The Kimberley Prospector

Scientists studying the Permian-Triassic mass extinction have found that ecosystems can suddenly tip over, and many scientists think that the current losses of biodiversity are the start of a new mass extinction. – The Guardian: “Ecosystem collapse ‘inevitable’ unless wildlife losses reversed.”

Steve Woodhall, a butterfly expert, is outraged. He argues that this is precisely why it is so important to protect the biodiversity we have and to reverse the negative effects that years of exploitation and destruction have caused.

“How could anyone think they could do this and not face the consequences?” Woodhall laments. “To extract aeons worth of organic fossil carbon laid down over tens if not hundreds of millions of years and pump it all into the atmosphere over the span of 250 years is the height of hubris and short-sighted stupidity.” He goes on to explain that chemical shifts like this have caused massive changes in the earth’s atmosphere and aqua sphere in the past. The introduction of oxygen-breathing life changed the atmosphere from mainly CO2 to the current oxygen-nitrogen mix.

Woodhall argues that digging up and burning these resources over a short period of time is asking for trouble. The Permian extinction, which killed 92% of living organisms 250 million years ago, is now thought to have been driven by high CO2 levels. We are risking triggering something on that scale, he says. The ancients at least had the excuse of ignorance when they killed off the megafauna and started farming, but modern man does not.

Woodhall believes that it is our responsibility to do everything in our power to reverse the effects of these destructive practices. He insists that if we can build artificially intelligent machines, then we ought to be able to work out how to live in harmony with all our fellow creatures and create a sustainable future.

Butterfly Expert & Photographer

Steve Woodhall has been collecting butterflies and moths since he was five years old, starting in the UK. After watching the movie Born Free, he decided to go to Africa and finally made it to South Africa in 1980. He explored the area before joining the Lepidopterists’ Society of Africa in 1986. His dedication to butterfly and moth collecting in Africa has been a passion ever since. He has published numerous articles on the subject and is a respected member of the Lepidopterists’ Society of Africa.