A Sixth Extinction By Elizabeth Kolbert: Chapter Analysis

As the world continues to become increasingly more globalized, people are more focused on the impact it may have on one kind of animal, humans. Through this anthropocentric way of thinking, the impact of globalization on all animals besides humans is often not recognized despite the vast importance that it holds. As the human world continues to work towards globalization, or a more interconnected world, the livelihood and future of nearly all animal species is threatened.
The book, “A Sixth Extinction”, written by Elizabeth Kolbert, provides insight into the deeply rooted impact humans have caused on the natural world in a way that no species has done before. The largest and most devastating impact on animals that results from human globalization
Once it was discovered that a fungus was impacting the golden frogs, scientists began to learn of other amphibian populations across every continent declining at an equally rapid rate because of the same fungi. Kolbert describes amphibians as one of the planet’s great survivors with ancestors tracing back to a time before dinosaurs, which creates even more concern as many species quickly become threatened. While it was at first puzzling to know how this fungus was traveling to other continents, the
As human populations continue to grow, there is a greater requirement of more land for everything from infrastructure to waste deposit which can infringe on the natural habitats of countless species. Kolbert writes about the Sumatran Rhino whose habitat originally was around the foothills of the Himalayas but due to a high rate of deforestation their habitat became fragmented and was reduced to a few hundred. This grave fragmentation of the species made it incredibly difficult to breed and recover their numbers which led to rhinoceros captive breeding programs. The deforestation that caused such drastic habitat loss was specifically for fulfilling human needs regardless of the other species that their actions affected. Despite the plight that these rhinos had to deal with, humans still found a way to benefit as forty of the endangered rhinos were sent to zoos in the United States. The shipment of these animals shows the hold that globalization has on our world as we continue to exploit living beings for entertainment after we have effectively diminished their