Habitat destruction facts for kids
Habitat destruction happens when a habitat (the natural home of a plant or animal) can no longer support the living things that depend on it. When this happens, plants and animals might die, or they might have to move somewhere else to survive.
Sometimes, habitat loss happens naturally. For example, wildfires can burn down plants that animals need for food or shelter. Lava flowing from volcanoes can also destroy habitats.
But often, people cause habitat loss. When trees are cut down, birds that nested in them lose their homes. Building cities on grasslands takes away the living space for many animals.
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Where Habitat Destruction Happens
Some places on Earth are called biodiversity hotspots. These are special areas, mostly in tropical regions, where many unique plants and animals live. In fact, more than half of the world's land animals might live in these hotspots! Sadly, these important places are suffering a lot from habitat loss.
Many islands and areas with lots of people have already lost most of their natural habitats. Islands like New Zealand, Madagascar, the Philippines, and Japan have seen huge amounts of habitat destruction. Countries in South and East Asia, such as China, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Japan, have so many people that there's not much room left for nature.
Even marine areas near big cities on the coast are in danger. Their coral reefs and other ocean homes are being damaged. This is happening along the eastern coasts of Asia and Africa, the northern coasts of South America, and in the Caribbean Sea.
Places where farming isn't done in a healthy way, or where governments are unstable, often have high rates of habitat destruction. This includes Central America, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Amazon rainforest in South America.
Areas that grow a lot of food also tend to have a lot of habitat destruction. In the eastern and midwestern parts of the U.S., less than 25% of the original plants are left. In Europe, only about 15% of the land is still natural and untouched by humans.
How Different Ecosystems Are Affected
Tropical rainforests have gotten a lot of attention for habitat destruction. Originally, there were about 16 million square kilometers of rainforests worldwide. Now, less than 9 million square kilometers remain. Every year, about 160,000 square kilometers are lost, which is like losing 1% of the original rainforests each year!
Other types of forests have also been badly damaged. For example, temperate broadleaf forests have been disturbed by farming and logging. Over 94% of these forests are gone. Many old growth forests (very old, natural forests) have lost more than 98% of their original area because of human activities.
Tropical dry forests are even easier to clear and burn than rainforests. This makes them good for farming and raising cattle. Because of this, less than 0.1% of dry forests on Central America's Pacific Coast and less than 8% in Madagascar are left.
Plains and desert areas have been damaged less, but still a lot. About 10-20% of the world's drylands, which include grasslands, scrublands, and deciduous forests, have been harmed. This includes about 9 million square kilometers of drylands that humans have turned into deserts through a process called desertification. In North America, less than 3% of the natural tallgrass prairies remain; most have been turned into farmland.
Wetlands and marine areas have also suffered greatly. In the U.S., more than half of all wetlands have been destroyed in the last 200 years. In Europe, 60-70% of wetlands are completely gone. In the United Kingdom, more demand for coastal homes and tourism has hurt marine habitats over the last 60 years. Rising sea levels and temperatures cause soil erosion, coastal flooding, and damage to the UK's marine ecosystem.
About 20% of marine coastal areas have been changed a lot by humans. Also, 20% of coral reefs have been destroyed, and another 20% are badly damaged by overfishing, pollution, and invasive species. In the Philippines alone, 90% of coral reefs are gone. Finally, over 35% of mangrove ecosystems worldwide have been destroyed.
What Causes Habitat Destruction?
Natural Causes
Habitats can be destroyed naturally by things like volcanism (volcano eruptions), fires, and changes in climate. Scientists have found evidence in old rocks that these natural events have caused habitat destruction for millions of years. For example, 300 million years ago, rainforests in some parts of the world broke into smaller pieces, which led to many amphibians dying out. But at the same time, the drier climate helped reptiles become more diverse.
Human Causes
Most habitat destruction today is caused by people. This includes:
- Land conversion: Changing natural areas like forests into farmland or cities.
- Urban sprawl: Cities growing bigger and spreading out into natural areas.
- Infrastructure development: Building roads, dams, and other large projects.
- Pollution: Making the air, water, or land dirty, which harms living things.
When habitats are damaged, broken into smaller pieces (fragmentation), or polluted, they can no longer support the plants and animals that live there. Desertification (turning land into desert), deforestation (cutting down forests), and coral reef degradation (damaging coral reefs) are all specific ways humans destroy habitats.
Global Warming
Rising global temperatures, caused by the greenhouse effect, also contribute to habitat destruction. This endangers many species, like the polar bear, whose icy homes are melting. Melting ice caps also cause sea levels to rise, leading to floods that threaten natural habitats and species all over the world.
Images for kids
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A map showing the world's biodiversity hotspots. These areas are greatly threatened by habitat loss.
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A forest in Grands-Jardins National Park 10 years after a forest fire.
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The draining of coastal wetlands that once protected the Gulf Coast made flooding worse in New Orleans, Louisiana, after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
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An example of human-caused habitat destruction in Uganda. This area could recover if no more damage is done.
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Natural plants along this North Carolina, US, shoreline help stop erosion and benefit both nature and people.
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See also
In Spanish: Destrucción de hábitat para niños
