The Effects Of Endangered Species

The number of wild animals on Earth has halved in the past 40 years . Creatures across the land, rivers, and the seas are destroyed as humans killed them for food in unsuitable numbers, while polluting or destroying their habitats.

“For the first time since the dinosaurs disappeared, humans are driving animals and plants to extinction faster than new species can evolve, one of the world's experts on biodiversity has warned” (Jowit, 2010). The movie informs the viewers that we are not the only species that lives on earth and that we are the reasons for many extinctions. Therefore, many government organization are regulating hunting, fishing, and preserving endangered

The scale and pace of change is dramatic; for example, the extinction of species is occurring at around 100-fold pre-human rates4. The population sizes of vertebrate species have, on average, declined by half over the last 45 years5. More than 2.3 million km2 of primary forest has been felled since 20006. About

Many species vital to ensuring that today’s environment will thrive are becoming extinct. If a species is slowly dwindling, and in imminent danger of becoming nonexistent, this species is considered to be endangered. “One in four mammals, one in eight birds, one third of all amphibians and 70% of the world’s assessed plants on the… IUCN Red List are in jeopardy” (IUCN, 2016). According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, or IUCN, upwards of 16,000 species are threatened with extinction, including both plants and animals (IUCN, 2016). Before becoming endangered, a species will show warning signs, either by starting to lose biological diversity or by losing the habitats for that species to flourish in, or in the worst case, both. The word endangered can sometimes be confused with threatened, extirpated, or extinct. Extirpated refers to the state of a species where its population has died out in a certain area or range, but other populations of said species still exist elsewhere (Olden, Julian D., 2008). When a species is considered threatened, or vulnerable, this refers to the state of the species being susceptible to endangerment and extinction (“Extinction crisis escalates”). So if a species is threatened, the first signs of endangerment come along, which are similar signs to that of a species in danger of becoming threatened, including lack of genetic diversity, or overhunting may be evident. (“Extinction crisis escalates”). When a species is labelled

An endangered species is a plant or an animal at risk of becoming extinct. Scientists have estimated that up to one-third of species in the U.S. are at a high risk of extinction. In addition to donating millions of acres of land, this is essential to the recovery and survival of the endangered; the Act has shown a ninety percent recovery rate for species in the U.S. The main causes of endangerment include loss of habitat, excessive hunting, and pollution.

The problems which have arisen since 1973 seem to be endless. First of all, the time needed to put an endangered species on the list is much too long. By the time most species get on the list, they are on the brink of extinction. Second, private

In today’s world, hardly any species of wildlife become extinct from natural causes. Europeans hunt animals to such an extent that we classify it as overhunting. We destroy their habitat, and introduce other animals that are a threat to endangered animals or are competition for resources and food. Habitat destruction is the greatest threat to both animals and plants.

Summarize: The result of one species extinction could potentially be fatal to the environment. In the animal kingdom, there is a food chain. Keystone animals, are the key ingredient to the food chain. When that keystone animals goes extinct, it sets off a chain reaction on the other animal’s food source. This causes one species to flourish and another to dwindle. The environment needs a healthy checks and balance system to keep each animal population under control (Stuart, 1990 ). Humans can cause the keystone animal to become extinct and therefore, responsible for rise and decline of other species, ultimately, throwing the food chain off balance.

Elizabeth Kolbert, a journalist, took her curiosity of science and traveled all around the world to see just how the lives of different varieties of species deal with predators, habitat changes, climate changes, etc. Just some of the places Kolbert visited were the United States, Panama, France, the island of Ischia, One Tree Island, and many, many more. Extinction, the disappearance of a particular species, is a crucial topic in this particular book. Many species over the whole entire world, are quickly declining in numbers. Humans have a vital responsibility for some of these species going extinct, and we need to advertise what we are doing to animals world wide so we aren’t a source of the majority of extinctions.

Throughout evolution, many species have come and gone. What causes a species to become extinct and what can the human race due to prevent it? Many species’ population decline has been linked to human causation. An endangered species is defined as “plant and animal species that are at risk for extinction” (Funk). Endangered species can be placed into two more specific categorizes. Threatened species are species at risk for endangerment, while endangered species are at risk for extinction. Despite the fact that many people believe extinction is a major issue, the Funk and Wagnall’s New World Encyclopedia states that, “extinction is actually a normal process in the course of evolution” (Funk). Over time, numerous species have become extinct, usually as a result of climate changes, inability to adapt, or predation. Another major cause of endangerment is the human population. Pollution, global warming, and hunting is all causing a decline in the population of numerous species. While the encyclopedia is entirely fact based, many authors have worked to sensitize people to threatened species. For example, renowned author Sharon Begley, has written numerous articles to inform people of the importance of many species that are often overlooked.

2. When a certain type of animal becomes so rare that it’s in danger of becoming extinct, the government can call it an “endangered species” to help protect it from disappearing forever.

Most people are familiar with the Endangered Species List which is a document that shows various fish, birds, mammals, and other creatures that are in danger of extermination from the face of the Earth. The lists served the purpose of ensuring that the government would do whatever was necessary to stop this from happening. When the Endangered Species Act was first envisioned, the idea was that creating a piece of federal legislation to prevent the killing of animals that had a severely decreased population would help to revitalize that species and prevent the animal's extinction. What started out as a grassroots campaign from concerned environmentalists and nature conservationists became a subject for political discourse and debate. In the Act of 1973, the policy outlined was that provisions would be made for listing species, as well as for recovery plans and designation of critical habitats would be founded for these species (Endangered 1973). It is somewhat fitting that a topic of such controversy would be put into law by a controversial Commander and Chief. President Richard Millhouse Nixon signed the Endangered Species legislation officially into law on the 28th day of December, 1973. Although the Act itself only came to the foreground of political attention during this era and the decade before it, attempts had been made to create similar types of legislation for nearly a century before that.

According to The Endangered Species Act of 1973, the term “endangered species” means a species which is in danger of extinction. The term “threatened species” is any species which is likely to become endangered. A species may be endangered, threatened, common, or abundant in different regions at the same time. For example, the Bald Eagle was common in Alaska but endangered in the lower 40 states of the United States. The primary reason for why species become endangered or threatened is because of the loss of habitat. Unfortunately, habitat loss appears to be evitable until humans minimize their consumption of natural resources. Unlike humans, who are capable of modifying their surroundings to cope with harsh or changing environmental conditions,

Several man-made threats have accelerated extinction rates across the globe, such as global warming, pollution, and introduced species. Current extinction rates

Bill Freedmen, author of “Endangered Species—Human Causes Of Extinction and Endangerment” notes, “scientists approximate that present extinction rates are 1,000 to 10,000 times higher than the average natural extinction rate.” These distressing numbers should be acted upon to save the endangered species and avoid the catastrophic change to this planet if these species were to become extinct. In order to produce change, people need to recognize that habitat loss, climate change, and poaching are all factors in why our animal species are going extinct.