Save Endangered Animals
Save the animals that provide us with our needs!
Introduction
Do you know what polar bears, giant pandas, and tigers all have in common? They are all endangered animals. Currently, there are over 16,000 endangered species in the world. (Spilsbury 7) Humans are harming species in many different ways: pollution, over exploitation, overhunting, and destruction of their habitats. Today, the extinction rate is about 1000 times faster than the rate of natural extinction which is one per million species each year. There have been over 850 recorded extinctions in the past 500 years. (Spilsbury 7) By increasing the extinction rate, humans are slowly killing the future. They may be just animals to some people, but they are the key to life.
Claim
Endangered animals should be preserved because they support the environment and help humans in many ways.
Concession
Some people say that certain species, such as the lamprey, should be allowed to die out because they are invasive and hurt the environment.
Concession
People also say that the extinction of most animals won't affect humans much.
Rebuttal
However, most people do not know that the extinction of one animal could lead to a chain reaction, causing the many more extinctions, which will harm the environment greatly.
First, all animals in an ecosystem support the environment. The survival of each species is very important to the biodiversity of an ecosystem. Biodiversity refers to all of the species living in a biome. ("Wildlife") Each animal is linked to each other by food chains. For example, bees pollinate plants and flowers; plants and flowers provide food to animals; animals help distribute seeds to grow more plants which provide to bees. This is also an example of interdependence. It means that they need each other to survive.("Wildlife") If one animal becomes extinct, it will cause a chain reaction of several more extinctions. The effect of this chain reaction will eventually reach us and hurt us in many ways.
This video shows what would happen if one species goes extinct
What if bees went extinct? - Zoo La La - Earth Unplugged
Second, animals help humans in many ways. They provide us with many necessities along with many cultural, scientific, and medical benefits. Many animals provide us food: meat from pigs, milk from cows, and vegetables from bees (from pollination). Along with food, animals provide us lots of help in science and health. Animals are often used in research and can help discover many new cures to deadly diseases. Over one-fourth of all prescriptions in the United States contain chemicals that were discovered in plants and animals. ("Why Save Endangered Species") Animals even help the economy by raising lots of money each year. Bird watching brings in about 400 million dollars into Texas's state economy a year. ("Why Save Endangered Species") Think about how much money is earned around the world. Animals provide so much materials for humans, so we should try to save them.
Conclusion
Endangered animals should be protected because they strengthen the environment and provide humans with numerous resources. Without animals, we would have no food, clothing or medicine. This lack of resources would cause a huge loss of population. We need to preserve these animals to save our world. Stop polluting, hunt less, and protest for more animal reserves. Little by little, we can save the key to our future.
Works Cited
Spilsbury, Louise, and Richard Spilsbury. Animals under Threat. Chicago, IL: Heinemann Library, 2007. Print.
"Why Save Endangered Species?" Why Save Endangered Species? United States Federal Government, 2005. Web. 8 Feb. 2015. <http://www.fws.gov/nativeamerican/pdf/why-save-endangered-species.pdf>.
"Wildlife." National Wildlife Federation. National Wildlife Federation, 2013. Web. 10 Feb. 2015. <http://www.nwf.org/Wildlife.aspx>.