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| 21685 | Humans make up just 0.01% of Earth's life – what's the rest? | life-on-earth | post | publish | <!-- wp-block-tombstone 42132 --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Our planet is home to an incredible diversity of organisms. What does <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/biodiversity">Earth's biodiversity</a> look like in the big picture?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In this post, I provide an overview – with a summary graphic – of Earth's biomass, how it is distributed between taxa (the taxonomic group of organisms), and the environments within which they live. This summary is based on the findings of research by Bar-On, Phillips & Milo published in the <em>Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS)</em>.{ref}Bar-On, Y. M., Phillips, R., & Milo, R. (2018). The biomass distribution on Earth. <i>Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</i>, 201711842. Available at: <a href="http://www.pnas.org/content/115/25/6506">http://www.pnas.org/content/115/25/6506</a>.{/ref}</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4>Humans account for just 0.01% of biomass</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:columns --> <div class="wp-block-columns"><!-- wp:column --> <div class="wp-block-column"><!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There are several ways we can answer the question of how much life is on Earth. We could, for example, count the number of species, population sizes, or the number of individual organisms. But these metrics can make it difficult to compare between taxa: small organisms may have a large population but still account for a tiny percentage of Earth's organic matter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For a meaningful comparison, Bar-On et al. (2018) quantified life using the metric of biomass. Biomass is measured here in tonnes of carbon as it is a key building block of life.{ref}To calculate the biomass of a taxonomic group, the researchers multiplied the carbon stock for a single organism by the number of individuals in that group. In humans, for example, they calculate the average carbon quantity of a person and multiply it by the human population. If you're interested in comparing biomass and the abundance of different taxonomic groups, you can explore this <strong><a rel="noopener noreferrer" href="https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/biomass-vs-abundance-taxa" target="_blank">here</a></strong>.{/ref}</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the graphic below, I summarize global biomass distribution by taxonomic kingdom (on the left), with a magnified snapshot of the animal kingdom (on the right).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>What are the stand-out points?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><li>Plants – mainly trees – dominate life on Earth: they account for more than 82% of biomass;</li><li>Surprisingly, in second place is the life we cannot see: tiny bacteria sum up to 13%;</li><li>While our perceptions are often focused on the animal kingdom, it accounts for only 0.4%;</li><li>Humans account for just 0.01% of the biomass, so we'd need about 70 trillion of us to match Earth's collective biomass.{ref}We can calculate our share of total biomass as 0.06 billion tonnes C (human biomass) / 546 billion tonnes (total biomass) * 100 = 0.01%.{/ref}</li></ul> <!-- /wp:list --></div> <!-- /wp:column --> <!-- wp:column --> <div class="wp-block-column"></div> <!-- /wp:column --></div> <!-- /wp:columns --> <!-- wp:image {"id":23181,"sizeSlug":"full","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img src="https://owid.cloud/app/uploads/2018/11/Global-Taxa-Biomass.png" alt="" class="wp-image-23181"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4>Livestock outweighs wild mammals and birds ten-fold</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Humans comprise a tiny share of life on Earth — 0.01% of the total and 2.5% of animal biomass (animal biomass is shown in the right-hand box on the visualization above).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>But we are also responsible for the <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/meat-and-seafood-production-consumption#livestock-counts" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">animals we raise</a>. Humans alone may seem insignificant, but our hunger for <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/meat-and-seafood-production-consumption#livestock-counts" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">raising livestock</a> means we have played a major role in shifting the balance of animal life: <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/meat-and-seafood-production-consumption" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">livestock</a> account for 4% of animal biomass.{ref}Figures for livestock don't include fish catch or farming — of course, these also <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/fish-stocks-within-sustainable-levels">had significant impacts on marine life</a>.{/ref}</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Livestock accounts for more biomass than all humans on Earth, more than 50% greater than humans.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>And livestock accounts for much more than all wildlife: Wild mammals and birds collectively account for only 0.38% — livestock, therefore, outweighs wild mammals and birds by a factor of ten.{ref}Poultry livestock accounts for 0.2 percent of animal biomass — more than twice that of wild birds. Bar-On et al. (2018) estimate global poultry biomass to be 0.005 billion tonnes of carbon. This is approximately 0.2 percent of animal biomass (= 0.005 / 2.4 * 100). Wild birds account for only 0.08 percent of animal biomass.{/ref}</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> | {
