Endangered Species Essay Research Paper ProblemsThere are

Endangered Species Essay, Research Paper

Problems

There are millions of different kinds of animals and plants that share our planet. Each species is special and unique, and sadly some of these species are in danger of disappearing forever, just as the passenger pigeon did. It is when the last member of a species disappears, that species becomes extinct. The specie will never again walk, swim, fly on the planet again.

Canada was once filled with wildlife. Due to the fact that in the past, people hunted without worrying about the future Canada s wildlife has become less apparent. To our ancestors it seemed as though there was an unlimited amount of wildlife to be found in Canada. In time over-hunting has changed this and caused the extinction of many species.

Canadians of the past thought that the regulations put in to effect that potected animals from hunters would be enough. Recently we have learnt that we must also protect their habitats. It is in their habitats that they find food, water, shelter, and a place breed, therefore giving them the essentials to live. With time we have concluded that even if they are not hunted, animals will die out; for if their habiats are destroyed than they will be unable to find their life necessities.

Still people cut down forests for lumber, clear fields for farms, and fill swamps to build towns, highways, and factories. Land is also cleared for such things as mineral extraction. Wild animals get fenced out from areas that were once their homes. Larger animals are affected the worst because they need large open spaces, and when these areas shrink it is much more difficult to find food and shelter. Animals begin to live in fear of their home being destroyed by man.

Even habitats that are left intact and not disturbed by human intervention may in fact be unsafe for wildlife due to pollution. Man made disastor such as oil spills pollute the oceans in such injuring or killing water mammals and birds. When farmers spray their crops with pesticides, to keep insects from eating their crops, cause harm to many other mammals. Aswell, Industries send out chemicals into the air, water, and land, with no concern about what it may be doing to the environment. Garbage dumps leak toxic chemicals into neighbouring lakes and rivers, also affecting birds and fish. Moreover, the garbage that is dumped straight into the ocean poisons wildlife severely. When the animals come across the garbage they may mistake plastics and Styrofoam for food or as in many cases become strangled by plastic six-pack holders.

Not all cases are animals and their environments poisoned by accident. In such cases as certain, ranchers putting out poison for coyotes and wolves to prevent these animals from occasionally sometimes will kill the rancher s cattle or sheep. People and industries need to become more aware of what they are doing to the environment and how they affect the wildlife in general or with time all the wildlife will become extinct.

There are more that 1,117 plant and animal species on the Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants list. Each year about fifty more species are added. More that 4,000 additional species are currently waiting to be added to the list. The case for them may be just as convincing, but limited manpower and funding have kept them from being processed for protected status. Unfortunately, some species cannot wait for all the red tape to be cut through. According to the Fish and Wildlife Service, 300 species waiting to be put on the list may have become extinct before they could be listed.

Economic Implications

Loss of industry

When a species becomes extinct or even endangered the people financially involved with this animal is out of a job. Take cod for example there were many cod fisherman that lived off the money they made fishing. When cod became endangered it was illegal to catch them, this made the cod fishers stop fishing, well legally. So now all these fisherman have to find new jobs. Until then the fisherman will be spending less because they are on well fare, this will cause what is called a ripple effect. Those fishermen will be spending less on dayly extras, and when this happens to a fishing town, some of the other businesses may have to lay off one or two employees. This being the ripple effect and in time the ripple will continue getting bigger and bigger.

On environment

If a species becomes extinct not only does it harm humans that depend on that animal to survive but it also hurts the animals that depend on it. If a specific plant or animal becomes extinct animals that eat it will have to search for another source of food (i.e. another animals food) this is rare because each animal can only digest certain species. Another thing the animal might do is to move somewhere else so they can find food, this over-populates an area. This in such will have the animals consume most of the pray in that area causing other animals now to be forced out of that area and so force. This again will cause the ripple effect. This time the ripple effect is with the animals. These ripples change food chains for better or worse. As in such when a species is made extinct not only are the preditors killing that species, but they are endangering other species connected with that extinct animal via the food chains.

Solutions

The Endangered Species Act (ESA) was a giant step toward helping endangered animals as well as threatened animals in Canada and around the world. It established a program that brings together the federal government, conservation groups, individuals, business and industry, and foreign governments in a cooperative effort to save endangered wildlife.

