Creating and Using Knowledge for Species and Ecosystem Conservation: Science, Organizations, And Policy

The loss of global biodiversity is a major problem with profound repercussions for the present and future human generations. Living professional conservationists are the last generation that can prevent the extinction of large numbers of species and the disruption of large scale ecosystem processes. A conservative estimate of species loss is 20 + % of the planet's biodiversity within the next decade or two—4,000 to 6,000 species a year from rain forests alone [I]. Losses in the rain forests are about 10,000 times greater than natural "background" extinction rates. In the United States, an estimated 675 plant species may become extinct by the year 2000 [2]. About one-third of all fresh-water fish species are being seriously harmed by environmental degradation, and many species or subspecies are threatened [3]. Species protection under the Endangered Species Act is a long, complex process. Meese [4, p. 51] noted that any delay in listing and consequent protection of species is doubly regrettable because so many qualifying species are already backlogged.