© Dado Ruvic / Reuters
Death from above. In our future?
Death from above. In our future?
A team from the University of Leeds examining the effects of mass extinctions found that widespread species, like humans, are just as likely to become extinct as less populous ones.
This contrasts with regular circumstances, where a populous species is more likely to survive than a rare or endangered one.
The team of scientists examined the fossil records of vertebrates from the Triassic and Jurassic periods - 252 to 145 million years ago. During this period a mass extinction thought to have been caused by a volcanic eruption wiped out almost 80 percent of all living species and gave rise to the dinosaurs.
Comment: Earth is long past due for its next 'shake-up'. And it's not just the current 'biodiversity crisis caused by human activity'; there is also the cosmic element to consider. In short, our survival is not something we can take for granted. And it is largely outside of our control. Who will take over when we're gone? Surely they'll do a better job with this planet than humanity ever did!