The ESA restricts the killing, collection, or harming of endangered and threatened animals and makes it illegal to buy or sell, and imports or export them without special permission. Violators can face a fine of up to $20,000

The problem with this act is that $20,000 dollars isn t enough to punish someone who has killed, bought, sold, or anything other mentioned in the ESA to endangered animals. I believe that endangered animals should have the same rights as humans, is it their fault for not understanding. If a someone killed, bought, or sold another human they would be thrown into jail, why not this with animals.

The habitat of endangered species (the land, water, and air that members of the species need for survival, including places where the live and breed) is also protected under the act. Each year habitats of endangered species are bought up with money from the Land and Water Conservation Fund (pg 120, Savage).

The U.S Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service list the endangered and threatened species. Candidates are submitted by anyone concerned about a species of animal or plant, and information has to be gathered to support the claim that the species are endangered.

When the ESA program was set up, the goal was to make the endangered species in the wild more populated so they could be removed from the endangered species list. Few of these species have recovered enough to be removed from the list. After a species is placed on the endangered or threatened list, the next step is to determine a recovery plan that will help increase the number of animals or plants. Measures include buying more land to preserve their habitats or breeding the species in captivity so they can be released. But setting up effective recovery plans takes a lot of time and money, and only one-third of the species on the list even have recovery plans.

Responsibilities

Who

There are many people to be blame for the amount of endangered animals. Citizens for using cars, which pollute the atmosphere, over-hunting animals which endanger animals of being extinct. Corporations, industries, factories that pollute the environment by burning fuel and running engines. The government places law that endanger and save animals, they allow people to carry guns which harm animals; they expand cities that destroy wild life. So as you can see it s not only the logging companies that make species endangered but everyone has a part in making and destroying a species.

What can they do

Humans can actually help endangered species it s not like everyone says what can one person do . Humans can not hurt animals by not hunting unless necessary try not to endanger the environment by trying not to drive or only when needed. You could try to encourage others to stop from doing things that would harm the animals directly or indirectly.

Direct Causes

Is when the animals are purposely hunted, trapped, fished, or whaled to extinction. Hunting for sport has been responsible for endangering such animals as the Polar Bear and the Siberian Tiger. Among the animals that have become endangered for commercial reasons are several species of whales, including the enormous Blue Whale; many of the spotted cats, such as the Cheetah; and some kinds of Alligators, Crocodiles, lizards, and snakes. The Whales have been killed for their oil, the cats for their furs, and the reptiles for their skins. Animals may also be killed when they interfere with human activity. Wolves became endangered because they preyed on livestock. They were hunted and trapped by livestock holders in such large numbers, that they disappeared from most parts of the world where they once lived.

Indirect Causes

The major indirect cause of endangerment to animals throughout the world is the loss of a place to live. As the human population increases: more land is needed for homestead, for the growing of crops, and for mining the minerals and fuels that people need. Many animals that live in the great forest, such as the monkeys of the Amazon Basin in South America are disappearing fast. They are not disappearing because they are being killed but because the trees that provide their food and shelter are being cut down for lumber and for space to grow crops. In central Africa the mountain gorilla is presently endangered because its forest home is being cut down. The same is true for the Asian ape and orangutan.

Another indirect cause of endangerment has come from chemical poisoning of the environment. When the chemical DDT was widely used in the U.S to control pests, it washed off the plants to the soil and then into streams, rivers, and oceans. There it was taken up with food by tiny sea animals. When fish ate these animals, they, too, accumulated the poison in their systems. And when birds such as osprey, bald eagles, and pelicans ate the fish, the chemicals affected the eggs laid by these birds. They began to produce eggs with shells so thin that they broke when the parents sat on them to keep them warm. Some birds stopped laying eggs completely.

Other poisons such as mercury, which is used in agriculture and industry, and polychlorinated biphenyls, known as PCB’s, have found their way into oceans. There they are taken in by fish that are the eaten by sea lions, seals, polar bears, and penguins- often far from the place where the chemicals originally came from. These animals may then be poisoned by eating the fish. Eating the poisoned fish would be the indirect cause of endangerment to the large sea animals.

Polluting of the waters is also of great concern because of other forms of sea life that have been poisoned may be eaten by people. Accidental poisoning of water supplies used by people- poisoning, for example, by industrial pollutants- is another threat to human life. Many animals are threatened too.

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