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Recent calculations put the current extinction rate at between 1,000 and
10,000 times greater than it would naturally be – and it appears to
be increasing! Species are threatened in every habitat on every
continent. Current research also suggests that freshwater habitats, particularly rivers, and
oceanic islands are very severely affected by species extinction.
Tropical Asia and Australia appear to suffer particularly high
extinction rates.
The causes of the current extinction crisis all stem from unsustainable
management of the planet by humans with the major threats being destruction
of important habitats, the spread of introduced feral pests, over-harvesting
of species for economic or cultural reasons and climate change.
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