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Life Span

For most humans, it comes as a natural instinct or it comes as second-nature for them briefly to ponder questions about the origins of life, the meaning of life, mortality, immortality, longevity, life span, and life expectancy. Throughout the ages, scientists, researchers, statisticians, lay persons, pundits, scholars, experts, philosophers, academicians, politicians, theologians, and so forth, have sought to shed light on all of these kinds of ponderings.

Most humans, at one point or another in life, also have wondered about the year, date, hour, and circumstances surrounding their own deaths. All living things on Earth have a termination date. A miracle of life is birth, and a paradox of life is death. Scientists also have concluded that the Earth itself has a naturally occurring end date—as opposed to an entirely different question of an end date for life on Earth caused by human activities. Scientists think that the Earth's end date will occur at some point far, far into the future when the Sun runs out of energy and ceases to shine anymore.

Of course, there are some humans who contend that an afterlife of immortality exists or that immortal reincarnation exists after death, but the objective of this page is not to engage in a discussion or a debate about religious faiths. Instead, the objective of this page is to briefly review the longevity or endurance of different life forms on Earth. This page is devoted to looking at the life span of living things, in general, and the life span of humans, in particular, preceding their demise.

Of course, numerous factors or variables affect how long any organism will live. Some of these factors are based on genetics (for example, susceptibility to inheriting a certain kind of devastating or life-threatening disease). Other factors are based on the environment (for example, becoming involved in a fatal accident; being born in a country with the scarce availability of food, clean water, healthcare facilities, and sanitation facilities; becoming a fatal prey to another life form such as, say, a deer being hunted and eaten by a fox). This page does not individually take these kinds of externalities or extenuating circumstances into consideration. Instead, it takes a more broad-based or a more general look at the typical life span of various organisms without the intervention of special circumstances.

There are several ways to view longevity. The preferred way is to look at the average number of years that a given type of organism can be expected to live, which is the life expectancy measure. For instance, based on the USA Census Bureau's research, as of 2016, the average human life span has been determined to be roughly 72.5 years. (See the human life expectancy table below.)

A second way to view longevity is to look at the maximum number of years that a given type of organism has been known to live, which is akin to a ceiling on life for that type of organism. For example, Jeanne Calment of France (born on 21 February 1875 and died on 4 August 1997) is the oldest "officially verified" human to have ever lived. She lived to be 122 years old. So, at the present point in time, the absolute maximum number of years or the ceiling on life for human beings is 122 years. As of 2016, no human can expect to live for more than 122 years.

When it comes to humans alone, notice the wide gap between the average human life span of 72.5 years and the maximum human life span of 122 years. Life for most humans comes to an end closer to the average (of 72.5) rather than the maximum (of 122) years, which is why the average or life expectancy gauge is the preferred gauge to be used when measuring longevity. In other words, most members of any given population tend to conform to the average instead of the maximum.

The Origins of Life on Earth

It is not my intent on this page to engage in a debate about creation versus evolution or a debate about science versus religion. The topic of science versus religion can be very controversial and can be very sensitive for some members of civil society. But, for as long as humans have existed, lay persons, pundits, scholars, experts, philosophers, scientists, academicians, politicians, theologians, and so forth, have pondered and debated the origins and meaning of life. To be sure, at times these debates and disagreements have become so heated to the point of becoming violent and even to the point of becoming murderous, which should never happen on a civilized planet Earth. The truth of the matter about the origins and meaning of life is this: Nobody on Earth really knows the answers to these kinds of metaphysical topics with 100% certainty. There are many humans who profess that the answers have been revealed to them, but they do not really know the answers with 100% certainty.

The only reason why I am mentioning the origins of life here is to give context or background to the diversity of life on Earth. I also must interject that I am a staunch proponent of the scientific educational method. Most scientists estimate that planet Earth is about 4.5 billion years old. Most scientists also think that the very first macroscopic, multicellular life forms could have emerged in Earth's oceans as far back as 600 million years ago. Based on the recorded observations of scientific researchers, based on the application of different scientific techniques of discovery (such as radiometric dating), and based on the fossil record, the next graphic illustrates the manner in which most scientists posit or theorize the pageantry of life unfolded on Earth:

geologic time spiral

The reader should keep in mind that the scientific perspective is but one perspective on the origins of life. There are various—and often competing—religious perspectives concerning metaphysical topics such as the origins of the Universe, the origins of Earth, the origins of life on Earth, the meaning of life, the fate of the Earth (including the fate of Earth's diverse life forms), and the fate of Universe.

