Ecosystem Disruption

This or That

What do you notice in these two images?

What is missing?

Where can we see this?

Human Impact

Clearing land for agriculture and development is a significant cause of habitat destruction. Within the past 100 years, the total land used for agriculture has almost doubled. Land used for grazing cattle has more than doubled.

Agriculture has cost the United States half its wetlands and nearly all its tallgrass prairies.

​

Argiculture

Desertification is the process by which fertile land becomes desert. In areas that are already dry, human activities and climate change cause the land to become even drier.

These activities, such as development, mining, farming, and ranching, lead to desertification by removing trees and vegetation and depleting the soil of nutrients. As a result, land that was once able to support crops is no longer fertile.

​

Desertification

Invasive species are organisms that are not native to a particular area. Non-native organisms may not have natural predators in the new habitat, which allows their populations to easily adapt and grow. Invasive species outcompete native species for resources.

Sometimes invasive species are so successful at living in a certain habitat that the native species go extinct.

​

Invasive species