![]() But beginning with the late Pleistocene, the impact of human beings becomes evident. Most were killed off by natural disasters, whether on the scale of the meteor impact believed to have ended the age of dinosaurs or an isolated habitat being destroyed by a change in local climate. Of course, mass extinctions are not rare in the fossil record there have been at least five occasions when nearly two-thirds of living species disappeared from the face of the earth. Many of his insights in this book arise from the recognition that our species now has the power to bring about the extinction of a majority of our fellow inhabitants of the planet. In addition to his work in unearthing the remains of early hominids, Leakey spent five years as director of Kenya's Wildlife Services, fighting the spread of elephant poaching. ![]() Here's a sobering look at the human race's impact on its environment, from the authors of Origins (1977) and Origins Reconsidered (1992). ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |