Nature March 2011 PMID 21368823

Has the Earth's sixth mass extinction already arrived?

Anthony D Barnosky, Nicholas Matzke, Susumu Tomiya, Guinevere O U Wogan, Brian Swartz, Tiago B Quental, Charles Marshall, Jenny L McGuire, Emily L Lindsey, Kaitlin C Maguire, Ben Mersey, Elizabeth A Ferrer

Mentions

260
Peak: 2 in May 2019
across 7 sources since Apr 2019

Extended reach

51,125
potential audience

Total likes

68

Video views

2,121

Mentions per month

Apr 2019 – Sep 2025

Where it's discussed

  • News134 articles
  • Blogs75 articles
  • X / Twitter25 posts
  • Facebook18 posts
  • YouTube4 videos
  • Bluesky2 posts
  • Reddit2 posts

AI synopsis

What people are saying

The consensus among discussions is that current extinction rates are alarmingly high, with mentions of biodiversity loss, the importance of studies like Barnosky et al., and debates about whether we are already in a sixth mass extinction, emphasizing both scientific curiosity and concern for environmental impact.

AgreementModerate agreement

Most discussions acknowledge the possibility that we are experiencing a significant biodiversity crisis, though some are cautious about labeling it a full mass extinction.

InterestHigh interest

Posts show high curiosity about current extinction rates and the potential for a sixth mass extinction, indicating strong engagement with the topic.

EngagementHigh engagement

Many discussions reference specific studies, such as Barnosky et al. 2011, and debate whether current rates meet the criteria for a mass extinction, demonstrating deep engagement.

ImpactModerate impact

The discussions highlight concerns about the future of biodiversity and emphasize the importance of understanding extinction trends, suggesting a moderate societal impact.

Abstract in brief

  • Palaeontologists define mass extinctions as periods when over 75% of species are wiped out in a short geological time, with five such events in 540 million years.
  • Biologists suggest that a sixth mass extinction might be occurring now, based on significant species loss observed in recent centuries and millennia.
  • Differences between fossil data and modern observations, along with new paleontological info, show current extinction rates are higher than historical averages, emphasizing the urgency for conservation efforts.

Top posts

Most liked on X and Bluesky
Henrique Pereira
@hmlfpereira · X

@jgeldmann @JMBecologist As percentage of species extinct, we are nowhere near a mass extinction. As speed of species extinction, we are heading towards one. But it will take several centuries at current extinction rates to be realised. See https://t.co/PqSLYl4Edt.

Jan 5, 2023 · 10 likes · 1 share · 4,154 followers View post →
https://bsky.app/profile/arnoldschiller.de
@ArnoldSchiller · X

[a2] Barnosky, A.D., Matzke, N., Tomiya, S., Wogan, G.O.U., et al. 2011. Has the Earth’s sixth mass extinction already arrived? Nature 471: 51-57, https://t.co/jRob15oZCn

May 21, 2019 · 3 likes · 1 share · 1,968 followers View post →
Felipe C
@eurofe · X

@juanj0gonzalez @GiorgioJackson @GretaThunberg A. D. Barnosky, N. Matzke, S. Tomiya, G. O. Wogan, B. Swartz, T. B. Quental, C. Marshall, J. L. McGuire, E. L. Lindsey, K. C. Maguire, B. Mersey, E. A. Ferrer, Has the Earth’s sixth mass extinction already arrived? Nature 471, 51–57 (2011).

Sep 23, 2019 · 3 likes · 1 share · 685 followers View post →
zchjj Mc ddx
@jagedo · X

A big question for our time “Has the Earth's Sixth Mass Extinction Already Arrived?”-what is really happening to other species? Read here to understand how Holocene is being wiped https://t.co/YEWfQlEvZH There is fear in the land

Mar 27, 2020 · 2 likes · 875 followers View post →
Peter
@PeterBrannen1 · X

@curtisjohnson70 Extinction rates are awfully hard to constrain, both in the geological record and in the modern--though some have tried, i.e. Anthony Barnosky. From his paper "Has the Earth’s sixth mass extinction already arrived?" https://t.co/OBvZAkpQWV

Apr 9, 2019 · 1 like · 14,829 followers View post →
Atomsk's Sanakan
@AtomsksSanakan · X

PapersOfTheDay https://t.co/JVgWAwXvLc "Could a potential Anthropocene mass extinction define a new geological period?" https://t.co/Vt03TFiuPV https://t.co/Whpu6NGRih "Has the Earth's sixth mass extinction already arrived?" https://t.co/hKiqv4KBs3 https://t.co/ZUESBzepbw

Oct 14, 2019 · 1 like · 3,352 followers View post →

All mentions

Dr. Brendan Anderson
@fossilsndcoffee.bsky.social · Bluesky

#2 Barnosky et al. 2011 Has the Earth’s sixth mass extinction already arrived? www.nature.com/articles/nat...

