The Importance Of Animal Conservation

As the animal rights movement has developed and grown substantially in recent years, there has been an increased focused on the welfare of captive animals. A popular institution that has received much attention for keeping animals captive is the zoo. Because of this focus, zoos have responded by publicizing their positive benefits for existence in order to justify keeping these animals on display. Since the term “zoo” can have a wide variety of meaning and characteristics, it is important to define what constitutes a zoo in this essay. Zoos are defined as a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and

In this paper I discuss the creation, distribution, and results of a psychological test. The test consisted of knowledge and self-report sections, which tested the construct of “The AZA and Zoos”. According to their website, The Association of Zoos and aquariums (AZA), is an independent, non-profit organization that grants an optional accreditation to zoos, aquariums, and wildlife sanctuaries. Institutions that meet their strict standards for animal welfare and care after a series of inspections and interviews are granted a five-year accreditation. In addition to their standards for animal care, they are also invested in conservation of species, and education of the general public (AZA, 2016). The knowledge portion evaluated general knowledge of the AZA policies and procedures, while the self-report evaluated overall opinion on Zoos. An example item for the knowledge portion was item three “An AZA accreditation is not necessary to operate a zoo “. An example item for the self-report portion was item 32 “I think zoos are a positive enrichment activity for children “. The intended survey population for this survey was the general population.

In addition to providing the animal with shelter, and necessary supplies the natural parks can bring back a whole species from near extinction. In the passage “The Impact of Animal Protection” it directly states that keeping animals protected has proven to be beneficial and increase the population of endangered animals. Bringing animals back from near extinction can be a difficult task, however it is very beneficial. Animal protection is also used to help control animal population from getting out of control. These programs have brought back plenty of species such as black footed ferrets, California condors, red wolves, and golden lion tamarins. (Do Animals Lose in Zoos?) The community would never get to see these amazing creatures if these

Elephant populations suffered a drop in numbers that carried the species into the endangered animals list. At the beginning of the twentieth century, about ten million elephants lived in Africa. Presently, the ten million is reduced to half a million because of illegal hunting and habitat loss. Studies of the population show twenty-two thousand were killed in 2012 and twenty-five thousand in 2011. When comparing the death rate to the natural population growth, there is a possibility the largest mammal on Earth could be extinct soon (Vaughan 1). Because the elephant is the largest animal to walk on land, the greatly increasing human population affects the elephant population first. They live in some regions of the world that have the densest human population which continues to grow, which therefore continuously decreases their own population (Bryner 1). As the human population swiftly increases, the elephant population in turn, decreases. This is so because they cannot cohabitate the same living space. Elephants and humans cannot cohabitate because they would kill each other due to the inability to communicate. About population recovery, the Animal wildlife foundation states, “Populations of elephants- especially in Southern and Eastern Africa- that once showed promising signs of recovery could be at risk due to the recent surge in poaching for the illegal ivory trade”(1). Poaching presents one of the main issues that make recovery so difficult for these animals.

Have you ever been to a zoo or a wildlife refuge? You have seen the way the animals act for our entertainment. I feel that animals should be left in the wild where they were naturally meant to live. In zoos, they have limited space; some zoos even show cruelty to their animals. Animals are being taken out of their natural habitat only for the owners to make money off of them. I feel strongly that having animals in captivity for human enjoyment is not what God intended to happen.

But a study performed by the University of Arizona, found that 86 percent of the visitors went to the zoo for “social or recreational purposes,” and only six percent went to a zoo in order to learn more about animals. One can learn much better about a bear’s life through a documentary than having that same bear in a concrete prison. Many people liken zoos to a paradise for animals - a blissful place where animals are not compelled to struggle for food or run away from predators. If that were the case, given the chance, animals wouldn’t have escaped from their captivity in numerous instances. Every aspect of their lives is manipulated and controlled, from what they can eat, to when they can sleep. The convention of equating zoos with theme parks has maintained the status quo of these cruel

Over the last 100 years, African elephant populations have declined from 3-5 million to 470,000-690,000 and Asian elephant populations have declined from 100,000 to between 35,000 and 50,000. Habitat loss and conflict with people are among the biggest threats to their continued survival. Elephant habitat is being replaced by farms and villages. Not only are elephants being pushed into smaller and smaller areas, but the crops that are planted by farmers (sugar cane, cassava, rice) are very tempting for elephants. As a result, elephants frequently raid and destroy crops and villages. People are often injured and killed by elephants during conflict. Elephants are killed in retaliation for the damage that they cause.

