Two thirds of world's wildlife could be gone by 2020: WFF

PanARMENIAN.Net - More than two thirds of the world's wildlife could be gone by the end of the decade if action isn't taken soon, a new report from the World Wildlife Fund revealed on Thursday, October 27, according to CNN.

Since 1970, there has already been a 58% overall decline in the numbers of fish, mammals, birds and reptiles worldwide, according to the WWF's latest bi-annual Living Planet Index.

If accurate, that means wildlife across the globe is vanishing at a rate of 2% a year. "This is definitely human impact, we're in the sixth mass extinction. There's only been five before this and we're definitely in the sixth," WWF conservation scientist Martin Taylor told CNN.

"It's because we're using so much of the planet and we're destroying so much of (these animals') habitat."

In the report, the rapid extinction is blamed on habitat loss, over exploitation of resources, pollution and climate change.

Wetlands, lakes and rivers were the worst hit since 1970, seeing an 81% decrease in their species population -- about 4% a year.