The Diversity of Life on Earth

Within the field of scientific investigation and discovery, there is an ongoing, robust effort to inventory and catalog all living organisms on Earth. Website such as Catalogue of Life; Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF); Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS); World Biodiversity Database (WBD), Encyclopedia of Life; ARKive; PLANTS; and Tree of Life Web Project (ToL) reflect this ongoing, robust effort.

With its seemingly infinite variety, scientists have proceeded to devise several classification schemes to categorize life on Earth. As of 2016, one of the more popularly accepted schemes is the 3-domain/6-kingdom classification scheme. Under the 3-domain/6-kingdom classification scheme, scientists have divided Earth's living organisms into three domains or groups. In turn, these three domains are subdivided into six kingdoms or subgroups.

3 Domains

6 Kingdoms

It is not unusual to see a seven-kingdom classification scheme being used whereby, instead of or in place of the Protista Kingdom, some scholars use the Chromista Kingdom and the Protozoa Kingdom. But, as the next two graphics illustrate, this series of groupings and subgroupings of life forms goes all the way up (the tree) to the species level.

One way that an organism gets classified as belonging to a particular species is if its members can successfully reproduce offsprings. For instance, humans cannot produce offsprings with, say, dolphins, which is one of the reasons why they are two distinctive species within the Animal Kingdom. Humans of different racial backgrounds can successfully produce offsprings with one another, which is why humans are classified as belonging to the same species regardless of race. Of course, some humans contend that some races are superior to other races. To be sure, some humans practically spend their entire adult lives preoccupied with matters of racial, gender, religious, and national superiority/inferiority, which can be quite contentious, divisive, and distracting within the human family. For, in my humble opinion, instead of humans wasting time being preoccupied with things like racial, gender, religious, and national superiority/inferiority, a much wiser use of their time would be a universal, simultaneous, and global devotion to transforming Earth into some type of paradise for all to enjoy each day. The objective of this page, however, is not to engage in a discussion or a debate about genetics versus environment. The focus of this page is on the life span of Earth's living things.

biological classification

taxonomic tree with 3 domains

As the above tree-of-life graphic illustrates, this 3-domain/6-kingdom classification scheme is usually laid out in the format of a tree. The tree format is depicted with branches to signify a grouping of related or similar life forms on Earth such that the grouping resembles the picture of a tree with branches and leaves. (See also the TimeTree website, which presents a more elaborate classification scheme.)

The Life Span of Living Things on Earth

Almost all humans would like to keep on living in good mental and physical health forever, but there is a limit to the amount of time that each life form has to be alive. Except plants, in much the same sense that it is very unfortunate that life forms must devour one another for food to stay alive, it is very unfortunate for the living that the nature of life on Earth is such that it does not continue forever. Sooner or later, all life forms will receive that fateful visit from Father Time. When life's hourglass becomes expended, then death is inevitable. For some life forms, death comes sooner in total elapsed time after birth, that is, in a matter of a few weeks, months, or years. For other life forms, death comes later in total elapsed time after birth, that is, in a matter of a few decades, centuries, or millennia.

Although I most probably will be shown to be incorrect for making this statement, to the best of my knowledge, there does not exist a comprehensive database that singularly lists the maximum and average life spans of all life forms on Earth. As I mentioned above, databases do exist that attempt to catalog the whole of life of Earth, but the life span of those various life forms is often omitted from these databases. Information about the life span of organisms generally is scattered all over the place in various documents or in various tables and databases. The reliability of the life span data contained in these various tables is not always well-documented.

The AnAge database is one exception to this scarcity of comprehensive data on life spans. One of the weaknesses or drawbacks of the AnAge database is that it focuses on the life span of organisms within the Animal Kingdom. Of the six kingdoms, the AnAge database primarily focuses on the maximum life spans of living things that have been classified as belonging to the Animal Kingdom.

Due to convenience but primarily due to a lack of readily available and reliable data, this page uses the maximum life span data from the AnAge database to list the top and bottom 20 life spans of living things on Earth. Without further ado, here is the list of the top and bottom 20 life spans of living things on Earth.

