The natural environment is being devastated at a rate not seen before, with populations of vertebrate species falling by an average of nearly 70 per cent over the past 50 years, a report has revealed. Deforestation and the conversion of wild spaces into farmland were among the main causes, the World Wildlife Fund said in its Living Planet Report 2020. However, for the first time the report also outlined a plan that it said could revive the prospects of many species in the next decade. Conservation measures were proving that they can deliver positive results around the world, with legal protection for forest elephants in Ghana, blacktail reef sharks in Australia and tigers in Nepal resulting in large population increases, the group said. Grauer’s gorillas have declined by 87 per cent MARTIN HARVEY/WWFSir

Source: The Times September 09, 2020 23:07 UTC