After watching the first episode of Earth to think humans should wipe themselves out.

[pompomdaisy]

After watching the programme about the great extinction 250 million years ago it's made me think this planet will be far better without us and the sooner we become extinct the better.

But not actually control actions to improve it. Who is reading this and driving an unnecessary SUV.

1.2 million species depend on humans to survive?? Do you have a reliable link to document those numbers? I can’t think of any besides certain pets. Even the animals we breed to kill and eat would do much better without humans.

"I've had my kids but YOU, you all need to not have any please because the planet"

Fucking hell.

Everybody seems to believe that evolution has reached its peak with humans.
Whatever life forms are on earth in a few million years will be as different to humans as we are to the first single celled creatures.

If humans were to disappear tomorrow the majority of domesticated animals would die not do better. How long would the average farm cow or sheep live?

Wild species of these animals might be fine without us but domesticated animals have been bred for different traits.

In that episode the volcanic episodes released gases and ash that heated the planet and that eventually killed 90% of the planet.

Sounds like Mordor.

How long would the average farm cow or sheep live?

Tbf it's hardly like they're bred to live out a natural lifespan anywhere so overall that would be a welfare win, and I say this as a keen meat eater but realistically.

A dairy cow has much higher energy requirements than a wild cow so they would likely starve. Most farmed chickens would be eaten quite quickly especially if there are loads of hungry pet dogs on the loose. I would imagine unshorn sheep would be at risk of flystrike. I am not a meat eater but a slow and painful death doesn’t sound like an improvement.

I am not a meat eater but a slow and painful death doesn’t sound like an improvement.

But it would be a one-off mass death and that would be the end of it - no more generation after generation bread for consumption.

*bred.

@ChazsBrilliantAttitude

what happens to the fleece of wild sheep? How do they manage without getting shorn?

But those are species we have bred to kill/exploit to serve our wants, not naturally occurring species. There are no wild species that depend on humans to survive. In fact, their dwindling populations would most certainly recover and thrive if humans suddenly disappeared.

I would really like to know if the 1.2 million clam was just a random number, or if the poster can provide a scientific link.

On a side note, chickens who have gone feral do quite well, very evident in the Carribean.

Domesticated sheep have been bred for larger fleeces. Wild sheep have smaller fleeces that can be shed naturally.

The point I am making generally is that humans have bred domestic animals for traits that would hamper their ability to survive in the wild.

Wild chickens might do well in the Caribbean but I don’t fancy their chances in a Northern European winter - if they survive the dogs, cats and foxes.

In London we have feral ring necked parakeets which are great fun but it’s not clear they would have survived so well if humans hadn’t been providing food either through feeding or waste.

If humans disappeared, there would be no need for species bred to supply human wants. So they would either adapt and survive, or not.

As for feral chickens in UK, there was a rather aggressive flock on Jersey. They shot most of them. And there are some in other UK areas as well, Suffolk and Norfolk. I don’t know if people are feeding them though.

The only way to wipe out humans while not causing huge amounts of differing would be through a massive meteor strike that wiped us all out instantaneously. Although the meteor didn't wipe out all the dinosaurs and many starved to death. But if a meteor wiped out humans then most other species would also go. So no need to worry about who would shear the sheep

Malthusian people Always think it will be others, watch the Corbett report about malthusian objectives.

So clever, convince people they are the problem. It's so pathetic

@Lightningspeed If people aren’t the problem, what is? I am genuinely curious to know. The way I see it, the industrial revolution which was started by people, along with population explosions because of improved medical treatments and living conditions, resulted n huge increases in consumption plus pollution, which caused (or accelerated, depending whom you ask) climate change, etc.