The Facts
According to a study published in the journal Nature on Wed., around one-fifth of all reptile species face the risk of extinction, with crocodiles and turtles most threatened.
This represents a combined loss of 15.6B years of evolutionary history if each of the 1,829 threatened reptiles in the study became extinct.
The Spin
Narrative A
This is another drumbeat on the path to ecological catastrophe. Like the climate crisis, the global biodiversity crisis threatens humans because healthy ecosystems provide fertile soil, pollination and water supplies. The potential collapse of so many reptile species is a true emergency.
Narrative B
Too much alarmism about the loss of species is a turn off. The world's animals, and all of their amazing nuances, should be better communicated to the public without an endless barrage of issues like habitat loss, climate change and pollution. Let's tell moving stories about biodiversity without being counterproductive.
