By Sal Weis:
There is no denying that the generations of today face a wide variety of serious issues. These range from global warming all the way to water pollution. Yet despite the seriousness of these matters there is another issue that is even more pressing. This issue is saving the worlds endangered animals.
Endangered Species And Deforestation
According to The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), roughly 40 percent of all organisms are endangered, and unless we act now this number is expected to grow! Such a high number of endangered animals stem from a wide variety of reasons, but the usual culprit is our own deforestation.
Mass deforestation began as a way for developing countries to support booming economic and industrial growth. The effects of this development is staggering. The removal of natural animal habitat deprives animals of their natural habitat, which in turn forces them to either relocate or perish. The problem that arises from this is that many species of the world are indigenous to specific locations. This means that outside of a man-made environment there are very few places for these animals to migrate to.
The result is a species on the brink of extinction and an ecosystem left in complete chaos as other animals up the food chain struggle to find an alternative source. This in itself perpetuates a devastating cycle as some of these animals are unable to find a good replacement. This places these animals on the verge of extinction as well and thus the cycle continues.
When it comes to humans, the conventional wisdom is that we are fortunate enough to have a wide variety of food sources available, so if one becomes extinct we can readily switch to another. In theory this sounds very good, but realistically it is only a matter of time before we begin to seriously start to feel the effects of our own destruction. In certain populations, such as the tribes of the Amazon and the Mediterranean, humans are already feeling these effects in the form of depleted food sources and in effect starvation.
Why Every Species Counts
Every animal, both big and small, plays an important role in the ecosystem. Even if that role is only to provide food for other species higher up in the food chain, this is still an important task. When we sit at home with our families and enjoy fresh home cooked meals we often take for granted the resources that it took to provide these for us. The resources we consume often come from animals or habitat that is destroyed for our own use.
It is an interesting paradox that in attempting to increase our own chances of survival, the human race has diminished the chances of survival for many animals. Yet by decreasing the chances of survival of certain animals, we in turn decrease our own! This is obviously a very flawed way of thinking, and yet as a society it is the principle we have chosen to live by.
Despite the grim outlook on our environment it is not too late to save the world. We can each begin by spreading the word in our local communities and raising a consciousness of environmental awareness. It will take each and every one of us to shift our way of thinking about resources so that we may begin to create and protect, rather than use and destroy them. Lets join together and save the world one species at a time!