WOS Meeting

February 1, Monday, at 7:00 PM



Mark Oberle

Modern Man and the 6th Mass Extinction

A Case Study of the West Indies







Mark Oberle, a founding member of WOS, is a biologist, physician, and
epidemiologist, and is currently Associate Dean for Public Health Practice
at the UW School of Public Health. His natural history work includes studies
of bird populations in Georgia, and recent books on birds of Puerto Rico and
the Virgin Islands.



According to Oberle, the current (6th) Mass Extinction period has had two
phases: The first phase involved the expansion of human populations onto
isolated islands such as New Zealand, Australia, and the West Indies. The
second phase is the destruction of species on large continental landmasses
due to the increasing numbers of people and the pressure this has put on
habitats and wildlife. The islands of the West Indies offer an instructive -
and ominous - case study. In the last five centuries, 43 of the 197 endemic
birds and mammals in the West Indies have become extinct. What are the
causes of this? What are the lessons for humankind?



WOS Meetings are Free and Open to All



Meetings are held at the Center for Urban Horticulture on the UW campus.