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

Third, as mentioned a few times in this paper, conservationism views “animals as natural resources” for the consumption of humans. Consumption meant literally and figuratively, in that animals are valued for their entertainment value at the zoo for humans to “consume”. In “Constructing Consumables and Consent”, author Cathy B. Glenn discussed “the two common and codependent corporate discursives” in factory farms, yet, also used by conservationists like PNM. First, “doublespeak”, a word of phrase that deliberately obscures language to hide the harmful truth. Stakeholders, like PNM, are pros at coming up with “doublespeak” to conceal the environmental damage they take part it for the continued extraction of coal. Next, the “creation of ‘speaking’ animals to sell products, like the experience of the zoo.

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.

    “A major goal [of zoos]. . . is communicating the importance of conservation [to the public],” (Falk et al. 13). In a research article published by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), scientists researched the affects they have on visitors. They concluded that “. . . zoos and aquariums are enhancing public understanding of wildlife and the conservation of the places animals live . . . these results will help institutions develop even more effective exhibitions and

There are 6.5 million species of land mammals. Wildlife biologists get the privilege of studying and spending time with these animals as their everyday life. I should be a wildlife biologist so I can study land mammals.

Have you heard that many animals today are going extinct because of people polluting the water, air Also because they are hunting animals for their fur, skins, and horns. But with your hearing the research I have conducted, I think you can also help stop animal extinction.I wanted to research this because I like animals and I want to stop animal extinction. I have been reading and learning about animals for my whole life . when I figured out that animal extinction meant animals are going to not be existing anymore, I knew I had to research about animal extinction. Have you asked yourself? What causes animal extinction? Well, what causes animal extinction is deforestation, greenhouse gases, forest fires, and pollution. “By burning fossil fuels, we are making hotter temperatures, melting polar glaciers Globally, power generation is responsible for about 23 billion tonnes of CO2 emissions per year” “Greenhouses gases, such as carbon dioxide, trap heat in the atmosphere and regulate our climate. These gases exist naturally, but humans adding more carbon dioxide by burning fossil fuels for energy (coal, oil, and natural gas) and by clearing forests.Greenhouse gases act like a blanket. The thicker the blanket, the warmer our planet becomes. At the same time, the Earth’s oceans are also absorbing some of this extra carbon dioxide, making them more acidic and less hospitable to sea life

Since approximately 1250 B.C., ancient Egyptians had created and practiced the capture and display of animals in what are now known as zoos (Fravel). Records describe such exotic animals as birds, lions, giraffes, and tigers in captivity (Fravel). Since then, zoos have continued to entertain millions with the exciting chance to view exotic animals up close and personal. Even in ancient Greece, exotic animals were on display in fighting arenas, and in enclosed viewing areas. Originally in America, zoos were just created so that royalty and the wealthy could flaunt their exotic animals to the public (Leolupus). Today, with species threatened and habitats disappearing worldwide, zoos are serving a new purpose other than the mere exhibition of

In his paper on animal rights, Peter Singer takes a moment to discuss the preservation of endangered species. Singer entertains the idea that one can argue that the preservation of an endangered species is similar to preserving a work of art by the fact that the reason for preserving an endangered species could be the enjoyment of humans. For instance, if I broke into the Louvre and destroyed the one Mona Lisa on display I would prevent any further person the joy of travelling to the Louvre to see the Mona Lisa ever again. This line of thinking, therefore is extended to animals where the extinction of a species could be seen as depriving people from further enjoyment. Part of the appeal for continuing a species’ existence is the fact that humans derive pleasure from being able to experience things. People flock to see artworks like the Mona Lisa because they want to experience something by seeing the painting in person, and the rarity of these pieces of art is part of their appeal. This analogy is applied to endangered species based on the similarities between the two, in that people enjoy them and there is only limited access to an endangered animal as the animals may only live in zoos or specific environments in the wild. If an endangered species were to go extinct it would be unfortunate because of how people are no longer able to enjoy them anymore. Since important works of art are actively preserved for continued enjoyment, Singer believes it could be argued that