Ally Tinnermann Endangered Species Imagine a world filled with millions of different species of animals. Then, imagine that same world but with no more mammals, amphibians, or reptiles. Many people consider themselves animal lovers. So, ask yourself, it possible to live in a world without animals? An endangered species is a species that is at serious risk of extinction. Jennifer Sexton and Tom Warhol say on their website, Endangered species, that as the world is continuing to grow at an alarming rate and cities are becoming larger, the impact it has on the animals around us is devastating.
More species are endangered and facing extinction than ever before. The World Conservation Union estimated that around 40 percent of all organisms are endangered due to a few main causes; habitat destruction, pollution, introduced species, or overhunting and overfishing. Some people feel that it is not worth the resources and money to save endangered species. Whilst many others are doing everything in their power to save endangered animals. So, the question is should we keep endangered species in the spotlight, or is it too costly trying to save them?
The following information is from the Red List, a list made by the World Conservation Union (International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, or IUCN) detailing the global conservation status and risk of extinction of thousands of species of animals and plants. The red list states that from 2014 the number of endangered species, that includes mammals, birds, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, insects, molluscs, plants, and fungi, increased by 7,011 species.
That number doesn’t even include the vulnerable species or critically endangered species. So, we ask ourselves, what is causing so many species to become endangered? One main reason for endangered species is overhunting and overfishing. People like to hunt or fish during their free time whilst others make it their sport. Animals are hunted for almost everything; a prize, for their meat, and fur. Because of this humans have the tendency to over hunt animals. While they may think it’s fun or a game, they do not realize the impact it has on the animal population.
Information from the JRank Encyclopedia explains how species such as the dodo, passenger pigeon, great auk, and steller’s sea cow have been hunted to extinction due to over hunting and fishin continues puts marine life in danger as well as animals on land. Another main reason animals are becoming endangered is because of introduced species. An introduced species is a species that may or may not be exotic and is brought to a new location by humans, on accident, or on purpose.
When these species are introduced, the native species are left to suffer. Rob Nagel says in his book Endangered Species that in most cases introduced species can really negatively affect ecological balances. Introduced species compete with the native species for everyday needs such as food and shelter and can even prey on the native species. Another reason animals are so at risk is because of animal smuggling. Although there are laws to outlaw the hunting and capturing of endangered species, those laws are very hard to enforce.
Rob Nagel says that many groups internationally smuggle animals to earn money as it is a very popular business. Also, the animal population is decreasing due to habitat destruction. The destruction of a habitat can happen over night or even over a long span of time. For example, sewage from a city or chemical runoff from a local farm can have a huge affect on a habitat. It can affect the quality of water in a body of water, and this can seriously effect the species of that habitat. Rob Nagel says in his book Endangered Species, hat species are now being forced to live in small crowded areas. Rob states that because of this it is even harder for species to adapt to the environment which makes them susceptible to extinction. Scientist are now even believing that when a habitat is cut down ninety percent of one half of all its life forms will become extinct. People ask so what can be done to prevent extinction, or decrease the amount of endangered species? Well, many nations have created laws to decrease hunting as well as the growth of cities.
Jennifer Sexton and Tom Warhol also say in their article Endangered Species: An Overview, that nations also working to build preserves to give endangered wildlife a form of protection. Many small groups like the World Conservation Union and the World Wildlife Federation are just some of many examples of the groups working hard to protect endangered species. Because of their acts many species have returned from the brink of extinction but, there’s still much work to be done.
One example that shows how a small group can heavily impact an endangered species is the example of the Guadalupe Seal. JRank Encyclopedia says that The Guadalupe seal’s population was plentiful especially along the beaches of western Mexico during the 19th century. Their population consisted of around 200,000 selas. The marine mammal was over hunted for its fur and almost became extinct in the 1920’s. Everyone thought all hope was lost for the seals until a group of 14 seals and pups, were found off Baja California on Guadalupe island in 1950.
In 1975 it was declared as a sanctuary for the seals. Because of these actions of saving the seals there are now over 1,000 seals spreading to new territories. The only way to keep saving these endangered species is to continue protecting them. Small and large groups continue to decrease the number of endangered species everyday. But, if efforts are stopped, over a period of time hundreds or thousands of species will surely become extinct. So, ask yourself, is it possible to live in a World without animals?
