Conservation
In the 21st century, we find ourselves in an extinction crisis. The extinction rate is estimated to be 100-1,000 times the natural rate, with as many as 30-50% of all known species at extinction risk in the next few decades. This loss of biological diversity has severe implications for the future of life and human survival. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of threatened species estimates 515 vertebrate species on the brink of extinction, with fewer than a thousand individuals remaining. Humans are the root of the extinction crisis. While species pass into extinction all the time, the number and rate of extinctions are now unprecedented. Saving species alone is not enough—individual populations, the natural units that evolves, also matter. Extinction of one or more species can trigger a cascade of events that lead to further extinctions and collapsing ecosystems; humans are not immune to these events. Protecting lands and waters is a crucial tactic for slowing the extinction crisis. All of the species to the right are vulnerable or species of special concern and they occur in the Santa Rita’s or the area around the Santa Rita’s.
