Defaunation (Biodiversity 🦗)

Defaunation is the global, local, or functional extinction of animal populations or species from ecological communities. The growth of the human population, combined with advances in harvesting technologies, has led to more intense and efficient exploitation of the environment. This has resulted in the depletion of large vertebrates from ecological communiti...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defaunation

#Defaunation #Ecology #Biodiversity #EnvironmentalConservation

Deepwater #sharks and #rays are among the most sensitive #marine vertebrates to #overexploitation. 33% of threatened deepwater sharks are targeted, and half the species targeted for the international liver-oil trade are threatened with #extinction. Steep population declines can't be reversed due to long generation lengths.
Immediate #trade and #fishing #regulations are required to prevent irreversible #defaunation and promote recovery of this threatened #megafauna group

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.ade9121

It cannot be emphasized enough: we urgently need to make major progress in stopping and reversing the biodiversity crisis. #COP15 is kicking off today - we need ambitious goals and commitment towards implementing them.

Below pictures from the #Chiquitania dry forest in Bolivia, a global hotspot of #deforestation and #defaunation

Nice illustrations comparing the size of modern and extinct animals https://mymodernmet.com/prehistoric-fauna-roman-uchytel/

By Ukrainian artists, by the way.

#defaunation #paleoart #extinction