What is the most significant cause driving animals and plants to extinction?

Habitat loss and fragmentation

The correct answer is Option (3) – Habitat loss and fragmentation

There are four major causes of biodiversity losses called ‘The Evil Quartet’. These are habitat loss and fragmentation, over exploitation, alien species invasions and co-extinctions.

Habitat loss and fragmentation: This is the most important cause driving animals and plants to extinction. The most dramatic examples of habitat loss come from tropical rain forests. Once covering more than 14 per cent of the earth’s land surface, these rain forests now cover no more than 6 per cent. They are being destroyed fast.

Over-exploitation: Humans have always depended on nature for food and shelter, but when ‘need’ turns to ‘greed’, it leads to over -exploitation of natural resources. Many species extinctions in the last 500 years (Steller’s sea cow, passenger pigeon) were due to over -exploitation by humans.

Alien species invasions: When alien species are introduced unintentionally or deliberately for whatever purpose, some of them turn invasive, and cause decline or extinction of indigenous species.

Co-extinctions: When a species becomes extinct, the plant and animal species associated with it in an obligatory way also become extinct. When a host fish species becomes extinct, its unique assemblage of parasites also meets the same fate.