According to a study on what researchers call the “ongoing extinction event,” scientists have said it may be too late to undo the damage that has already been done to our planet’s species.

The paper, written by researchers from the University of Hawaii and the Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle in Paris, has been published in the Biological Reviews scientific journal. Titled ‘The Sixth Mass Extinction: fact, fiction or speculation?’, the paper argues that while conservation measures have been put into place to safeguard many of the planet’s endangered species, the measures have come perhaps a little too late and that the planet is well on the way to a Sixth Mass Extinction.

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“Mass biodiversity extinction events caused by extreme natural phenomena have marked the history of life on Earth five times. Today, many experts warn that a Sixth Mass Extinction crisis is underway,” began a press release accompanying the study.

“To fight the crisis, various conservation initiatives have been successful for certain charismatic animals. But these initiatives cannot target all species, and they cannot reverse the overall trend of species extinction,” the press release added in a dire warning.

According to the authors of the paper, between 7.5% to 13% of the Earth’s two million species have gone extinct since 1500 AD: in other words, between 150,000 and 260,000 species have gone extinct in the last 500 years.

“Including invertebrates was key to confirming that we are indeed witnessing the onset of the Sixth Mass Extinction in Earth’s history,” said lead researcher Robert Cowie.

As per the study, extinction appears to be affecting different species differently, depending upon their habitat, and land-based creatures are the worst affected, especially those on islands. Plant extinction figures, meanwhile, are relatively low.

A mass extinction event generally involves the complete destruction of at least 75% of extant species. Earlier mass extinctions in the Earth’s history, of which five have happened, wiped out between 70% and 92% of all species. Perhaps the most famous among them is the extinction of the dinosaurs, which took place some 66 million years ago due to an asteroid impact.

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Notably, however, all mass extinctions in the Earth’s history have been natural phenomenon, whereas the “ongoing” one is almost completely attributable to human causes as per extant research.

“In the face of a mounting crisis, scientists must adopt the practices of preventive archaeology, and collect and document as many species as possible before they disappear,” reads the study.

“Denying the crisis, simply accepting it and doing nothing, or even embracing it for the ostensible benefit of humanity, are not appropriate options and pave the way for the Earth to continue on its sad trajectory towards a Sixth Mass Extinction,” the study’s abstract concluded.