What Are The Effects Of Poaching On Society And The Environment

Many people believe that poaching is wrong, but what most people do not realize is that poaching animals is an illegal crime in most places. Orenstein, proving his assertions, stated that, “Perhaps it is stating the obvious, but poachers, whatever drives them to poach, are breaking the law…The media often confuse matters by talking about ‘illegal poaching’ as though there were such a thing as

As many people know, poaching has been a common problem around the United States. In Idaho specifically, hunting is considered a pretty big sport, therefore there are quite a few poachers in Idaho. Title 36 Fish and Game, Chapter 14 General Penal Provisions, also known as policy 36-1404, speaks and addresses the problem of poaching in the state of Idaho. “Any person who pleads guilty, is found guilty of or is convicted of the illegal killing or the illegal possession or illegal waste of game animals or birds or fish shall reimburse the state for each animal so killed or possessed or wasted” (Idaho Statutes). For each animal there are different punishments, for example elk have a seven hundred and fifty dollar fine for each animal killed, possessed or wasted. As for caribou, bighorn sheep, mountain goats, and moose the fine is much larger, on thousand five hundred dollars for each animal. Any other species of big game that was not named results in a four hundred dollar fine for each animal killed, possessed or wasted (Idaho Statutes). Trophy big game animals result in a much larger punishment. Trophy bighorn sheep, trophy moose, trophy mountain goat, and trophy caribou killed, possessed or wasted result in a ten thousand dollar fine. Trophy elk are a five thousand dollar fine and trophy pronghorn antelope, white-tailed deer and mule deer are all two thousand dollars. Any further animals killed within a year of the first killing will result in the doubling of the original

Big game hunting is cause A major population damage . One of them is one of the most beloved animals in the world the Elephant. Every year, tens of thousands of elephants are being killed for trophies . Their population in Africa dropped from 62,000 all the way down to 20,000 in the last decade. WWF Global said they are due to be extinct in the next decade if nothing is done to stop the big game hunter. It’s not just Africa, where animals are being killed for trophies. ‘In Canada there is a breed of leopards called Amurs that were driven down to 10 left in the whole world ‘’ What caused this big game hunters from all over came to hunt an

Wildlife hunting is a big business a 2013 estimate valued the illegal poaching trade in Africa worth 17 billion dollars a year and growing. While elephant poaching between 1800’s - 1999 and 2000’s and up have some similarities they also have a wide variety of differences. Elephant poaching in 1800’s-1999 was done to meet the worldwide demands, but elephant poaching in 2000’s and above was done for sport. Elephant poaching is wrong and shouldn’t be done.

People around the world need to acknowledge that poaching can affect more than just the extinction of animals but can also cause many economic issues. If the average citizen was educated about poaching most likely it would not occur as often as it does now. Journals that are put into the world about poaching are very upsetting and emotional to read, but they can educate people around the world about how devastating poaching actually is. Not only are these animals endangered, but poaching can also affect the economy and disrupt the delicate balance of the ecosystem. A Harvard University graduate reported: “The loss of these species would have harmful effects upon the overall ecosystem and the environment's ability to provide"ecosystem services"such as soil stability and water retention”(Xie). Also there are many health risks that come from wildlife trafficking; “Experts have noted that increased traffic in animals will raise the risk of zoonotic disease transmission. Diseases such as Ebola, which is often carried by bats and other primates, come to mind. It is hypothesized that HIV is linked to the consumption of primate meat and that respiratory viruses may be found in smaller animals, such as civet cats”(Xie). These different diseases are very lethal to the human body and cause death if made contact

Imagine growing up without knowing elephants. There is no elephant stuffed animals, children's books with elephants, or elephants at the zoo. This may be the case in just a few years. The number of elephant fatalities is rising every year and presents itself as a global issue. Not only does the ivory poaching industry impact elephants, it impacts the entire ecosystem. If elephant poaching continues at this alarming rate, there is a high probability of extinction within the next couple of years. There is a need for stricter laws to be intact and higher consequences for poachers.

