Read the excerpt from E. O. Wilson's "The Environmental Ethic." Species are disappearing at an accelerating rate through human action, primarily habitat destruction but also
that a fifth or
pollution and the introduction of exotic species into residual natural environments. I have said
more of the species of plants and animals could vanish or be doomed to early extinction by the year 2020
unless better efforts are made to save them As the last forests are felled in forest strongholds like the
Philippines and Ecuador, the decline of species will accelerate even more. In the world a as a whole, extinction
rates are already hundreds or thousands of times higher than before the coming of man. They cannot be
balanced by new evolution in any period of time that has meaning for the human race.
What message
does the author convey In this excerpt?
Humans need to take action to end further destruction of the natural environment.
• In the coming years,
humans will put forth stronger efforts to save plants and animals.
• The extinction of plant and animal species is problematic in the Philippines and Ecuador.
dmm
In recent years, the extinction raté for many animal species has significantly increased.