How Poisoning Plants and Animals Led to Extinction

Uniting globally, scientists and conservationists hope to set global practices in place to ensure that the loss of plant and animal species is stopped. At stake is not just the stability of the environment, but the future of agriculture. In the last century, several hundred species have been lost. Next year, another 187 are on the list of species considered at risk. Among the dozen plants and animals threatened with extinction are bees, butterflies, amphibians, bats, rhinos, zebras, otters, horses, hippos, tapirs, prairie dogs, horseflies, shrimps, beetles, moths, bats, bats, and crickets. (Amphibians are seen as particularly at risk; in 1970, every tenth known species went extinct. According to the Center for Biological Diversity, that number has now dropped to one in 50.) Fewer species means less food, timber, grazing lands, and water. “Today’s agriculture is global, and it relies on millions of species of plants and animals,” says Jennifer O’Connell, a plant ecologist at the United Nations Environment Program. “For sustainable, healthy ecosystems, it’s important to ensure the future of biodiversity.”