Science for Environment Policy (2013) Issue 346

The negative effects of human activity on biodiversity may not be fully realised for several decades, or even a century for some species, new research suggests. Conservation efforts may need to be much increased to prevent declines of wildlife populations as a result of environmental pressures that occurred many years ago, say the study’s authors.
Source: Dullinger, S., Essl, F., Rabitsch, W., Erb, K. H., Gingrich, S., Haberl, H., ... & Hulme, P. E. (2013). Europe’s other debt crisis caused by the long legacy of future extinctions. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 110(18), 7342-7347. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1216303110

Past environmental pressures affect current biodiversity loss