Feb 27, 2025 · 1 share View post →
In Salutem
@ISalutem · X

Has the Earth’s Sixth Mass Extinction Already Arrived? https://t.co/AdSgLmv4RA https://t.co/zBY7V5iFrA

Aug 29, 2024 · 404 followers View post →
umsonst.bsky.social
@umsonst.bsky.social · Bluesky

Das hier ist zum Beispiel eine der Key Studien, die noch in 20 Jahren zitiert werden wird: "Has the Earth’s sixth mass extinction already arrived?"; www.nature.com/articles/nat...

Dec 9, 2023 View post →
Patrick Vincourt
@PVincourt · X

@MichaelGuillon @lemondefr @courrierinter 4) Mais l’article de Barnosky et al. (https://t.co/p70gSUlv2T) dit: "the recent loss of species is … serious but does not yet qualify as a mass extinction in the palaeontological sense of the Big Five. In historic times we have actually lost only a few % of assessed species".

Sep 20, 2023 · 1,480 followers View post →
In Salutem
@ISalutem · X

RT @BagalueSunab: Has the Earth's sixth mass extinction already arrived? https://t.co/gH55w4JnbB via @physorg_com

Aug 16, 2023 · 2 shares · 404 followers View post →
Sierra Fields
@SierraFields23 · X

Has Earth arrived at its sixth mass extinction already? We are experiencing a massive biodiversity crisis. Is it happening on the scale of the Big 5 Massive Extinctions? Read to find out! https://t.co/tyoVYMcVJm #BIOL2300_002_assignments

Feb 20, 2023 · 2 followers View post →
Katie Edmiston
@edmiston_katie · X

Some biologists believe that another mass extinction may occur. A mass extinctions occurs when the Earth loses over 75% of its population in a short time. DOI:10.1038/nature09678 #BIOL2300_002_assignments

Feb 20, 2023 View post →
James Bullock
@JMBecologist · X

RT @hmlfpereira: @jgeldmann @JMBecologist As percentage of species extinct, we are nowhere near a mass extinction. As speed of species exti…

Jan 5, 2023 · 1 share · 6,979 followers View post →
Henrique Pereira
@hmlfpereira · X

@jgeldmann @JMBecologist As percentage of species extinct, we are nowhere near a mass extinction. As speed of species extinction, we are heading towards one. But it will take several centuries at current extinction rates to be realised. See https://t.co/PqSLYl4Edt.

Jan 5, 2023 · 10 likes · 1 share · 4,154 followers View post →
610 H
@BlixtenH · X

@petter_melin @CGThulin @_SLU @Lundsuni Och vad baserar du det på? Forskningen pekar ganska entydigt på att utrotningshastigheten är betydligt högre nu än vad som är normalt över historien. https://t.co/2xtlPu7cMf https://t.co/yCBTl50jEQ https://t.co/hFzzbfGLpd

Dec 12, 2022 · 47 followers View post →
Daniel
@evenhanded23 · X

@WellJustThink @coolfactor @PotvinsCups @billmckibben Barnosky, A., Matzke, N., Tomiya, S. et al. Has the Earth’s sixth mass extinction already arrived?. Nature 471, 51–57 (2011). https://t.co/nmlzp8bhj4

Aug 9, 2022 · 31 followers View post →
Daniel
@evenhanded23 · X

Has the Earth’s sixth mass extinction already arrived? | Nature https://t.co/97p00iCnL2

Aug 9, 2022 · 31 followers View post →
Walter Parrish
@parriwg · X

@dino_grandoni @sarahkaplan48 Extinctions have been a natural part of the planet’s evolutionary history. 99% of the four billion species that have evolved on Earth are now gone. As per Has the Earth’s sixth mass extinction already arrived?. Nature, 471(7336), 51-57.

Jun 6, 2022 · 756 followers View post →
Center for Philosophy & History of Science @ BU
@BUCPHS · X

@DrJamesThomka On this topic my students & I found the Barnosky et al. (doi:10.1038/nature09678) paper helpful, as well as Jonathan Payne's talk "The Sixth (Modern) Mass Extinction – A Geologic Perspective": https://t.co/5X7acIlbFF

Mar 8, 2021 · 1 like · 1,779 followers View post →
Bi
@BiBillotey · X

(PDF) Has the Earth’s Sixth Mass Extinction Already Arrived? Nature https://t.co/74RhvSqH2R

Feb 21, 2021 · 70 followers View post →
Katarina Gray-Sharp, PhD
@DrGraySharp · X

Both groups accept evidence of a process, that “current [extinction] rates would produce Big-Five-magnitude mass extinctions in the same amount of geological time that we think most Big Five extinctions spanned” (55). https://t.co/SSHnkj7itU

