At least 97 percent of Earth’s land may no longer be ecologically intact and undisturbed by human presence. The damning statistic comes from a new study published in the journal Frontiers in Forests and Global Change this week.
The term ecologically intact has no strict definition, but it generally refers to areas of land that remain undisturbed by human activity and are still as abundant in animal life now as they were before industrialization. For this new study, an international team of scientists compared the natural ranges of thousands of mammal species today compared to the year 1500 CE, a time before the Industrial Revolution.
Habitat and species loss leaves just 3% of world’s land ecosystems intact, study suggests
Just under 3% of the world’s land remains ecologically intact, with undisturbed habitat and minimal loss of its original animal species, a new study suggests.
The research, published Thursday in the journal Frontiers in Forests and Global Change, combined maps showing human damage to habitat with maps showing where animals have disappeared from their original ranges or are too low in number to maintain a healthy ecosystem to reach its conclusions.
The study paints a gloomier picture than previous analyses of wilderness areas, focused on human impact on habitat, which estimated that 20 to 40% of the earth’s terrestrial surface has been little affected by humans.
Invasive species have also had an effect on habitats, particularly in Australia.
Scientists previously believed between 20 and 40 percent of the Earth’s surface was less affected by humans. But recent research found it only appeared that way from above in satellite images.
A new study found that just 3 percent of the world s land is ecologically intact, meaning most of the Earth s wilderness is dwindling and damaged as human activity expands into the natural world, The Guardian reported.
The surviving fragments of the world, untouched by man, include parts of the Amazon and Congo tropical forests, east Siberian and northern Canadian forests and tundra, and the Sahara.
Top story: wildlife could hold key to saving habitats Morning everyone. I’m Martin Farrer and these are today’s top stories. Species such as elephants and wolves should be reintroduced to help restore ecologies ravaged by human development, scientists say, after research revealed that only 3% of the world’s land habitats remain properly intact. The remaining fragments of wilderness where flora and fauna remain unspoiled are mainly in parts of.
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