Index	Common name	Link	Maximum longevity (years)	Domain	Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family	Genus	Species
Longest Life Spans (Top 20)
L01	Hexactinellid sponge	Link	15,000	Eukarya	Animalia	Porifera	Hexactinellida	Lyssacinosida	Rossellidae	Scolymastra	joubini
L02	Great Basin bristlecone pine	Link	4,713	Eukarya	Plantae	Pinophyta	Pinopsida	Pinales	Pinaceae	Pinus	longaeva
L03	Epibenthic sponge	Link	1,550	Eukarya	Animalia	Porifera	Demospongiae	Spirophorida	Tetillidae	Cinachyra	antarctica
L04	Ocean quahog clam	Link	507	Eukarya	Animalia	Mollusca	Bivalvia	Veneroida	Arcticidae	Arctica	islandica
L05	Bowhead whale	Link	211	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Mammalia	Cetacea	Balaenidae	Balaena	mysticetus
L06	Rougheye rockfish	Link	205	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Scorpaeniformes	Scorpaenidae	Sebastes	aleutianus
L07	Red sea urchin	Link	200	Eukarya	Animalia	Echinodermata	Echinoidea	Echinoida	Strongylocentrotidae	Strongylocentrotus	franciscanus
L08	Galapagos tortoise	Link	177	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Reptilia	Testudines	Testudinidae	Geochelone	nigra
L09	Shortraker rockfish	Link	157	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Scorpaeniformes	Scorpaenidae	Sebastes	borealis
L10	Aldabra tortoise	Link	152	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Reptilia	Testudines	Testudinidae	Geochelone	gigantea
L11	Lake sturgeon	Link	152	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Acipenseriformes	Acipenseridae	Acipenser	fulvescens
L12	Orange roughy	Link	149	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Beryciformes	Trachichthyidae	Hoplostethus	atlanticus
L13	Warty oreo	Link	140	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Zeiformes	Oreosomatidae	Allocyttus	verrucosus
L14	Eastern box turtle	Link	138	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Reptilia	Testudines	Emydidae	Terrapene	carolina
L15	Mediterranean spur-thighed tortoise	Link	127	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Reptilia	Testudines	Testudinidae	Testudo	graeca
L16	Human	Link	122.5	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Mammalia	Primates	Hominidae	Homo	sapiens
L17	European pond tortoise	Link	120	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Reptilia	Testudines	Emydidae	Emys	orbicularis
L18	Rasphead rockfish	Link	118	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Scorpaeniformes	Scorpaenidae	Sebastes	ruberrimus
L19	Beluga sturgeon	Link	118	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Acipenseriformes	Acipenseridae	Huso	huso
L20	Tiger rockfish	Link	116	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Scorpaeniformes	Scorpaenidae	Sebastes	nigrocinctus
Shortest Life Spans (Bottom 20)
S01	Baker's yeast	Link	0.04 (14.6 days)	Bacteria	Fungi	Ascomycota	Saccharomycetes	Saccharomycetales	Saccharomycetaceae	Saccharomyces	cerevisiae
S02	Pygmy goby	Link	0.16 (58.4 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Perciformes	Gobiidae	Eviota	sigillata
S03	Roundworm	Link	0.16 (58.4 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Nematoda	Chromadorea	Rhabditida	Rhabditidae	Caenorhabditis	elegans
S04	Fruit fly	Link	0.3 (109.5 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Arthropoda	Insecta	Diptera	Drosophilidae	Drosophila	melanogaster
S05	Labord's chameleon	Link	0.4 (146 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Reptilia	Squamata	Chamaeleonidae	Furcifer	labordi
S06	Squinting bush brown	Link	0.5 (182.5 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Arthropoda	Insecta	Lepidoptera	Nymphalidae	Bicyclus	anynana
S07	Kilombero	Link	0.8 (292 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Cyprinodontiformes	Aplocheilidae	Nothobranchius	kilomberoensis
S08	Black-stripe minnow	Link	1 (365 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Osmeriformes	Galaxiidae	Galaxiella	nigrostriata
S09	Tidewater goby	Link	1 (365 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Perciformes	Gobiidae	Eucyclogobius	newberryi
S10	Crystal goby	Link	1 (365 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Perciformes	Gobiidae	Crystallogobius	linearis
S11	Code goby	Link	1 (365 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Perciformes	Gobiidae	Gobiosoma	robustum
S12	Chubby flashlightfish	Link	1 (365 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Myctophiformes	Myctophidae	Electrona	risso
S13	Brauer's bristlemouth	Link	1 (365 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Stomiiformes	Gonostomatidae	Cyclothone	braueri
S14	Dwarf seahorse	Link	1 (365 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Gasterosteiformes	Syngnathidae	Hippocampus	zosterae
S15	Korean sandeel	Link	1 (365 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Gasterosteiformes	Hypoptychidae	Hypoptychus	dybowskii
S16	Gila topminnow	Link	1 (365 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Cyprinodontiformes	Poeciliidae	Poeciliopsis	occidentalis
S17	Blackfin pearlfish	Link	1 (365 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Cyprinodontiformes	Aplocheilidae	Austrolebias	nigripinnis
S18	Cherryfin shiner	Link	1 (365 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Cypriniformes	Cyprinidae	Lythrurus	roseipinnis
S19	Turquoise killifish	Link	1.1 (401.5 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Cyprinodontiformes	Aplocheilidae	Nothobranchius	furzeri
S20	Beira killifish	Link	1.2 (438 days)	Eukarya	Animalia	Chordata	Actinopterygii	Cyprinodontiformes	Aplocheilidae	Nothobranchius	kuhntae

