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TheSixthWaveOfExtinctionScienceDaily

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Source: Informnauka(Informscience)Agency
Summary: HistoryoflifeontheEarthwitnessedfivemassextinctionsofspecies
asaresultofnaturalcalamities.Currently,biologistsaretalkingmore
andmoreoftenaboutthesixthwaveofextinctionprovokedinmany
respectsbyhumanbeings.

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istoryoflifeontheEarthwitnessedfivemassextinctionsofspecies
asaresultofnaturalcalamities.Currently,biologistsaretalkingmore
andmoreoftenaboutthesixthwaveofextinctionprovokedinmany
respectsbyhumanbeings.ThisopinionissharedbyaRussianseafauna
diversityspecialistA.V.Adrianov(InstituteofMaritimeBiology,FarEast
Branch,RussianAcademyofSciences).Researchinthisareahasbeen
supportedbytheFarEastBranchoftheRussianAcademyofSciences,
CRDF,MinistryofEducationandScienceoftheRussianFederation,andthe
FoundationforPromotionofRussianScienceandtheRussianFoundation
forBasicResearch.
Asoftoday,taxonomistshavealreadydescribednearly
RelatedArticles
2millionspecies,althoughinfacttheirnumbervaries,
accordingtovariousestimates,from5to100million.
Extinctionevent
But90to99percentofspecieseverexistingonthe
Impactevent
planethavealreadybecomeextinct.Theoverwhelming
majorityvanishedasaresultofthesocallednormalor
Biodiversity
backgroundextinctionduetothelimitedperiodof
Seismicwave
biologicalspeciesexistence,whichfluctuatesfrom1
Domestication
millionyearswithmammalsthrough11millionyears
withsomemarineinvertebrates.Besidesthe
PermianTriassic
backgroundextinction,thefaunaexperiencedfivemass
extinctionevent
extinctions,asaresultofwhich50to95percentof
thenexistingspeciesdisappearedwithinalimited
historicalperiod.Thefirstmassextinctionoccurred440
millionyearsago,attheendofOrdovic,asaresultoftemperaturefallandtheocean
levellowering.ThesecondwavetookplaceduringthelateDevonian,againdueto
temperaturefallandseareliction.Duringthethirdwaveofextinction,attheendof
Permian,approximately250millionyearsago,95percentofmarinespeciesand
nearly70percentofterrestrialonesdisappeared.Thecatastrophewasprobably
causedbyactivereconstructionoftheearth'scrustandchangeofclimateduring
formationofthesupercontinentPangaea.Theforthextinctionhappenedinthelate
Trias,andthefifthonethemostrenownedextictionhit65millionyearsago.
ResearchersareinclinedtobelievethattheEarthcameintocollisionwithalarge
bolideatthattime.Asaresult,seashoalssufferedfromtsunamiandacidrains,the
seabedwascoveredbyenormousamountoforganicmatter,andonly12percentof
thethenexistingspeciessurvivedonland.
Atpresent,accordingtonumerousspecialists'opinion,thesixthpleistocenewave
ofextinctioniscoming,whichhasbeeninmanyrespectsprovokedbymen.Giventhe
currentaverageextinctionrateof40speciesaday,itwouldtakeonly16thousand
yearsfortheextinctionof96percentofthecontemporarybiotaexactlyasmuchas
diedoutduringtheperiodofdisastrousPermianextinction.Themajorreasonforthe
oncomingcalamityisdestructionofplants'andanimal'secotope.Scientistshave
estimatedthatthespecieslifespanforcontemporarymammalsandbirdshas
decreasedupto10thousandyears,i.e.itbecame100to1000timesshorterthanthat
offossilforms.Ifthehabitatcontinuestobedestroyedatthesamepace,thelifespan
ofthesespecieswillsoonmakeonly200400years.Therearenosuchestimatesfor
theinvertebrates,buttheyareundoubtedlyaffectedbothbytheglobalenvironmentand
climatechange,andbydisappearanceoflocalbiotopes.
Deathreignsonlandandatsea.Thus,about1percentoftropicalrainforests
disappearsannually.Upto70plantandanimalspeciesbecomeextincteveryday,
whichmakesabout3speciesperhour.Atpresent,onetenthofcoralreefszonesof
thehighestbiologicaldiversityatshallowwaterperishesabout30morepercentwill
beruinedinthenextdecades.Coralsdieoutmainlyduetoglobalenvironmentand
climatechange,reeffishcatching,watercontaminationandwarming,hurricanes,

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/08/040816001443.htm

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Date: August23,2004

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TheSixthWaveOfExtinctionScienceDaily
destructionofsymbioticorganisms.Anyeventstakingplaceinshallowwateralso
affectsseadepths.Perhapsonly"autonomous"superorganismsofdeepwatergas
hydrothermhavenotbeentoucheduponbyanthropogenicimpactandtheywill
evidentlybeabletoescapeconsequencesoftheplanet'sglobalenvironmentand
climatechangesevenincaseofnuclearholocaust.

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Nevertheless,thesixthmassextinctionisoncoming.Thatwillbethefirstextinction
whichdidnothappedduetonaturalreasonsbutasaresultofactivityofonebiological
species,whosequantityincreasesannuallyby100millionindividuals.

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StorySource:
TheabovestoryisbasedonmaterialsprovidedbyInformnauka(Informscience)
Agency.Note:Materialsmaybeeditedforcontentandlength.

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Informnauka(Informscience)Agency."TheSixthWaveOfExtinction."
ScienceDaily.ScienceDaily,23August2004.
<www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/08/040816001443.htm>.

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