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2150 milestone: The landmark mass extinction of species incurred by growth in human population and industry during the 18th through 22nd centuries is winding down at last

Very few of the preserves were large and rich enough to maintain a critical mass of many species, along with their essential supporting lifeforms. But even in the cases where size and fecundity weren't a problem, something else like poachers, disease, introduction of injurious foreign species, sickness from environmental pollution, or budget shortfalls would bring about failure some other way.

Today the last, most important vestiges of the diverse fauna and flora possessed by the Earth before humanity's rapid development of past centuries resides in what DNA and frozen tissue samples could be preserved by various philanthropic and environmental organizations. One major storage facility is actually located in Antarctica, for supplemental capacity and the ultimate backup in case technological refrigeration facilities fail.

The heavy and almost unrestricted industrial and commercial development of Earth over past centuries, plus the rapid growth in human population, has essentially covered much of the planet in a vast landscape of suburbs and industrial complexes, punctuated here and there with glittering mega-cities and/or mountainous single structure arcologies.

Parks and complementery strips of natural foilage are abundant-- at least amid the better designed locations-- but substantial portions of these are partially or wholly synthetic in nature (non-living), and those which are not often require protection from an adverse environment, in the form of transparent or translucent domes, tensile structures, and tunnels.

By far the largest expanses of somewhat diverse living greenery today don't exist on land at all, but at sea, atop vast floating artificial islands. These are what remain of some of the preservation efforts of earlier days. The floating green islands have become important environmental modification plants in their own right now, as nature alone can no longer provide the bulk of our biospheric life support system. Indeed, the diet of much of the world today consists of algae specially processed to resemble and taste like traditional foods of previous centuries.

Unfortunately, the islands are much more fragile and costly to maintain than the natural systems they emulate ever were. The cost is sufficient to be a significant burden on every world citizen now, in the form of various support taxes. The islands are also woefully vulnerable to disease, sabotage, and other untoward events, necessitating robust security measures for their protection.

On the brighter side, the financial requirements of maintaining such artificial biospheric recycling plants both on land and at sea has greatly diminished what individual world states may devote to their own military armaments, and also helped bring about stronger treaties promoting peace, prosperity, and cooperation worldwide.

Few world citizens ever step foot on the sea-based preserves, though they are familiar sights in the media.

Many of the domesticated animals familiar to 20th century folk still survive today in and around human living quarters-- although we are often fiddling with their genes to modify them in strange ways nowadays, as well as constructing cyborg versions to better suit our wants.

As for wildlife, both plant and animal, that's a far different story.

The inhabitants of Earth circa 2150 experience remarkably similar species of wildlife the world over. The planet's wildlife has been homogenized by rampant transport of species between continents and oceans. The resulting competition, along with the ever present human effect, has led to pretty much the same survivor species everywhere.

Rats, pigeons, crows, coyotes, and cockroaches are abundant in the present day environment. Most people never see any other types of wild animals except in media presentations. Even the sight of a mature and majestic large hardwood tree like a living Oak is a rare treat this century (though artificial versions abound).

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