Wildlife populations continue to decline, as habitats are lost to climate change and industrialization, according to the Living Planet Report released by the World Wildlife Fund International (WWF). The report shows that in the past 50 years, there has been a 73 percent decline in the average size of monitored wildlife populations. 

While the numbers have been less dramatic in North America, where the average decline has been 39 percent, the WWF said this still reflects the fact that large-scale impacts on nature were already apparent before 1970 in these regions. 

The organization noted that declines in wildlife populations can act as an early warning indicator of increasing extinction risk and the potential loss of healthy ecosystems. When ecosystems are damaged, the WWF noted, they cease to provide humanity with the benefits we have come to depend on, such as clean air, water and healthy soils. They also can become more vulnerable to tipping points resulting in substantial and potentially irreversible change.

"Nature is issuing a distress call. The linked crises of nature loss and climate change are pushing wildlife and ecosystems beyond their limits, with dangerous global tipping points threatening to damage earth's life-support systems, destabilizing societies," said Kirsten Schuijt, director general of WWF International. "The catastrophic consequences of losing some of our most precious ecosystems, like the Amazon rainforest and coral reefs, would be felt by people and nature around the world."

The report found that wildfires were particularly devastating in 2023 in Canada, with a record-breaking number of fires. Additionally, fire outbreaks in the Amazon were at the highest level in 14 years.

At a regional level, the report finds that Latin America and the Caribbean have seen a 95 percent decline in wildlife populations—Africa saw a 76 percent decline and Asia and the Pacific saw a 60 percent decline.

The organization noted that nature-based solutions can help reduce the impact by harnessing the power of nature to boost natural ecosystems, biodiversity and human well-being to address major societal issues, including climate change. For example, the WWF suggested that the restoration of forests, wetlands and mangroves can boost carbon storage, enhance water and air quality, improve food and water security, and help protect against erosion and flooding.