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2019-04-24 11:00:43 | 2024-02-16 14:22:48 | 1NYO6Oq_YoI3EmMSw_qWcfVlDQKJ-evIh2litR2hB6C8 | [
"Hannah Ritchie"
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How is life on Earth distributed across the taxonomic kingdoms? Humans make up just 0.01% of life: but we've had much larger impacts on shaping the animal kingdom. Livestock now outweighs wild mammals and birds ten-fold. | 2018-11-16 15:15:43 | 2023-09-01 07:36:10 | https://ourworldindata.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Global-Taxa-Biomass.png | {} |
Our planet is home to an incredible diversity of organisms. What does [Earth's biodiversity](https://ourworldindata.org/biodiversity) look like in the big picture? In this post, I provide an overview – with a summary graphic – of Earth's biomass, how it is distributed between taxa (the taxonomic group of organisms), and the environments within which they live. This summary is based on the findings of research by Bar-On, Phillips & Milo published in the _Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS)_.{ref}Bar-On, Y. M., Phillips, R., & Milo, R. (2018). The biomass distribution on Earth. _Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences_, 201711842. Available at: [http://www.pnas.org/content/115/25/6506](http://www.pnas.org/content/115/25/6506).{/ref} ## Humans account for just 0.01% of biomass There are several ways we can answer the question of how much life is on Earth. We could, for example, count the number of species, population sizes, or the number of individual organisms. But these metrics can make it difficult to compare between taxa: small organisms may have a large population but still account for a tiny percentage of Earth's organic matter. For a meaningful comparison, Bar-On et al. (2018) quantified life using the metric of biomass. Biomass is measured here in tonnes of carbon as it is a key building block of life.{ref}To calculate the biomass of a taxonomic group, the researchers multiplied the carbon stock for a single organism by the number of individuals in that group. In humans, for example, they calculate the average carbon quantity of a person and multiply it by the human population. If you're interested in comparing biomass and the abundance of different taxonomic groups, you can explore this **[here](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/biomass-vs-abundance-taxa)**.{/ref} In the graphic below, I summarize global biomass distribution by taxonomic kingdom (on the left), with a magnified snapshot of the animal kingdom (on the right). What are the stand-out points? * Plants – mainly trees – dominate life on Earth: they account for more than 82% of biomass; * Surprisingly, in second place is the life we cannot see: tiny bacteria sum up to 13%; * While our perceptions are often focused on the animal kingdom, it accounts for only 0.4%; * Humans account for just 0.01% of the biomass, so we'd need about 70 trillion of us to match Earth's collective biomass.{ref}We can calculate our share of total biomass as 0.06 billion tonnes C (human biomass) / 546 billion tonnes (total biomass) * 100 = 0.01%.{/ref} <Image filename="Global-Taxa-Biomass.png" alt=""/> ## Livestock outweighs wild mammals and birds ten-fold Humans comprise a tiny share of life on Earth — 0.01% of the total and 2.5% of animal biomass (animal biomass is shown in the right-hand box on the visualization above). But we are also responsible for the [animals we raise](https://ourworldindata.org/meat-and-seafood-production-consumption#livestock-counts). Humans alone may seem insignificant, but our hunger for [raising livestock](https://ourworldindata.org/meat-and-seafood-production-consumption#livestock-counts) means we have played a major role in shifting the balance of animal life: [livestock](https://ourworldindata.org/meat-and-seafood-production-consumption) account for 4% of animal biomass.{ref}Figures for livestock don't include fish catch or farming — of course, these also [had significant impacts on marine life](https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/fish-stocks-within-sustainable-levels).{/ref} Livestock accounts for more biomass than all humans on Earth, more than 50% greater than humans. And livestock accounts for much more than all wildlife: Wild mammals and birds collectively account for only 0.38% — livestock, therefore, outweighs wild mammals and birds by a factor of ten.{ref}Poultry livestock accounts for 0.2 percent of animal biomass — more than twice that of wild birds. Bar-On et al. (2018) estimate global poultry biomass to be 0.005 billion tonnes of carbon. This is approximately 0.2 percent of animal biomass (= 0.005 / 2.4 * 100). Wild birds account for only 0.08 percent of animal biomass.{/ref} | {
