Wildlife populations worldwide have plummeted by more than 70% over the last 50 years, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).
The alarming decline was revealed in WWF’s Living Planet Report, and is attributed largely to human activities, including deforestation, overexploitation, and climate change.
Biodiversity Hotspots Are At Risk
In biodiversity hotspots such as Latin America and the Caribbean, populations have decreased by as much as 95%, the report said.
Another biodiversity hub, the Amazon rainforest is reaching a dangerous “tipping point” as irreversible damage has already been done to the ecosystem.
The report also observed that the world leaders who can reduce the world’s declining biodiversity have failed to do so in recent years.
Amazon Forest is Changing
Meanwhile, the Amazon faces the risk of transforming from a carbon sink into a carbon source due to deforestation and human activity in the region.
The giant forest had previously been a carbon sink, absorbing the emissions driving the climate crisis, but is now causing its acceleration due to climate change.
