Wildlife

Last updated
A lion (Panthera leo). Lions are an example of charismatic megafauna, a group of wildlife species that are especially popular in human culture. Wildlife at Maasai Mara (Lion).jpg
A lion (Panthera leo). Lions are an example of charismatic megafauna, a group of wildlife species that are especially popular in human culture.

Wildlife refers to undomesticated animals and uncultivated plant species which can exist in their natural habitat, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wild in an area without being introduced by humans. [1] Wildlife was also synonymous to game: those birds and mammals that were hunted for sport. Wildlife can be found in all ecosystems. Deserts, plains, grasslands, woodlands, forests, and other areas including the most developed urban areas, all have distinct forms of wildlife. While the term in popular culture usually refers to animals that are untouched by human factors, most scientists agree that much wildlife is affected by human activities. [2] Some wildlife threaten human safety, health, property and quality of life. However, many wild animals, even the dangerous ones, have value to human beings. This value might be economic, educational, or emotional in nature.

Contents

Humans have historically tended to separate civilization from wildlife in a number of ways, including the legal, social and moral senses. Some animals, however, have adapted to suburban environments. This includes such animals as feral cats, dogs, mice, and rats. Some religions declare certain animals to be sacred, and in modern times, concern for the natural environment has provoked activists to protest against the exploitation of wildlife for human benefit or entertainment.

Global wildlife populations have decreased significantly by 68% since 1970 as a result of human activity, particularly overconsumption, population growth, and intensive farming, according to a 2020 World Wildlife Fund's Living Planet Report and the Zoological Society of London's Living Planet Index measure, which is further evidence that humans have unleashed a sixth mass extinction event. [3] [4] According to CITES, it has been estimated that annually the international wildlife trade amounts to billions of dollars and it affects hundreds of millions of animal and plant specimen. [5]

Interactions with humans

Trade

Assorted seashells, coral, shark jaws and dried blowfish on sale in Greece WildlifeTrade1.JPG
Assorted seashells, coral, shark jaws and dried blowfish on sale in Greece
Framed butterflies, moths, beetles, bats, Emperor scorpions and tarantula spiders on sale in Rhodes, Greece WildlifeTrade2.JPG
Framed butterflies, moths, beetles, bats, Emperor scorpions and tarantula spiders on sale in Rhodes, Greece

Wildlife trade refers to the products that are derived from non-domesticated animals or plants usually extracted from their natural environment or raised under controlled conditions. It can involve the trade of living or dead individuals, tissues such as skins, bones or meat, or other products. Legal wildlife trade is regulated by the United Nations' Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which currently has 184 member countries called Parties. [6] Illegal wildlife trade is widespread and constitutes one of the major illegal economic activities, comparable to the traffic of drugs and weapons. [7]

Wildlife trade is a serious conservation problem, has a negative effect on the viability of many wildlife populations and is one of the major threats to the survival of vertebrate species. [8] The illegal wildlife trade has been linked to the emergence and spread of new infectious diseases in humans, including emergent viruses. [9] [10] Global initiative like the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 15 have a target to end the illegal supply of wildlife. [11]

For food

A ground pangolin Manis temminckii (29645803646).jpg
A ground pangolin

Stone Age people and hunter-gatherers relied on wildlife, both plants and animals, for their food. In fact, some species may have been hunted to extinction by early human hunters. Today, hunting, fishing, and gathering wildlife is still a significant food source in some parts of the world. In other areas, hunting and non-commercial fishing are mainly seen as a sport or recreation. Meat sourced from wildlife that is not traditionally regarded as game is known as bushmeat. The increasing demand for wildlife as a source of traditional food in East Asia is decimating populations of sharks, primates, pangolins and other animals, which they believe have aphrodisiac properties.

Malaysia is home to a vast array of amazing wildlife. However, illegal hunting and trade poses a threat to Malaysia's natural diversity.

Chris S. Shepherd [12]

A November 2008 report from biologist and author Sally Kneidel, PhD, documented numerous wildlife species for sale in informal markets along the Amazon River, including wild-caught marmosets sold for as little as $1.60 (5 Peruvian soles). [13] [ self-published source? ] Many Amazon species, including peccaries, agoutis, turtles, turtle eggs, anacondas, armadillos are sold primarily as food.

