The WWF is run at a local level by the following offices...
- WWF Global
- Adria
- Argentina
- Armenia
- AsiaPacific
- Australia
- Austria
- Azerbaijan
- Belgium
- Bhutan
- Bolivia
- Borneo
- Brazil
- Bulgaria
- Cambodia
- Cameroon
- Canada
- Caucasus
- Central African Republic
- Central America
- Chile
- China
- Colombia
- Croatia
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Denmark
- Ecuador
- European Policy Office
- Finland
Our News
Catastrophic 73% decline in the average size of wildlife populations in just 50 years reveals a ‘system in peril’ - WWF’s Living Planet Report
New Living Planet Report, published today, is warning us that what happens over the next five years will be crucial for the future of life on Earth but shows that we have the power and opportunity to change the trajectory
The Living Planet Index (LPI), provided by ZSL (Zoological Society of London), includes almost 35,000 population trends of 5,495 species from 1970-2020. The strongest decline is in freshwater ecosystems (-85%), followed by terrestrial (-69%) and then marine (-56%). Habitat loss and degradation, driven primarily by our food system, is the most reported threat to wildlife populations around the world, followed by overexploitation, invasive species and disease. Climate change is a particular additional threat for wildlife populations in Latin America and the Caribbean, which have recorded a staggering 95% average decline.
Declines in wildlife populations can act as an early warning indicator of increasing extinction risk and the potential loss of healthy ecosystems. When ecosystems are damaged they cease to provide humanity with the benefits we have come to depend on - clean air, water and healthy soils for food - and they can become more vulnerable to tipping points. A tipping point is when an ecosystem is pushed beyond a critical threshold resulting in substantial and potentially irreversible change.
Global tipping points, such as the dieback of the Amazon rainforest and the mass die-off of coral reefs, would create shockwaves far beyond the immediate area impacting food security and livelihoods. The warning comes as fire outbreaks in the Amazon reached their highest level in 14 years in September and a fourth global mass coral bleaching event was confirmed earlier this year.
Dr Kirsten Schuijt, Director General of WWF International, said: "The decline of 73% in the average size of monitored species is shocking, but expected. Nature sends a call for help. The linked crises of nature loss and climate change are pushing wildlife and ecosystems beyond their limits, with dangerous global tipping points threatening to damage Earth’s life-support systems and destabilize societies. The catastrophic consequences of losing some of our most precious ecosystems, like the Amazon rainforest and coral reefs, would be felt by people and nature around the world."
The index does reveal some populations that have stabilized or increased due to effective conservation efforts, such as an increase in the sub-population of mountain gorillas of around 3% per year between 2010 - 2016 in the Virunga mountains in East Africa, and the comeback of European Bison populations in central Europe. However, isolated successes are not enough.
Countries have already agreed on ambitious global goals to halt and reverse nature loss (the Global Biodiversity Framework), cap global temperature rise to 1.5ºC (the Paris Agreement), and eradicate poverty (the UN Sustainable Development Goals). But the Living Planet Report says national commitments and action on the ground fall far short of what’s required to meet targets for 2030 and avoid dangerous tipping points.
Dunja Mazzocco Drvar, Conservation Director in WWF Adria said: "The international biodiversity and climate summits taking place shortly – COP16 and COP29 – are an opportunity for countries to rise to the scale of the challenge. WWF is calling for countries to produce and implement more ambitious national nature and climate plans (NBSAPs and NDCs) that include measures to reduce global overconsumption, halt and reverse both domestic and imported biodiversity loss and cut emissions – all in an equitable manner. That can be achieved if governments unlock greater public and private funding to allow action at scale and to better align their climate, nature and sustainable development policies and actions."
Dr Schuijt concluded: "Although the situation is desperate, we are not yet past the point of no return. We have global agreements and solutions to set nature on the path to recovery by 2030, but so far there’s been little progress on delivery and a lack of urgency. The decisions made and action taken over the next five years will be crucial for the future of life on Earth. The power − and opportunity − are in our hands to change the trajectory. We can restore our living planet if we act now."
-
*The Living Planet Index shows an average 73% decline in monitored vertebrate wildlife populations (mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish). The percentage change in the index reflects the average proportional change in monitored animal population sizes at sites around the world, not the number of individual animals lost, nor the number of populations lost.
© WWF
73% decline