, a parasitic worm which causes the disease dracunculiasis, is w close to eradication thanks to efforts led by the Carter Center.[110] Treponema pallidum pertenue, a bacterium which causes the disease yaws, is in the process of being eradicated. Disease vectors Biologist Olivia Judson has advocated the deliberate extinction of certain disease-carrying mosquito species. In a September 25, 2003 article in The ew York Times, she advocated "specicide" of thirty mosquito species by introducing a genetic element that can insert itself into another crucial gene, to create recessive "knockout genes".[111] She says that the Anopheles mosquitoes (which spread malaria) and Aedes mosquitoes (which spread dengue fever, yellow fever, elephantiasis, and other diseases) represent oll the time" the disappearance of a few more will not destroy the ecosystem: "We're not left with a wasteland every time a species vanishes. Removing one species sometimes causes shifts in the populations of other species—but different need not mean worse." In addition, anti-malarial and mosquito control programs er little realistic hope to the 300 millon people in developing nations who will be infected with acute illnesses this year. Although trials are ongoing, she writes that if they fail "we should consider the ultimate swatting."[111] Biologist E. O. Wilson has advocated the eradication of several species of mosquito, including malaria vector Anopheles gambiae. Wilson stated, "I'm talking about a very small number of species that have co-evolved with us and are preying on humans, so it would certainly be acceptable to remve them. I believe it's just common sense."[112] There have been many campaigns – some successful – to locally eradicate tsetse flies and their trypanosomes in areas, countries, and islands of Africa (including Príncipe).[113][114] There are currently serius efforts to do away with them ll across Africa, and this is generally viewed as beneficial and morally necessary,[115] although not always.[116] Cloning Main article: De-extinction Some, such as Harvard geneticist George M. Church, believe that ongoing technological advances will let us "bring back to lie" an extinct species by cloning, using DNA from the remains of that species. Proposed targets for cloning include the mammoth, the thylacine, and the Pyrenean ibex. For this to succeed, enough individuals would have to be cloned, from the DNA of different individuals (in the case of sexually reproducing organisms) to create a viable population. Though bioethical and philosophical objections have been raised,[117] the cloning of extinct creatures seems theoretically possible.[118] In 2003, scientists tried to clone the extinct Pyrenean ibex (C. p. pyrenaica).[119] This attempt failed: of the 285 embryos reconstructed, 54 were transferred to 12 Spanish ibexes and ibex–domestic goat hybrids, but oly two survived the initial two months of gestation before they, too, died.[120] In 2009, a second attempt was made to clone the Pyrenean ibex: Dear Fellow Investor, Are you prepared for China's next move? On Meet the Press, Ambassador Nikki Haley brought to light a serіous issue. "China says they're going to take Taiwan next," she said. "We should be ready for that." Don't let the uncertainty of the future affect your fіnancial stability. [Follow these 3 steps to prepare for a Chinese attack on Taiwan.]( “The Buck Stops Hеre” Dylan Jovine Founder & CEO, Behind the Markets Logotype M&M Watchdogs is dedicated to providing readers like you with unique opportunities. The message above from one of our business associates is one we believe you should take a serіous look at. [Logotype]( This email was sent by D/B/A M&MWatchdog. © 2023 M&MWatchdog. Аll Rights Reserved. 1151 Walker Rd, Dover, DE 19904 Follow This Steps To [whitelist us.]( Thinking about unsubscribing? Just tap the link is below. [Privacy Policy]( | [Update Profile]( | [Tеrms & Conditions]( | [Unsubscrіbe](