Better ecological knowledge drove 1960s urgency over species extinction
Evidence
As more animal and plant species were identiļ¬ed, the number of them found to be at risk, threatened, or recently extinct also became better understood. ā¦ At the same time, scientists began to appreciate, often for the ļ¬rst time, the distinct ecological importance of different species and subspecies and the disappearing nature of the critical habitats upon which they depended for their survival. ā Richard J. Lazarus, The Making of Environmental Law, 304