Sir David Attenborough’s Extinction: The Facts to air on BBC One this month

A Sir David Attenborough documentary examining the fragile state of the natural world will air on BBC One this month, the broadcaster has announced.

The hour-long Extinction: The Facts explores how the crisis reduces humanity’s ability to control the climate and puts the world at greater risk of pandemic diseases, the BBC said.

It examines what is happening to the natural world, how human activity drives extinction and why action has not been taken sooner to stem the losses, according to the corporation.

Extinction: The Facts will air on BBC One on September 13.

Sir David said: “Over the course of my life I’ve encountered some of the world’s most remarkable species of animals. Only now do I realise just how lucky I’ve been. Many of these wonders seem set to disappear forever.

“We are facing a crisis and one that has consequences for us all. It threatens our ability to feed ourselves, to control our climate, it even puts us at greater risk of pandemic diseases such as Covid-19.

“It’s never been more important for us to understand the effects of biodiversity loss, of how it is that we ourselves are responsible for it. Only if we do that, will we have any hope of averting disaster.”

Extinction: The Facts follows on from last year’s Climate Change: The Facts – also presented by Sir David – and comes after a UN report revealed that around one million animal and plant species are threatened with extinction.

It will feature some of the world’s leading scientists.

Extinction: The Facts will be broadcast on BBC One at 8pm on Sunday September 13.