Unfortunately, while the IUCN does its best to save species that are teetering on the brink of extinction, it is not always possible. This was the case of the Western Black Rhino, which was just recently declared as officially extinct. Two of it's relatives, the black and white rhinos, are also critcally endangered, and it is thought that they could be gone within the next couple of years.
Rhinos are killed at a rate of about one a day in South African game parks. The WWF estimates around 340 have been slaughtered this year alone. One of the reasons that rhinos are so sought after is because of their horns. The horns can be sold as trophies or can be ground up and used as medicine. Chinese medicine takes these powdered horns and adds them to food or tea as an aphrodistiac.
Rhinos are not the only ones experiencing poaching for medicinal purposes. Tigers, bears, elks and sharks are also thought to have special properties, which has led to the killing of many members of these species as well. The IUCN has declared that around 25% of mammals are at risk of extinction. What these animals need are protection from hunters that can only be given if the demand for their products ceases. It is difficult, maybe impossible to change the beliefs of certain cultures, but it may be the only way to protect certain wild species on this planet.
Posted by Janelle Hayes
What a sad day. It's upsetting that even when these rhinos were on reserves, they were still hunted. I wonder why they didn't do something like a captive breeding program, or some other kind of last ditch effort to save these rhinos, like they did for the white rhino. As far as stopping the poaching goes, they will definitely need economic incentive. The probability of finding an incentive that would deter them from such a lucrative business is rather dim, unfortunately. The public needs to be targeted, but unseating an entire culture's beliefs will not be an easy task, either. The fix to poaching will not have instant results. We will be battling this problem for years to come. What we need is to find something that the public covets just as much and will be just as lucrative, without being so detrimental...
ReplyDeletePosted by Chelsea Van Thof.
Whenever I go on Wikipedia to look up some of the various species that populate this earth, I always pay attention to the IUCN rating on the right under the picture. It so sad to see that so many of the species that exist are under "near threatened" or worse. Those phylogenetic trees that we made in class will have to suffer some dead ends due to human behavior. It's about time we open our eyes to these problems and, like Chelsea said, start putting our heads together to provide incentives for stopping the activity, whether it be food or money.
ReplyDeletePosted by Michael Shi
It certainly is a problem to prevent many of the mammals and other species from going extinct whenever money is involved. I think the hardest part is making people educated so they care enough to show their support financially. I think we are going to run into serious problem if we keep destroying so many other species. It often feels rather hopeless since nothing seems to be happening on this front.
ReplyDeletePosted by Caroline Adams
I feel awful every time I hear of another species going extinct. I think that in order to stop hunting of endangered species people need to be more educated. Further the consumers who are feeding the whole process need to be more educated. I think that people who are buying products from an endangered species don't really understand what they are doing and the impact that an extinction creates on the environment.
ReplyDeletePosted by Nick Gast
I think that it is disgusting that we, the human race, are responsible for the loss of such an amazing creature. Though we are trying to rebuild what once was, in nature. I will have to say that the loss of yet another species is very heartbreaking. Other countries and their "traditions" need to change such as killing tigers and selling their body parts to china for their medical remedies. The rhino is just a beautiful and large animal that exists on land and to destroy it is a reflection of what is to come to humans.
ReplyDeleteThank you for informing me, as sad as it is, that we have lost another species.
Posted by: Em Arsenault
This just proves how selfish some people can be, as that value improving their own lives more than the survival of an entire species. As for the medicinal purposes people use, I agree this cultural roadblock will be much harder to conquer. However, using animals for pure luxury, such as ivory from elephant tusks or fur from a mink, it's purely unethical. Why should anyone have the right or incentive to kill another animal for your own selfish purposes?
ReplyDeleteMore awareness must be spread, because the majority of people are not going to start to really care until its too late.
Posted by Sara Corey
I agree with what most of you have said about how sad it is that some people simply just do not care about what they are doing when they poach endangered species. Unfortunately, money is the root of this problem. The only thing that is going to stop the hunting of rare animals is if the value of their goods goes down. Doing this is going to take a lot of work because the simple fact that they are rare leads to their high prices. Like most of you, I hope that there is a solution to this, otherwise we will continue to see the further devastation of our planet.
ReplyDeletePosted by Janelle Hayes
It is very troubling to see the number of extinct and at risk species in the world. As humans we need education and progressive action to help protect the species that remain. I understand that there a mystical and magical qualities that are seen in the killing of some animals and using there appendages as trophies or special religious things in some cultures. However it is up to us to educate these cultures about the pivotal role these species play in the ecosystem and why we must protect them.
ReplyDeleteby: Andrew Ryan