--- description: The paper used conservative premises and still arrived what scientists said was a concerning conclusion title: Scientists Warn 'Sixth Extinction' May Be Underway image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4034b6a0663058d4/6988557d0b72e391d06e4931/extinction.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Science](/section/science/) ## Science Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Environment](/tag/environment/) ## Environment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Scientists Warn 'Sixth Extinction' May Be Underway  by [Daniel D'Addario](/author/daniel-daddario/)  ## Daniel D'Addario Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 20, 2015 8:06 PM CUT  Science Advances  by [Daniel D'Addario](/author/daniel-daddario/)  ## Daniel D'Addario Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 20, 2015 8:06 PM CUT A new paper [warns ](http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/1/5/e1400253 "undefined")that a major extinction event, one that would be the sixth in our planet’s history, may be underway. The authors of the paper, [published in ](http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/1/5/e1400253 "undefined")[_Science Advances,_](http://advances.sciencemag.org/content/1/5/e1400253 "undefined") sought to determine whether recent loss in biodiversity has been caused by human activity; the conclusion they reach is that “a sixth mass extinction is already under way.” The scientists’ abstract concludes: --- > “” --- As Kaleigh Rogers points out [at _Vice_](http://motherboard.vice.com/read/we-are-100-for-sure-in-the-middle-of-a-major-extinction-event?utm%5Fsource=source=vicetwitterus "undefined"), this paper hardly breaks ground in its premise; the idea that Earth is undergoing the sixth extinction has been written about by scientists before. What differs, here, are the criteria; the scientists estimated very conservatively when it came to how many species have recently gone extinct, and still found that conservative estimate showing the likelihood of an environmental cataclysm. ### See The Best Biology Photos Of The Year  Two Bisons on the Grand Prismatic Spring in Yellowstone National Park, Wyo. Lukas Gawenda  A spider at sunset in Predel, Bulgaria. Krasimir Matarov  Parasitoid wasps building clay pots in Borneo, Brunei. Thomas Endlein  Siblings watering newly planted seedlings in Rizal, The Philippines. Ysabel M Victoriano  A leopard in its natural habitat in Karantaka, India. Nagarjun Ram  A farmer protects his family and animals from mosquitos in Gujarat, India. Dimple Pancholi  A tarsier in its natural habitat in Sulawesi, Indonesia. Wolfgang Weinhardt  A plant takes advantage of the available shelter in a dilapidated house in Kolmanskop, Namibia. Kelsey Green  A female blackbird holding a dried mealworm in her mouth in Lincolnshire, United Kingdom. Billy Clapham  A chick embryo in a hardened eggshell is sustained until full development in Rizal, The Philippines. Robert Cabagnot  An adult female Italian crested newt stationed below the fresh water surface in Piedmont, Italy. Matteo Riccardo Di Nicola  A sea turtle eating a jellyfish in The Maldives. 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