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"rendered": "\n<p>Our planet is home to an incredible diversity of organisms. What does <a href=\"https://ourworldindata.org/biodiversity\">Earth’s biodiversity</a> look like in the big picture?</p>\n\n\n\n<p>In this post, I provide an overview \u2013 with a summary graphic \u2013 of Earth’s biomass, how it is distributed between taxa (the taxonomic group of organisms), and the environments within which they live. This summary is based on the findings of research by Bar-On, Phillips & Milo published in the\u00a0<em>Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS)</em>.{ref}Bar-On, Y. M., Phillips, R., & Milo, R. (2018). The biomass distribution on Earth.\u00a0<i>Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</i>, 201711842. Available at:\u00a0<a href=\"http://www.pnas.org/content/115/25/6506\">http://www.pnas.org/content/115/25/6506</a>.{/ref}</p>\n\n\n\n<h4>Humans account for just 0.01% of biomass</h4>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column\">\n<p>There are several ways we can answer the question of how much life is on Earth. We could, for example, count the number of species, population sizes, or the number of individual organisms. But these metrics can make it difficult to compare between taxa: small organisms may have a large population but still account for a tiny percentage of Earth’s organic matter.</p>\n\n\n\n<p>For a meaningful comparison, Bar-On et al. (2018) quantified life using the metric of biomass. Biomass is measured here in tonnes of carbon as it is a key building block of life.{ref}To calculate the biomass of a taxonomic group, the researchers multiplied the carbon stock for a single organism by the number of individuals in that group. In humans, for example, they calculate the average carbon quantity of a person and multiply it by the human population. If you’re interested in comparing biomass and the abundance of different taxonomic groups, you can explore this\u00a0<strong><a rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/biomass-vs-abundance-taxa\" target=\"_blank\">here</a></strong>.{/ref}</p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the graphic below, I summarize global biomass distribution by taxonomic kingdom (on the left), with a magnified snapshot of the animal kingdom (on the right).</p>\n\n\n\n<p>What are the stand-out points?</p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Plants \u2013 mainly trees \u2013 dominate life on Earth: they account for more than 82% of biomass;</li><li>Surprisingly, in second place is the life we cannot see: tiny bacteria sum up to 13%;</li><li>While our perceptions are often focused on the animal kingdom, it accounts for only 0.4%;</li><li>Humans account for just 0.01% of the biomass, so\u00a0we’d need about 70 trillion of us to match Earth’s collective biomass.{ref}We can calculate our share of total biomass as 0.06 billion tonnes C (human biomass) / 546 billion tonnes (total biomass) * 100 = 0.01%.{/ref}</li></ul>\n</div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column\"></div>\n</div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2339\" height=\"1081\" src=\"https://owid.cloud/app/uploads/2018/11/Global-Taxa-Biomass.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-23181\" srcset=\"https://owid.cloud/app/uploads/2018/11/Global-Taxa-Biomass.png 2339w, https://owid.cloud/app/uploads/2018/11/Global-Taxa-Biomass-400x185.png 400w, https://owid.cloud/app/uploads/2018/11/Global-Taxa-Biomass-800x370.png 800w, https://owid.cloud/app/uploads/2018/11/Global-Taxa-Biomass-150x69.png 150w, https://owid.cloud/app/uploads/2018/11/Global-Taxa-Biomass-768x355.png 768w, https://owid.cloud/app/uploads/2018/11/Global-Taxa-Biomass-1536x710.png 1536w, https://owid.cloud/app/uploads/2018/11/Global-Taxa-Biomass-2048x947.png 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2339px) 100vw, 2339px\" /></figure>\n\n\n\n<h4>Livestock outweighs wild mammals and birds ten-fold</h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Humans comprise a tiny share of life on Earth \u2014 0.01% of the total and 2.5% of animal biomass (animal biomass is shown in the right-hand box on the visualization above).</p>\n\n\n\n<p>But we are also responsible for the <a href=\"https://ourworldindata.org/meat-and-seafood-production-consumption#livestock-counts\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">animals we raise</a>. Humans alone may seem insignificant, but our hunger for <a href=\"https://ourworldindata.org/meat-and-seafood-production-consumption#livestock-counts\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">raising livestock</a> means we have played a major role in shifting the balance of animal life: <a href=\"https://ourworldindata.org/meat-and-seafood-production-consumption\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">livestock</a> account for 4% of animal biomass.{ref}Figures for livestock don’t include fish catch or farming \u2014 of course, these also <a href=\"https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/fish-stocks-within-sustainable-levels\">had significant impacts on marine life</a>.{/ref}</p>\n\n\n\n<p>Livestock accounts for more biomass than all humans on Earth, more than 50% greater than humans.</p>\n\n\n\n<p>And livestock accounts for much more than all wildlife: Wild mammals and birds collectively account for only 0.38%\u00a0\u2014 livestock, therefore, outweighs wild mammals and birds by a factor of ten.{ref}Poultry livestock accounts for 0.2 percent of animal biomass\u00a0\u2014 more than twice that of wild birds. Bar-On et al. (2018) estimate global poultry biomass to be 0.005 billion tonnes of carbon. This is approximately 0.2 percent of animal biomass (= 0.005 / 2.4 * 100). Wild birds account for only 0.08 percent of animal biomass.{/ref}</p>\n",
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"rendered": "How is life on Earth distributed across the taxonomic kingdoms? Humans make up just 0.01% of life: but we’ve had much larger impacts on shaping the animal kingdom. Livestock now outweighs wild mammals and birds ten-fold.",
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"date_gmt": "2019-04-24T11:00:43",
"modified": "2023-09-01T08:36:10",
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"authors_name": [
"Hannah Ritchie"
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"modified_gmt": "2023-09-01T07:36:10",
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