Table Credit: AnAge: The Animal Ageing and Longevity Database

From Visually.

The Human Life Span: Signs of Progress Over the Years

Except perhaps a very tiny minority of humans who might be experiencing some sort of adverse psychological malfunction, severe mental imbalance, debilitating physical breakdown, or extreme psycho-ideological fanaticism, it is very seldom do you hear of the Earth's 7 billion human inhabitants expressing a readiness and a willingness to die. Most so-called "normal" or "rational" humans choose living over dying.

As stated above, Jeanne Calment of France (born 21-February-1875 and died 4-August-1997 per Wkipedia.org) lived to be 122 years old. Much like an Olympics record holder, Jeanne Calment currently holds the Guinness World Record for being the oldest "officially verified" human to have ever lived on Earth. Using the table below, how does your longevity compare to Jeanne's?

Jeanne Calment: Oldest Verified Human to Have Ever Lived at 122 years Old
Your Age	% of Jeanne's Age
122 Years Old Right Now	100%
120 Years Old Right Now	98%
110 Years Old Right Now	90%
100 Years Old Right Now	82%
90 Years Old Right Now	74%
80 Years Old Right Now	66%
70 Years Old Right Now	57%
60 Years Old Right Now	49%
50 Years Old Right Now	41%
40 Years Old Right Now	33%
30 Years Old Right Now	25%
20 Years Old Right Now	16%
10 Years Old Right Now	8%

[Source: Our World in Data]

The human life expectancy data in the table below was derived from a database maintained by the U.S. Census Bureau. The human life expectancy data in the table below shows that, when all humans are taken together based on the countries surveyed, on average, the human life span extends to roughly 72.5 years as of 2016. It shows that, on average, males can expect to live for roughly 70 years. Females can expect to live for roughly 75 years. The table shows that the residents of Monaco have the longest average life expectancy of roughly 89.5 years. The residents of Chad have the shortest average life expectancy of roughly 50.2 years.

