The Earth  is entering a new extinction phase

   Climate change and deforestation are among the reasons we may be facing an extinction event

The global demand for rubber tyres is threatening protected forests in Southeast Asia, according to a study. Tropical forests are being cleared for rubber plantations, putting endangered birds, bats and primates at risk, say UK researchers. By 2024, up to 8.5 million hectares of new rubber plantations will be needed to meet demand, they report in Conservation Letters. This could have a "catastrophic" impact on wildlife, they warn. Species such as the endangered white-shouldered ibis, yellow-cheeked crested gibbon and clouded leopard could lose precious habitat, said the team led by Eleanor Warren-Thomas, from the School of Environmental Sciences at the University of East Anglia. Also, the banteng, which is found in the forests of Cambodia. There's a lot we can do as scientists and the public to make rubber production more wildlife-friendly. "The tyre industry consumes 70% of all natural rubber grown, and rising demand for vehicle and aeroplane tyres is behind the recent expansion of plantations. But the impact of this is a loss of tropical biodiversity," she said. "We predict that between 4.3 and 8.5 million hectares of new plantations will be required to meet projected demand by 2024. This will threaten significant areas of Asian forest, including many protected areas." Eight-point-five million hectares is about the size of the land area of Austria. Biodiversity concern Rubber is the most rapidly expanding tree crop within mainland Southeast Asia.

The 100 most distinct and rare birds Philippine's eagle: The Philippine's eagle is at number eight The world's 100 most distinctive and endangered birds have been determined. Scientists in the UK and US chose the birds based on their rarity, but also how distinctive their appearance, behaviour and evolutionary history was. The list of birds contains several of the world's largest and most striking, as well as other unusual species threatened with extinction. Included are the tooth-billed pigeon, known as the little dodo, the Philippine's eagle and a type of kiwi. Scientists at the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), UK and Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, US created the list as part of the EDGE of Existence programme, which seeks to document the most uniquely vulnerable species on the planet. Details of the exercise are published in the journal Current Biology. Giant ibis. The giant ibis stands tall at the top of the list At number one is a bird called the giant ibis. The largest member of the ibis and spoonbill family, the giant ibis stands over a metre tall, weighs 4.2kg and is the national bird of Cambodia. Despite this, fewer than 230 pairs remain. As well as being more distantly related to other members of its family, the giant ibis is expected to further decline in numbers due to habitat destruction and the predation of its eggs by mammals.

Emissions of CO2 driving rapid oceanic acidification

The world's oceans are becoming acidic at an "unprecedented rate", more rapidly than at any time in the past 300 million years. In their strongest statement yet on this issue, scientists say acidification could increase by 170% by 2100. They say that some 30% of ocean species are unlikely to survive in these conditions. The researchers conclude that human emissions of CO2 are clearly to blame. The study will be presented at global climate talks in Poland next week.

In 2012, over 500 of the world's leading experts on ocean acidification gathered in California. Led by the International Biosphere-Geosphere Programme, a review of the state of the science has now been published. This Summary for Policymakers states with "very high confidence" that increasing acidification is caused by human activities which are adding 24 million tonnes of CO2 to oceans every day.

Humanity’s greenhouse gas emissions have been building up in the atmosphere and warming the planet for the past 150 years, dragging us into the uncharted Anthropocene, or age of man. Almost all of the planet's tropical mountain glaciers have retreated or disappeared in recent decades, including those in the South American Andes, Asian Himalaya, and African Rwenzoris.

The resulting meltwater is finding its way into the oceans. Globally, they are rising at an average of 3.5 millimetres per year – roughly twice the rate seen during the 20th Century. Sea levels are expected to rise by around 2.3 metres (7.6 feet) for every 1C of warming in the coming decades, according to a study published by scientists at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Research last month. Most of the rise in the past decade was thanks to thermal expansion – at higher temperatures the water takes up a greater volume because its molecules move about more. Now however glacial melt has overtaken thermal expansion as the leading cause of rising sea levels.

At the poles, change is underway of a magnitude so extreme that Earth hasn’t experienced its like for over 10 million years. The Arctic is warming at least twice as fast as anywhere else on the planet. One estimate suggests future average global warming of 2-3C, for example, would mean Arctic warming of 6-8C. This is partly because of the hot southerly winds bearing soot pollutants converging on the region. These particles absorb the sun’s rays and when they land on the surface attached to snowflakes they darken it and speed up melting.