"Animal populations have fallen by 31 per cent since 1970, living corals by 38 per cent and mangroves and sea grasses by 19 per cent. The annual rates of loss have shown no improvement since 2002, according to the study of more than 40 international monitoring systems. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) reported last November that 21 per cent of all known mammals, 30 per cent of amphibians, 12 per cent of birds and 70 per cent of plants were under threat. The IUCN calculated that the rate of species loss was up to 1,000 times greater than the natural background rate.
" The Times
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