Heh...but mosquitoes, flies and gnat with be the survivors.

Really? In three years two-thirds of the Earth's animals "may" be gone? In three years I doubt it will be as much as a tenth of one percent unless the piece has the date wrong and it was meant to be 2220.

From the PDF: "United Nations targets that aim to halt the loss of biodiversity are designed to be achieved by 2020; but by then species populations may have declined on average by 67 per cent over the last half-century."
That means two-thirds decline from 1970-2020, as stated in the article.

Mark Mitchell, try reading the report. From the exec summary:
The Living Planet Index shows a decline of 58 per cent between 1970 and 2012 with greatest losses in freshwater environments.
If current trends continue to 2020 vertebrate populations may decline by an average of 67 per cent compared to 1970.
We are already most of the way to the 2/3 losses they state, and that's just since 1970.
Of course, the elephant in the room is human population growth and the completely unsustainable numbers we currently exist at, let alone what it will be in anouther few decades. Unless humans stop breeding like rabbits, this planet is going to be completely screwed beyond short-term recovery in less than a century. Of course, we can't talk about controlling human breeding, after all it a human's god-given right to breed uncontrollably, isn't it.

Why should we settle for the loss of even a single species?

s@ CAVUMark
Simple some species are not fit for purpose., its called evolution. For example the Panda is not exactly a good evolutionary species way to specialised for its own good (and no sex drive!). What we need to do is stop worrying about headliners, panda's, rhinos really don't matter in planetary terms, other species will easily fill their role.
It species such as bees we need to worry more about, if they disappear then there is more consequential environmental affects. Although notice other insects are stepping in to take over in own garden the role of the bee. Nature and evolution is very resilient!
Its not global warming, loss of species etc., we have to worry about its virtually irrelevant, its human population than needs to be halted. Less than 20% of current population should be our target, you can then forget the other issues!

Sure, one day the Sun could stop shining . Remember of the "scare mongering" predictions of the "Club de Rome", some 40 years ago. In fact if they were true, we are almost all dead by starvation, overpopulation and the end of terrestrial ressources.

I call bullsh*t.

If the key is population, then some volunteers are certainly welcome. Except, of course, for the enlightened ones.

Poaching in Africa is a terrible thing. But here in the USA animals are making a huge come-back since the 1970s. In my backyard this year my trail cam has captured skunks, squirrls, chipmonks, racoons, coyotes, deer, bears, foxes and opossums. I have seen bald eagles and red tail hawks perched on light poles along Interstate highways. When I was a kid most of these animals were rare!