There have been several times in the past when the number of species going extinct merited the title of a great extinction, the end of the dinosaurs is probably the most famous.

But it’s happened in the past, and if we don’t find a way to stop it, it could very well happen again, and soon.

Nearly one-third of all known species of plants and animals are threatened with extinction, finds the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, IUCN, in the most recent update of its authoritative Red List of Threatened Species™ issued today.
The updated assessment shows that 17,291 species out of the 47,677 assessed species are threatened with extinction.

“The scientific evidence of a serious extinction crisis is mounting,” warns Jane Smart, director of IUCN’s Biodiversity Conservation Group.

The IUCN finds that 21 percent of all known mammals, 30 percent of all known amphibians, 12 percent of all known birds, and 28 percent of reptiles, 37 percent of freshwater fishes, 70 percent of plants, 35 percent of invertebrates assessed so far are at risk.

The thing is that this time it’s not an asteroid impact or massive volcanic eruption that’s causing the extinctions. It’s us. Which means we can do something about it, if we so choose.