Media

A Douglas squirrel (Tamiasciurus douglasii) Tamiasciurus douglasii 000.jpg
A Douglas squirrel (Tamiasciurus douglasii)

Wildlife has long been a common subject for educational television shows. National Geographic Society specials appeared on CBS since 1965, later moving to American Broadcasting Company and then Public Broadcasting Service. In 1963, NBC debuted Wild Kingdom, a popular program featuring zoologist Marlin Perkins as host. The BBC natural history unit in the United Kingdom was a similar pioneer, the first wildlife series LOOK presented by Sir Peter Scott, was a studio-based show, with filmed inserts. David Attenborough first made his appearance in this series, which was followed by the series Zoo Quest during which he and cameraman Charles Lagus went to many exotic places looking for and filming elusive wildlife—notably the Komodo dragon in Indonesia and lemurs in Madagascar. [14] Since 1984, the Discovery Channel and its spinoff Animal Planet in the US have dominated the market for shows about wildlife on cable television, while on Public Broadcasting Service the NATURE strand made by WNET-13 in New York and NOVA by WGBH in Boston are notable. Wildlife television is now a multimillion-dollar industry with specialist documentary film-makers in many countries including UK, US, New Zealand, Australia, Austria, Germany, Japan, and Canada.[ citation needed ] There are many magazines and websites which cover wildlife including National Wildlife , Birds & Blooms , Birding , wildlife.net, and Ranger Rick for children.

Religion

Many animal species have spiritual significance in different cultures around the world, and they and their products may be used as sacred objects in religious rituals. For example, eagles, hawks and their feathers have great cultural and spiritual value to Native Americans as religious objects. In Hinduism the cow is regarded as sacred. [15]

Muslims conduct sacrifices on Eid al-Adha, to commemorate the sacrificial spirit of Ibrāhīm in Islam ( Arabic-Abraham) in love of God. Camels, sheep, goats may be offered as sacrifice during the three days of Eid. [16]

In Christianity the Bible has a variety of animal symbols, the Lamb is a famous title of Jesus. In the New Testament the Gospels Mark, Luke and John have animal symbols: "Mark is a lion, Luke is a bull and John is an eagle." [17]

Tourism

Animals can be viewed in their native or similar environments, from vehicles or on foot. This elephant in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe, was quite undisturbed by the people and vehicle. Mudbath5.jpg
Animals can be viewed in their native or similar environments, from vehicles or on foot. This elephant in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe, was quite undisturbed by the people and vehicle.
Elephant safari after the One-horned Rhinoceros in Royal Chitwan National Park, Manali Rhinos leofleck.jpg
Elephant safari after the One-horned Rhinoceros in Royal Chitwan National Park, Manali

Wildlife tourism is an element of many nations' travel industry centered around observation and interaction with local animal and plant life in their natural habitats. While it can include eco- and animal-friendly tourism, safari hunting and similar high-intervention activities also fall under the umbrella of wildlife tourism. Wildlife tourism, in its simplest sense, is interacting with wild animals in their natural habitat, either actively (e.g. hunting/collection) or passively (e.g. watching/photography). Wildlife tourism is an important part of the tourism industries in many countries including many African and South American countries, Australia, India, Canada, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Maldives among many. It has experienced a dramatic and rapid growth in recent years worldwide and many elements are closely aligned to eco-tourism and sustainable tourism.

According to United Nations World Tourism Organization, with an annual growth about 3%, 7% of world tourism industry relates to wildlife tourism. [18] They also estimate that the growth is much more significant in places like UNESCO World Heritage Sites. [18] Wildlife tourism currently employs 22 million people worldwide directly or indirectly, and contributes more than $120 billion to global GDP. [19] As a multimillion-dollar international industry, wildlife tourism is often characterized by the offering of customized tour packages and safaris to allow close access to wildlife.

Suffering

Juvenile red-tailed hawk eating a California vole Hawk eating prey.jpg
Juvenile red-tailed hawk eating a California vole

Wild animal suffering is suffering experienced by non-human animals living in the wild, outside of direct human control, due to natural processes such as disease, injury, parasitism, starvation, malnutrition, dehydration, weather conditions, natural disasters, killings by other animals, and psychological stress. [20] [21] Some estimates indicate that these individual animals make up the vast majority of animals in existence. [22] An extensive amount of natural suffering has been described as an unavoidable consequence of Darwinian evolution, [23] as well as the pervasiveness of reproductive strategies, which favor producing large numbers of offspring, with a low amount of parental care and of which only a small number survive to adulthood, the rest dying in painful ways, has led some to argue that suffering dominates happiness in nature. [20] [24] [25]

