While life might have existed on Earth almost 300 million years earlier than thought, humans have almost wiped it out. Hence, the world is faced with the threat of decimation of wild animals, just like the dinosaurs.
The information was beamed by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) in a report published this week .
"An assessment of 14,152 populations of 3,706 species of mammals, birds, fish, amphibians and reptiles from around the world reveals a 58% fall between 1970 and 2012 - with no sign of the average 2% drop in numbers each year will slow," says mirror.
Worryingly, the vertebrate species has fallen by 67% in the last 50 years.
Marco Lambertini, director general of WWF, said: "The richness and diversity of life on Earth is fundamental to the complex life systems that underpin it. Life supports life itself and we are part of the same equation. Lose biodiversity and the natural world and the life support systems, as we know them today, will collapse."
He said humanity depends on nature for "clean air and water, food and materials, as well as inspiration and happiness."
The Living Planet report says there is expected to be a global "mass extinction".
"For the first time since the demise of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago, we face a global mass extinction of wildlife," said Mike Barrett, director of science and policy at WWF-UK.
"We ignore the decline of other species at our peril - for they are the barometer that reveals our impact on the world that sustains us."
Hence human activities, such poaching on African elephants in Tanzania, farming grasslands in Brazil and disease, over-fishing and challenging river habitats are slowly reducing wildlife.
However, some species depending on certain kinds of environments have improved. Hence, while grassland species have looked up in the last decade, bird populations have declined.
Since 1970, then, terrestrial species have dropped by two-fifths (38%) since 1970. Freshwater species plummeted by four-fifths (81%) between 1970 and 2012. Wetland wildlife increased since 2005, and marine species remains stable since 1988.
Humanity is aware of how to stop it too. "We know how to stop this. It requires governments, businesses and citizens to rethink how we produce, consume, measure success and value the natural environment. In the UK, this demands a serious plan to strengthen protection for habitats and species and new measures to fast-track low-carbon growth," he said.
Professor Ken Norris, director of science at ZSL said: "Human behaviour continues to drive the decline of wildlife populations globally, with particular impact on freshwater habitats."
"Importantly, however, these are declines - they are not yet extinctions - and this should be a wake-up call to marshal efforts to promote the recovery of these populations."
