As they disappear, gaps begin to appear in the ecosystems. Small at first but as each species relies upon others, losing one has a knock-on effect, causing others to be adversely affected. As more and more gaps appear, the whole ecosystem will begin to break down and many of the other species will be lost as well. This will have wide reaching social, economic and psychological effects on us, as we struggle to live without the most basic and fundamental requirements that all animals need.

Ecosystems are constantly changing and species are always disappearing as environmental conditions change and they are no longer able to survive. This is a natural process, but it happens over long periods of time allowing new species to evolve and keep ecosystems functioning. It is the affect that human activities are having on the world around us that is causing these losses to happen far too quickly for species and ecosystems to adapt to the change.

It is essential that we all take action to conserve the biodiversity resource around us – not just for today but for future generations.

Read more about Disappearing Biodiversity.