claim #2
Habitat destruction affects entire species living in a single area and threatens the biodiversity there. Habitat destruction is a major problem in places such as the Amazon rainforest in South America, the Congo Rainforest in Africa, and many other rainforests and biomes worldwide. Destruction of the Amazon rainforest has “increased by almost one-third in the past year, reversing a decade-long trend of better protection for the world's greatest rainforest” (Amazon deforestation increased by one-third in past year). Deforestation has also more than doubled in Indonesia, Paraguay, Malaysia and Cambodia, mainly because of illegal logging. The Amazon rainforest alone holds 40,000 species of plant, 16,000 species of tree, 5,600 species of fish, 1,300 species of birds, 430 species of mammals, 1,000 species of amphibian, and 400 species of reptile (Amazon Wildlife). The Amazon also helps decrease the amount of carbon dioxide that causes climate change; not only would we lose a crucial amount of wildlife, we would also increase the rate of climate change.