Count	Country	Region	As of Year	Life expectancy, both sexes (years)	Life expectancy, male (years)	Life expectancy, female (years)
1	Afghanistan	Asia, Southern	2016	51.3	49.9	52.7
2	Albania	Europe, Southern	2016	78.3	75.7	81.2
3	Algeria	Africa, Northern	2016	76.8	75.5	78.2
4	American Samoa	Polynesia, Oceania	2016	75.4	72.4	78.5
5	Andorra	Europe, Southern	2016	82.8	80.6	85.1
6	Angola	Africa, Middle	2016	56.0	54.8	57.2
7	Anguilla	Caribbean, Americas	2016	81.4	78.8	84.1
8	Antigua and Barbuda	Caribbean, Americas	2016	76.5	74.4	78.8
9	Argentina	America, South	2016	77.9	74.6	81.3
10	Armenia	Asia, Western	2016	74.6	71.4	78.3
11	Aruba	Caribbean, Americas	2016	76.8	73.7	79.9
12	Australia	Australia and New Zealand, Oceania	2016	82.2	79.8	84.8
13	Austria	Europe, Western	2016	81.5	78.9	84.3
14	Azerbaijan	Asia, Western	2016	72.5	69.5	75.8
15	Bahamas, The	Caribbean, Americas	2016	72.4	70.0	74.8
16	Bahrain	Asia, Western	2016	78.9	76.7	81.1
17	Bangladesh	Asia, Southern	2016	71.2	69.3	73.3
18	Barbados	Caribbean, Americas	2016	75.3	73.0	77.7
19	Belarus	Europe, Eastern	2016	72.7	67.2	78.6
20	Belgium	Europe, Western	2016	81.0	78.4	83.7
21	Belize	America, Central	2016	68.7	67.2	70.4
22	Benin	Africa, Western	2016	61.9	60.5	63.3
23	Bermuda	America, North	2016	81.3	78.1	84.5
24	Bhutan	Asia, Southern	2016	70.1	69.1	71.1
25	Bolivia	America, South	2016	69.2	66.4	72.1
26	Bosnia and Herzegovina	Europe, Southern	2016	76.7	73.7	80.0
27	Botswana	Africa, Southern	2016	54.5	56.3	52.6
28	Brazil	America, South	2016	73.8	70.2	77.5
29	Brunei	Asia, South-Eastern	2016	77.2	74.8	79.6
30	Bulgaria	Europe, Eastern	2016	74.5	71.2	78.0
31	Burkina Faso	Africa, Western	2016	55.5	53.4	57.6
32	Burma (Myanmar)	Asia, South-Eastern	2016	66.6	64.2	69.2
33	Burundi	Africa, Eastern	2016	60.5	58.8	62.3
34	Cabo Verde	Africa, Western	2016	72.1	69.8	74.5
35	Cambodia	Asia, South-Eastern	2016	64.5	62.0	67.1
36	Cameroon	Africa, Middle	2016	58.5	57.1	59.9
37	Canada	America, North	2016	81.9	79.2	84.6
38	Cayman Islands	Caribbean, Americas	2016	81.2	78.5	84.0
39	Central African Republic	Africa, Middle	2016	52.3	51.0	53.7
40	Chad	Africa, Middle	2016	50.2	49.0	51.5
41	Chile	America, South	2016	78.8	75.7	81.9
42	China	Asia, Eastern	2016	75.5	73.5	77.9
43	Colombia	America, South	2016	75.7	72.6	79.0
44	Comoros	Africa, Eastern	2016	64.2	61.9	66.6
45	Congo, Republic of (Brazzaville)	Africa, Middle	2016	59.3	58.1	60.6
46	Congo, Democratic Republic of (Kinshasa) Zaire	Africa, Middle	2016	57.3	55.8	58.9
47	Cook Islands	Polynesia, Oceania	2016	75.8	73.0	78.8
48	Costa Rica	America, Central	2016	78.6	75.9	81.4
49	Cote d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast)	Africa, Western	2016	58.7	57.5	59.9
50	Croatia	Europe, Southern	2016	76.8	73.2	80.6
51	Cuba	Caribbean, Americas	2016	78.6	76.2	81.0
52	Curacao	Caribbean, Americas	2016	78.3	76.0	80.7
53	Cyprus	Asia, Western	2016	78.7	75.8	81.6
54	Czech Republic	Europe, Eastern	2016	78.6	75.7	81.8
55	Denmark	Europe, Northern	2016	79.4	77.0	82.0
56	Djibouti	Africa, Eastern	2016	63.2	60.7	65.8
57	Dominica	Caribbean, Americas	2016	77.0	74.0	80.1
58	Dominican Republic	Caribbean, Americas	2016	78.1	75.9	80.5
59	Ecuador	America, South	2016	76.8	73.8	79.9
60	Egypt	Africa, Northern	2016	73.9	71.3	76.7
61	El Salvador	America, Central	2016	74.7	71.4	78.1
62	Equatorial Guinea	Africa, Middle	2016	64.2	63.1	65.4
63	Eritrea	Africa, Eastern	2016	64.1	62.0	66.4
64	Estonia	Europe, Northern	2016	76.7	71.9	81.7
65	Ethiopia	Africa, Eastern	2016	62.2	59.8	64.7
66	Faroe Islands	Europe, Northern	2016	80.4	77.8	83.1
67	Fiji	Melanesia, Oceania	2016	72.7	70.0	75.5
68	Finland	Europe, Northern	2016	80.9	77.9	84.0
69	France	Europe, Western	2016	81.8	78.7	85.1
70	French Polynesia	Polynesia, Oceania	2016	77.2	74.9	79.6
71	Gabon	Africa, Middle	2016	52.1	51.6	52.5
72	Gambia, The	Africa, Western	2016	64.9	62.5	67.3
73	Gaza Strip	Asia, Western	2016	75.1	73.3	77.0
74	Georgia	Asia, Western	2016	76.2	72.1	80.6
