The authors, Prof Gerardo Ceballos and Prof Paul Ehrlich, have previously found that species are becoming extinct on a scale akin to the event that wiped out th

The authors, Prof Gerardo Ceballos and Prof Paul Ehrlich, have previously found that species are becoming extinct on a scale akin to the event that wiped out the dinosaurs, and warn that the loss is a threat to the persistence of human civilisation. “By losing all these genera, we are losing the foundations of the planet to have life in general and human life in particular. If you have a wall made of bricks, if you lose some, it won’t collapse but it won’t be as strong. If you lose many bricks, eventually it will collapse. The combination of the gases in the atmosphere that allows us to have life on the planet depends on plants, animals and organisms. People say that we are alarmist by saying that we expect a collapse. We are alarmist because we are alarmed,” he said. “Extinction is irreversible,” he added. “From a more human-centric perspective, it’s almost impossible to predict which of these losses will have a significant impact on our own species. It’s an existential gamble we should think very hard about before taking.”