Human actions are increasing the rate of evolutionary change in plants and animals in ways that may hurt their long-term prospects for survival, scientists are reporting. Hunting, commercial fishing and some conservation regulations, like minimum size limits on fish, may all work against species health. Reproducing at a younger age and smaller size allowed organisms to leave offspring before they were caught or killed. But some evidence suggests that they may not reproduce as well. Fish that are reproducing earlier “on average have far, far, far fewer eggs than those who wait an additional year and grow a few more centimeters.”
Born Free USA has long maintained that hunting to “manage” wildlife is counterproductive.
Research Ties Human Acts to Harmful Rates of Species Evolution
Cornelia Dean
The New York Times