75	Germany	Europe, Western	2016	80.7	78.4	83.1
76	Ghana	Africa, Western	2016	66.6	64.1	69.1
77	Gibraltar	Europe, Southern	2016	79.4	76.6	82.5
78	Greece	Europe, Southern	2016	80.5	77.9	83.3
79	Greenland	America, North	2016	72.4	69.7	75.2
80	Grenada	Caribbean, Americas	2016	74.3	71.7	77.1
81	Guam	Micronesia, Oceania	2016	79.1	76.1	82.4
82	Guatemala	America, Central	2016	72.3	70.3	74.4
83	Guernsey	Europe, Northern	2016	82.5	79.9	85.4
84	Guinea	Africa, Western	2016	60.6	59.0	62.2
85	Guinea-Bissau	Africa, Western	2016	50.6	48.6	52.7
86	Guyana	America, South	2016	68.4	65.4	71.5
87	Haiti	Caribbean, Americas	2016	63.8	62.4	65.3
88	Honduras	America, Central	2016	71.1	69.5	72.8
89	Hong Kong	Asia, Eastern	2016	82.9	80.3	85.8
90	Hungary	Europe, Eastern	2016	75.9	72.2	79.8
91	Iceland	Europe, Northern	2016	83.0	80.9	85.3
92	India	Asia, Southern	2016	68.5	67.3	69.8
93	Indonesia	Asia, South-Eastern	2016	72.7	70.1	75.5
94	Iran	Asia, Southern	2016	71.4	69.8	73.1
95	Iraq	Asia, Western	2016	74.9	72.6	77.2
96	Ireland	Europe, Northern	2016	80.8	78.5	83.2
97	Isle of Man	Europe, Northern	2016	81.2	79.5	83.0
98	Israel	Asia, Western	2016	82.4	80.6	84.4
99	Italy	Europe, Southern	2016	82.2	79.6	85.0
100	Jamaica	Caribbean, Americas	2016	73.6	72.0	75.3
101	Japan	Asia, Eastern	2016	85.0	81.7	88.5
102	Jersey	Europe, Northern	2016	81.9	79.4	84.5
103	Jordan	Asia, Western	2016	74.6	73.2	76.1
104	Kazakhstan	Asia, Central	2016	70.8	65.6	75.7
105	Kenya	Africa, Eastern	2016	64.0	62.6	65.5
106	Kiribati	Micronesia, Oceania	2016	66.2	63.7	68.8
107	Korea, North	Asia, Eastern	2016	70.4	66.6	74.5
108	Korea, South	Asia, Eastern	2016	80.3	77.2	83.5
109	Kosovo	Europe, Southern	2016	71.6	69.5	73.9
110	Kuwait	Asia, Western	2016	78.0	76.6	79.4
111	Kyrgyzstan	Asia, Central	2016	70.7	66.5	75.1
112	Laos	Asia, South-Eastern	2016	64.3	62.2	66.4
113	Latvia	Europe, Northern	2016	74.5	69.9	79.3
114	Lebanon	Asia, Western	2016	77.6	76.3	78.9
115	Lesotho	Africa, Southern	2016	53.0	52.9	53.1
116	Liberia	Africa, Western	2016	59.0	57.3	60.8
117	Libya	Africa, Northern	2016	76.5	74.7	78.3
118	Liechtenstein	Europe, Western	2016	81.9	79.7	84.6
119	Lithuania	Europe, Northern	2016	74.9	69.5	80.6
120	Luxembourg	Europe, Western	2016	82.3	79.8	84.9
121	Macau	Asia, Eastern	2016	84.5	81.6	87.6
122	Macedonia	Europe, Southern	2016	76.2	73.6	79.0
123	Madagascar	Africa, Eastern	2016	65.9	64.4	67.4
124	Malawi	Africa, Eastern	2016	61.2	59.2	63.2
125	Malaysia	Asia, South-Eastern	2016	75.0	72.2	78.0
126	Maldives	Asia, Southern	2016	75.6	73.3	78.0
127	Mali	Africa, Western	2016	55.8	53.9	57.7
128	Malta	Europe, Southern	2016	80.4	78.0	82.8
129	Marshall Islands	Micronesia, Oceania	2016	73.1	70.9	75.4
130	Mauritania	Africa, Western	2016	63.0	60.7	65.4
131	Mauritius	Africa, Eastern	2016	75.6	72.2	79.2
132	Mexico	America, Central	2016	75.9	73.1	78.8
133	Micronesia, Federated States of	Micronesia, Oceania	2016	72.9	70.8	75.0
134	Moldova	Europe, Eastern	2016	70.7	66.9	74.8
135	Monaco	Europe, Western	2016	89.5	85.6	93.5
136	Mongolia	Asia, Eastern	2016	69.6	65.4	74.1
137	Montenegro	Europe, Southern	2016	78.6	75.6	81.8
138	Montserrat	Caribbean, Americas	2016	74.4	75.8	72.9
139	Morocco	Africa, Northern	2016	76.9	73.8	80.1
140	Mozambique	Africa, Eastern	2016	53.3	52.6	54.1
141	Namibia	Africa, Southern	2016	51.4	51.9	50.9
142	Nauru	Micronesia, Oceania	2016	67.1	63.0	70.5
143	Nepal	Asia, Southern	2016	67.9	66.5	69.3
144	Netherlands	Europe, Western	2016	81.3	79.2	83.6
145	New Caledonia	Melanesia, Oceania	2016	77.7	73.7	81.9
146	New Zealand	Australia and New Zealand, Oceania	2016	81.2	79.1	83.3
147	Nicaragua	America, Central	2016	73.2	71.1	75.5
148	Niger	Africa, Western	2016	55.5	54.3	56.8
149	Nigeria	Africa, Western	2016	53.4	52.4	54.5
150	Northern Mariana Islands	Micronesia, Oceania	2016	78.0	75.3	80.8
151	Norway	Europe, Northern	2016	81.8	79.8	83.9
152	Oman	Asia, Western	2016	75.5	73.5	77.5
153	Pakistan	Asia, Southern	2016	67.7	65.8	69.8
154	Palau	Micronesia, Oceania	2016	73.1	69.9	76.5
