I recently read an article on hermit crabs that were using plastic bottle caps as homes instead of discarded snail shells. I think this seemingly tiny act really shows how much of an impact we have had as a species on the environment around us. For these animals to have chosen dirty plastic bottle caps and broken light bulb shells instead of their natural spiral shells is a devastating realisation. The scientists who were studying this found that 10 out of the 16 species of terrestrial crabs were using artificial shells like this. That is way too many!

It isn’t too late to make a change though. If we actually put funding into removing pollution from our oceans and land then not only would it make the biodiversity increase but also, for those concerned about money, it would actually increase the revenue gained from things like tourism. Companies really need to start caring more about their impact and less about profits otherwise the planet will pay more than it already has. Whilst there are things that we as individuals are able to do, like recycling where possible and reducing waste, it is so much more difficult if the major companies are not on board, as they are the producers of most of the plastic waste and pollution found in our oceans.