• The planet appears to be undergoing a mass extinction: the sixth time in the history of life on Earth that global fauna has experienced a major collapse in numbers.
• Historically, mass extinctions have been caused by catastrophic events like asteroid collisions. This time, human activities — including deforestation, mining, and carbon dioxide-emissions — are to blame.
• Frogs and insects are dying off at record rates, animal species are experiencing a “biological annihilation,” and invasive aliens are driving native species out.
• A report from the United Nations found that up to 1 million species are threatened with extinction.
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The phrase “mass extinction” typically conjures images of the asteroid crash that led to the twilight…