155	Panama	America, Central	2016	78.6	75.8	81.6
156	Papua New Guinea	Melanesia, Oceania	2016	67.2	65.0	69.5
157	Paraguay	America, South	2016	77.2	74.5	80.0
158	Peru	America, South	2016	73.7	71.7	75.9
159	Philippines	Asia, South-Eastern	2016	69.2	65.7	72.9
160	Poland	Europe, Eastern	2016	77.6	73.7	81.7
161	Portugal	Europe, Southern	2016	79.3	76.1	82.8
162	Puerto Rico	Caribbean, Americas	2016	79.4	75.8	83.1
163	Qatar	Asia, Western	2016	78.7	76.7	80.8
164	Romania	Europe, Eastern	2016	75.1	71.7	78.8
165	Russia	Europe, Eastern	2016	70.8	65.0	76.8
166	Rwanda	Africa, Eastern	2016	60.1	58.5	61.7
167	Saint Barthelemy	Caribbean, Americas	2016	79.6	76.5	82.9
168	Saint Helena	Africa, Western	2016	79.5	76.6	82.6
169	Saint Kitts and Nevis	Caribbean, Americas	2016	75.7	73.3	78.2
170	Saint Lucia	Caribbean, Americas	2016	77.8	75.0	80.7
171	Saint Martin	Caribbean, Americas	2016	79.6	76.5	82.9
172	Saint Pierre and Miquelon	America, North	2016	80.5	78.2	83.0
173	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Caribbean, Americas	2016	75.3	73.3	77.4
174	Samoa	Polynesia, Oceania	2016	73.7	70.8	76.8
175	San Marino	Europe, Southern	2016	83.3	80.7	86.1
176	Sao Tome and Principe	Africa, Middle	2016	64.9	63.6	66.3
177	Saudi Arabia	Asia, Western	2016	75.3	73.2	77.4
178	Senegal	Africa, Western	2016	61.7	59.7	63.8
179	Serbia	Europe, Southern	2016	75.5	72.6	78.5
180	Seychelles	Africa, Eastern	2016	74.7	70.2	79.4
181	Sierra Leone	Africa, Western	2016	58.2	55.6	60.9
182	Singapore	Asia, South-Eastern	2016	85.0	82.3	87.8
183	Sint Maarten	Caribbean, Americas	2016	78.1	75.8	80.6
184	Slovakia	Europe, Eastern	2016	77.1	73.5	80.9
185	Slovenia	Europe, Southern	2016	78.2	74.6	82.0
186	Solomon Islands	Melanesia, Oceania	2016	75.3	72.7	78.1
187	Somalia	Africa, Eastern	2016	52.4	50.3	54.5
188	South Africa	Africa, Southern	2016	63.1	61.6	64.6
189	South Sudan	Africa, Eastern	2016	61.2	59.7	62.7
190	Spain	Europe, Southern	2016	81.7	78.7	84.9
191	Sri Lanka	Asia, Southern	2016	76.8	73.3	80.4
192	Sudan	Africa, Northern	2016	64.1	62.0	66.3
193	Suriname	America, South	2016	72.2	69.8	74.8
194	Swaziland	Africa, Southern	2016	51.6	52.2	51.0
195	Sweden	Europe, Northern	2016	82.1	80.2	84.1
196	Switzerland	Europe, Western	2016	82.6	80.3	85.0
197	Syria	Asia, Western	2016	74.9	72.5	77.4
198	Taiwan	Asia, Eastern	2016	80.1	77.0	83.5
199	Tajikistan	Asia, Central	2016	67.7	64.6	71.0
200	Tanzania	Africa, Eastern	2016	62.2	60.8	63.6
201	Thailand	Asia, South-Eastern	2016	74.7	71.5	78.0
202	Timor-Leste (East Timor)	Asia, South-Eastern	2016	68.1	66.5	69.7
203	Togo	Africa, Western	2016	65.0	62.3	67.7
204	Tonga	Polynesia, Oceania	2016	76.2	74.7	77.8
205	Trinidad and Tobago	Caribbean, Americas	2016	72.9	69.9	75.9
206	Tunisia	Africa, Northern	2016	76.1	74.0	78.4
207	Turkey	Asia, Western	2016	74.8	72.5	77.3
208	Turkmenistan	Asia, Central	2016	70.1	67.1	73.3
209	Turks and Caicos Islands	Caribbean, Americas	2016	79.8	77.1	82.7
210	Tuvalu	Polynesia, Oceania	2016	66.5	64.3	68.8
211	Uganda	Africa, Eastern	2016	55.4	54.0	56.9
212	Ukraine	Europe, Eastern	2016	71.8	67.1	76.9
213	United Arab Emirates	Asia, Western	2016	77.5	74.8	80.2
214	United Kingdom	Europe, Northern	2016	80.7	78.5	83.0
215	United States	America, North	2016	79.8	77.5	82.1
216	Uruguay	America, South	2016	77.2	74.1	80.5
217	Uzbekistan	Asia, Central	2016	73.8	70.7	77.0
218	Vanuatu	Melanesia, Oceania	2016	73.4	71.8	75.1
219	Venezuela	America, South	2016	74.7	71.5	78.0
220	Vietnam	Asia, South-Eastern	2016	73.4	70.9	76.2
221	Virgin Islands, British	Caribbean, Americas	2016	78.6	77.2	80.1
222	Virgin Islands, U.S.	Caribbean, Americas	2016	80.0	77.0	83.2
223	Wallis and Futuna	Polynesia, Oceania	2016	79.7	76.7	82.8
224	West Bank	Asia, Western	2016	76.1	74.0	78.4
225	Western Sahara	Africa, Northern	2016	63.0	60.7	65.4
226	Yemen	Asia, Western	2016	65.5	63.4	67.8
227	Zambia	Africa, Eastern	2016	52.5	50.8	54.1
228	Zimbabwe	Africa, Eastern	2016	58.0	57.3	58.7
229	World	World	2016	72.5	70.0	75.0

