Without action, extinction rates for mammals and birds over the past 27 years would be three to four times higher, a new study found.
Since 1993, when the UN Convention on Biological Diversity came into force, up to 48 bird and mammal extinctions have been prevented, a new study found.
The research led by scientists at Newcastle University and BirdLife International found the conservation efforts and the global agreement saved endangered species such as the Puerto Rican amazon parrot, and Przewalski’s horses among many others.
Dr Stuart Butchart, chief scientist at BirdLife International and instigator of the study, said the findings showed that preventing endangered species to become extinct was “achievable and essential to sustain a healthy planet” and gave hope to conservation efforts for other species, as per The Guardian.
Newcastle University professor Phil McGowan, who co-led the study and heads an IUCN Species Survival Commission taskforce called the findings “a glimmer of hope” and said: “We usually hear bad stories about the biodiversity crisis and there is no doubt that we are facing an unprecedented loss in biodiversity through human activity. The loss of entire species can be stopped if there is sufficient will to do so. This is a call to action: showing the scale of the issue and what we can achieve if we act now to support conservation and prevent extinction.”
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