Dec 30, 2020 · 690 followers View post →
Netzkanzler
@netzkanzler · X

RT @ArnoldSchiller: [a2] Barnosky, A.D., Matzke, N., Tomiya, S., Wogan, G.O.U., et al. 2011. Has the Earth’s sixth mass extinction already…

Nov 17, 2020 · 1 share · 146 followers View post →
zchjj Mc ddx
@jagedo · X

A big question for our time “Has the Earth's Sixth Mass Extinction Already Arrived?”-what is really happening to other species? Read here to understand how Holocene is being wiped https://t.co/YEWfQlEvZH There is fear in the land

Mar 27, 2020 · 2 likes · 875 followers View post →
Minna Vares
@VaresMinna · X

@JoonasKiviranta @ivanpuopolo @ja_puntanen @anterojarvi Esim. Barnosky 2011 Has the Earth’s sixth mass extinction already arrived? Naturessa. Mutta haulla sixth mass extinction löytyy paljon tuoreempiakin. Sukupuuttotahti 100-kertainen normaaliin verrattuna.

Jan 4, 2020 · 263 followers View post →
Brian Sirgutz
@sirgutz · X

Has the Earth’s sixth mass extinction already arrived? Global insect populations are collapsing, and we don't know why https://t.co/3s6qMNr04B

Dec 17, 2019 · 4,532 followers View post →
Atomsk's Sanakan
@AtomsksSanakan · X

PapersOfTheDay https://t.co/JVgWAwXvLc "Could a potential Anthropocene mass extinction define a new geological period?" https://t.co/Vt03TFiuPV https://t.co/Whpu6NGRih "Has the Earth's sixth mass extinction already arrived?" https://t.co/hKiqv4KBs3 https://t.co/ZUESBzepbw

Oct 14, 2019 · 1 like · 3,352 followers View post →
André Latz
@Ethikcoach · X

Has the Earth’s sixth mass extinction already arrived? https://t.co/hZQNoW2als #FridaysForFuture

Oct 4, 2019 · 288 followers View post →
Alexis
@maitreyarojas · X

RT @eurofe: @juanj0gonzalez @GiorgioJackson @GretaThunberg A. D. Barnosky, N. Matzke, S. Tomiya, G. O. Wogan, B. Swartz, T. B. Quental, C.…

Sep 23, 2019 · 1 share · 1,805 followers View post →
Felipe C
@eurofe · X

@juanj0gonzalez @GiorgioJackson @GretaThunberg A. D. Barnosky, N. Matzke, S. Tomiya, G. O. Wogan, B. Swartz, T. B. Quental, C. Marshall, J. L. McGuire, E. L. Lindsey, K. C. Maguire, B. Mersey, E. A. Ferrer, Has the Earth’s sixth mass extinction already arrived? Nature 471, 51–57 (2011).

Sep 23, 2019 · 3 likes · 1 share · 685 followers View post →
Dr. Sundance
@0Sundance · X

@wlbeeton @StealthFlyBy @_Lost_My_Way_ @mauser98k2 @MassiMassian @NikolovScience @vinceram @gjcats @AlanBlackMD @SapientHetero @RoyPentland @brjma @JohnClarksonGSM @JaggerMickOZ @griff399 @Captbobdad @struikmans @RegimeChangeBC @johndowney @kingbob71 @dan613 @Neonomide @Tangomitteckel @Michael46830937 @FossilBeBare @erlhel @GillesnFio @Gladfly1 @DaveSkeptical @FredFoxyGuy @CorinneBackman @DocRichard @FireFox_XB9R @automaticsteam @TheEndisFar @SmithFriedman1 @theresphysics @TurtleFL @YeyForScience @jk76022 @_RaulRevere @tom_ssboats @andsnz @mtobis @LofayPeter @Climatearticles @sarenc @WalterHorsting @KcCliff The title = Has the Earth’s Sixth Mass Extinction Already Arrived? Anything with a question mark after it means conjecture/no confidence. This is a "literature review" not a study used by IPCC. You should stick to ad hom which is what you seem good at.

May 27, 2019 · 3,416 followers View post →
https://bsky.app/profile/arnoldschiller.de
@ArnoldSchiller · X

[a2] Barnosky, A.D., Matzke, N., Tomiya, S., Wogan, G.O.U., et al. 2011. Has the Earth’s sixth mass extinction already arrived? Nature 471: 51-57, https://t.co/jRob15oZCn

May 21, 2019 · 3 likes · 1 share · 1,968 followers View post →
Peter
@PeterBrannen1 · X

@curtisjohnson70 Extinction rates are awfully hard to constrain, both in the geological record and in the modern--though some have tried, i.e. Anthony Barnosky. From his paper "Has the Earth’s sixth mass extinction already arrived?" https://t.co/OBvZAkpQWV

Apr 9, 2019 · 1 like · 14,829 followers View post →