Table Credit: International Programs - Information Gateway - U.S. Census Bureau

[Source: U.S. Census Bureau]

Generally speaking, humans tend to view themselves as being "special" creatures relative to the other life forms on Earth. Granted, humans have erected an elaborate artificial world within the confines of the natural world. Granted, humans have made great strides in science and technology such as unraveling how life's genome works, unraveling the molecular nature of being, launching spacecrafts on journeys to the stars, and so forth. Granted, many humans live luxurious, pampered lifestyles relative to the oftentimes harsh struggle for survival experienced by most of the Earth's other life forms. Even within the human family, in terms of enjoying a high quality of life, granted, some humans are a lot more fortunate than others. But, when you get right down to it, humans are no different from any of the other living things on Earth. That is to say, humans, too, undergo the same phases of birth, growth, maturation, reproduction, decline, and death as do the Earth's other life forms. Humans, too, require the Sun, air, water, and food to survive as do the Earth's other life forms. For the period of elapsed time between the birth and death phases of life, all living things have to obtain food and water (and shelter) to survive whether it entails working, scavenging, or preying to obtain these things.

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A Tool to Explore the Variety of Life on Earth

Finally, courtesy of Species 2000 in conjunction with the above-mentioned Catalogue of Life website, here's a tool for you to conveniently begin exploring the variety of life on Earth. Enjoy exploring.