Endangered Animals
Shueyeng Vue
Biodiversity/Human impacts
- Biodiversity is the variety of different types of life found on the Earth and the variations within species.
- As the human population grows and the rich countries continue to consume resources at fast rates, we are crowding out, poisoning and eating all other species into extinction.
- Humans caused 322+ animals extinction over in the past 500 years
- We illegally hunt and kill animals. We bring exotic species into habitats. All of these activities take resources and habitats away from plants and animals.
- Article : http://www.britannica.com/science/endangered-species
- Article:http://www.anapsid.org/animalshumans.html
- Both of the articles talks about how humans have causes animals to be endangered. Humans causes these threats to the endangered species by destroying their habitat, using them for food & fashion industry, and as pets. The articles also encourage people to reduce,reuse,recycle to help prevent more damage to the endangered species and to not pour paint or chemicals into the ground or into the gutter. One of the articles talk about the U.S passing a law called the Endangered species Act of 1973 obligates federal and states governments to protect all life threatened with extinction. This process is aided by the creation and continued maintenance of an endangered species list, which contains 1,890 domestic species of endangered or threatened animals and plants.
Florida Panther
- The Florida panther once ranged throughout the southeastern United States, but now survives in a tiny area of South Florida.
- It was listed as an endangered species in 1967 because of habitat destruction and fragmentation through urban sprawl.
San Joaquin kit Fox
- The San Joaquin kit fox was relatively common until the 1930s, when people began to convert grasslands to farms, orchards and cities.
- The kit fox was listed as endangered in 1967. Today there are fewer than 7,000 scattered among fragmented populations.
Polar Bear
- The rapid growth of the global human population — which has doubled since 1970 which has fed a massive push for more and more polluting fossil fuels and dramatically altered the planet's atmosphere which is melting the ice.
Global issue/concern
Human impact on the past/present/future
- Human populations are growing fast which causes animals and plants to disappear 1000 times faster than they have in the past 65 million years.
- Scientists estimate that in the 21st century 100 species will become extinct every day.
- People should care about this because if we keep killing off different species, we will threaten the biodiversity food web. This could potentially kill off even more species due to competition and lack of prey. The diversity of animal and plant life provide us with food and many of our life-saving medicines. When a species is lost, the benefits it might have provided are gone forever.
Article: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1852758/
Articles: http://education.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/endangered-species/
- Both of these articles talks about when a species is extinct. When a species is extinct, it can no longer be brought back into this world so it is important for us to preserve them for biodiversity. It also explains how and when a species is determined "endangered". A species is classified as endangered when its population has declined at least 70% and the cause of the decline is known.The number of documented extinctions since 1500 AD is now 784 species and the IUCN estimates that extinction rates are now 50 to 500 times higher than previous rates calculated from the fossil record.
Possible Solution
Protecting and restoring the habitats on which endangered species and other wildlife depend for their survival, and encouraging wildlife-friendly land management practices.
- Reducing threats to wildlife that can lead to their endangerment and extinction, such as loss of habitat, contamination of water and spread of invasive species.
- Defending and strengthening the Endangered Species Act, which provides an essential legal safety net to prevent the loss of plant and animal species to extinction.
- Smart Collars is a new technology used on endangered species to keep track of the species location,behavior, and see how their habitat is. This device is also used to reduce human-animal conflicts.
Citation
- Hunter, Philip. "The Human Impact on Biological Diversity. How Species Adapt to Urban Challenges Sheds Light on Evolution and Provides Clues about Conservation." EMBO Reports. U.S. National Library of Medicine, 8 Apr. 2007. Web. 05 Jan. 2016.
- Beccarelli, Brandon. "Endangered Species." National Geographic Education. N.p., 17 Mar. 2011. Web. 05 Jan. 2016.
- "Natural and Human Impacts on Wildlife." - NatureWorks. Natural and Human Impacts on Wildlife, n.d. Web. 05 Jan. 2016.
- Human Population Growth and Extinction. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Jan. 2016.
- Viegas, Jennifer. "Humans Caused 322 Animal Extinctions in Past 500 Years : DNews." DNews. N.p., 24 July 2014. Web. 05 Jan. 2016.
- Kaplan, Melissa. "How Humans Affect Animals." Herp Care Collection. N.p., n.d. Web. 5 Jan. 2016.