Planet Earth is the one and only home for humans, and it’s their natural duty to protect it and all of its inhabitants. For many people, the fate of animals is of little importance, especially when there are so many of their own species suffering throughout the world. However, only when one has respect for nature can he or she come to appreciate for his or herself. In the past few decades, some animals have progressively come closer and closer to extinction. When compared to demographics 30 years ago, less than 5% of tiger and rhino populations remain in the wild (Congressional). The main culprits for this abominable crime against nature are avaricious poachers who seek personal gain and profit. Poaching is the illegal killing of

The delicate balance of ecosystems ensures their own survival—if they are left unaltered. Natural predators help maintain this balance by killing the sickest and weakest individuals. Hunters, however, kill any animal whose head they would like to hang over the fireplace—including large, healthy animals who are needed to keep the population strong. Elephant poaching is believed to have increased the number of tuskless animals in Africa, and in Canada, hunting has caused bighorn sheep's horn size to fall by 25 percent in the last 40 years—Nature magazine reports that "the effect on the populations' genetics is probably deeper."(20)

In many families, hunting is a tradition carried on from generation to generation and is a respected sport. However, there are those who do not respect the sport or the animals and have no issues harvesting the animals by any means necessary. Poachers are people that hunt during a non-hunting season or use tools to lure animals such as deer and bear to areas easier for them to get a shot. Essentially, poaching amounts to the theft of public's wildlife. (Wilkes-Barre, 2008) Poaching occurs all over the world and is not limited to a certain species. In Africa, elephants are the target of poachers for their tusks. In the 1970's and the 1980's the population of the elephants in Africa reduced due to poaching from 1.3 million to 600,00 0 in less than a decade. This illegal hunting selectively removed older animals with larger tusks and the results of this are being seen. Poaching not only affects the elephant population but the behavior of the elephants as well. (Archie & Chiyo, 2012) In all reality hunters have absolutely no reason or right to bend the rules, much less steal.

Since the beginning of life itself, some species have lived and prospered while other species have gone extinct never to be seen again by mankind. Because of this, some would claim that extinction is natural and not significantly problematic to the world that we live in. Others, however, understand that due to climate change, habitat loss, and poaching, more and more species are becoming endangered which leads to a chain reaction that can be devastating to ecosystems. Species such as the Chinook salmon, gorillas, tropical sharks, and polar bears are all directly affected by climate change, species such as northern spotted owls, Sumatran tigers, and lemurs are greatly harmed due to habitat loss, and species such as the sea turtle, Javan rhinoceros, African elephant, and the Red-Fronted Macaw are all affected by poaching driving them all closer and closer to becoming extinct.

Poaching animals is defined as the “illegal hunting or capturing of wild animals mainly in areas in which hunting is forbidden” . The main difference between poaching and hunting is the legal permission, indeed “hunting is regulated by the government, and hunters must obtain permits authorizing them to kill certain animals” .

Studies have shown in recent years that the amount of problems for game wardens has increased dramatically. In an article by the New York Time’s, William Dicke states that in previous years, economic issues have caused an uptick in poaching (Dicke, para. 7). Due to the sheer number of unemployed and the rates going up, crime is rising as well, and it shows in abnormal crimes like poaching. Since the unemployed have nothing to do, and they have too much time on their hands, the act of poaching is becoming more common. Often the animal is not harvested for its food products, but instead for its antlers or skin. This goes to demonstrate one of the various problems that game wardens often face, poaching.

Poaching is killing an animal illegally, why would you go through so much trouble to kill species of animals. Poaching can ruin food chains because we killed an entire species, and on the other side the people sell the animal’s parts for weapons or narcotics. Poaching causes for animals to go extinct, and it is extremely illegal. Animal parts such as horns, tusks, and gallbladders are highly expensive which poachers are willing to trade weapons and drugs .

Although poaching is an illegal act, it is still a growing problem in the world because it is making the extinction of various animals more probable. Not only it cruel, but it affects the environment and ecosystem where these animals reside. Although various people, usually trophy hunters or those uninformed, argue that it isn’t that big of a problem, there are realities to it that won’t be stopped unless we act upon it and bring awareness of the situation.

Animal poaching has a bigger price tag than the trophy sitting on the shelf. Poaching is causing iconic animals of many continents and of our oceans to become endangered or even extinct. These animals that people have come to love and fantasize over may be gone before we are (Africa). Elephants, rhinos, lions, and zebras are the animals thought of the most when it comes to animal poaching, but many animals are poached. They are killed for only one quality, like their horns or skins and the rest of the animal is left behind. Poaching is a massive business that is ran by international networks, it’s estimated to make hundreds of millions of dollars (World). Not all wildlife trade is illegal, but it becomes a crisis when an increasing amount of illegal poaching is done and it directly threatens the survival of species in the wild (World). Since 1960 97.6% of the Black Rhino population in Africa has been poached and lions are extinct in seven African countries (Africa).