One-third of species on Earth could become extinct by 2100

A study recently published by American scientists shows that climate change puts many species at risk of extinction and this risk is increasing with global warming.

One-third of species on Earth could become extinct by 2100. Illustration photo. (Source: Live Science)

According to a new study published on December 5 in the American journal Science , nearly one-third of the world's species will be at risk of extinction by the end of this century if humans continue to emit greenhouse gases.

Accordingly, if global temperatures rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial averages, exceeding the Paris Agreement target, extinctions will accelerate rapidly - especially for amphibians, species in mountain, island, freshwater ecosystems, and species in South America, Australia and New Zealand.

The Earth has warmed about 1 degree Celsius since the Industrial Revolution. Climate change causes changes in temperature and rainfall, altering habitats and species interactions. For example, warmer temperatures have caused the migration of monarch butterflies to be out of sync with the flowering of the plants they pollinate. Many animals and plants are shifting their habitats to higher latitudes or altitudes to find more favorable temperatures.

While some species can adapt or migrate in response to changing environmental conditions, others cannot survive, leading to population declines and sometimes extinction. Global assessments have predicted an increasing risk of extinction for more than one million species.

This is a synthesis of more than 30 years of research on biodiversity and climate change, including more than 450 specific studies on almost all known species.

If greenhouse gas emissions are not managed under the Paris Agreement, nearly 1 in 50 species worldwide – an estimated 180,000 species – will be at risk of extinction by 2100. At climate modelled temperature increases of 2.7 degrees Celsius, based on current international emissions projections, 1 in 20 species worldwide will be at risk of extinction.

Global warming puts the number of species at risk of extinction at a sharp increase: 14.9% of all species will become extinct if the planet warms by 4.3 degrees Celsius; 29.7% under a 5.4 degree Celsius warming scenario. According to scientists, this is a high estimate but is likely to happen with current emissions.

Study author Mark Urban, a biologist at the University of Connecticut (USA), told Live Science that he hopes the results of this research will have an impact on policymakers.

“The message for policymakers is: There are no more excuses for not taking action on the environment,” he stressed.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/mot-phan-ba-so-loai-tren-trai-dat-co-the-tuyet-chung-vao-nam-2100-296379.html