The topic has historically been discussed in the context of the philosophy of religion as an instance of the problem of evil. [26] More recently, starting in the 19th century, a number of writers have considered the subject from a secular standpoint as a general moral issue, that humans might be able to help prevent. [27] There is considerable disagreement around taking such action, as many believe that human interventions in nature should not take place because of practicality, [28] valuing ecological preservation over the well-being and interests of individual animals, [29] considering any obligation to reduce wild animal suffering implied by animal rights to be absurd, [30] or viewing nature as an idyllic place where happiness is widespread. [24] Some argue that such interventions would be an example of human hubris, or playing God, and use examples of how human interventions, for other reasons, have unintentionally caused harm. [31] Others, including animal rights writers, have defended variants of a laissez-faire position, which argues that humans should not harm wild animals but that humans should not intervene to reduce natural harms that they experience. [32] [33]

Advocates of such interventions argue that animal rights and welfare positions imply an obligation to help animals suffering in the wild due to natural processes. Some assert that refusing to help animals in situations where humans would consider it wrong not to help humans is an example of speciesism. [21] Others argue that humans intervene in nature constantly—sometimes in very substantial ways—for their own interests and to further environmentalist goals. [34] Human responsibility for enhancing existing natural harms has also been cited as a reason for intervention. [35] Some advocates argue that humans already successfully help animals in the wild, such as vaccinating and healing injured and sick animals, rescuing animals in fires and other natural disasters, feeding hungry animals, providing thirsty animals with water, and caring for orphaned animals. [36] They also assert that although wide-scale interventions may not be possible with our current level of understanding, they could become feasible in the future with improved knowledge and technologies. [37] [38] For these reasons, they argue it is important to raise awareness about the issue of wild animal suffering, spread the idea that humans should help animals suffering in these situations, and encourage research into effective measures, which can be taken in the future to reduce the suffering of these individuals, without causing greater harms. [24] [34]

Loss and extinction

Map of early human migrations, according to mitochondrial population genetics. Numbers are millennia before the present. World map of prehistoric human migrations.jpg
Map of early human migrations, according to mitochondrial population genetics. Numbers are millennia before the present.

This subsection focuses on anthropogenic forms of wildlife destruction. The loss of animals from ecological communities is also known as defaunation. [39]

Exploitation of wild populations has been a characteristic of modern man since our exodus from Africa 130,000 – 70,000 years ago. The rate of extinctions of entire species of plants and animals across the planet has been so high in the last few hundred years that it is widely believed that a sixth great extinction event ("the Holocene Mass Extinction") is currently ongoing. [40] [41] [42] [43] The 2019 Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services , published by the United Nations' Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, says that roughly one million species of plants and animals face extinction within decades as the result of human actions. [44] [45] Subsequent studies have discovered that the destruction of wildlife is "significantly more alarming" than previously believed, with some 48% of 70,000 monitored animal species experiencing population declines as the result of human industrialization. [46] [47] According to a 2023 study published in PNAS , "immediate political, economic, and social efforts of an unprecedented scale are essential if we are to prevent these extinctions and their societal impacts." [48] [49]

The four most general reasons that lead to destruction of wildlife include overkill, habitat destruction and fragmentation, impact of introduced species and chains of extinction. [50]

Overkill

Overkill happens whenever hunting occurs at rates greater than the reproductive capacity of the population is being exploited. The effects of this are often noticed much more dramatically in slow-growing populations such as many larger species of fish. Initially when a portion of a wild population is hunted, an increased availability of resources (food, etc.) is experienced increasing growth and reproduction as density dependent inhibition is lowered. Hunting, fishing and so on, have lowered the competition between members of a population. However, if this hunting continues at rate greater than the rate at which new members of the population can reach breeding age and produce more young, the population will begin to decrease in numbers. [51]

Populations that are confined to islands, whether literal islands or just areas of habitat that are effectively an "island" for the species concerned, have also been observed to be at greater risk of dramatic population rise of deaths declines following unsustainable hunting.

Habitat destruction and fragmentation

Deforestation and increased road-building in the Amazon Rainforest are a significant concern because of increased human encroachment upon wild areas, increased resource extraction and further threats to biodiversity. Amazonie deforestation.jpg
Deforestation and increased road-building in the Amazon Rainforest are a significant concern because of increased human encroachment upon wild areas, increased resource extraction and further threats to biodiversity.

The habitat of any given species is considered its preferred area or territory. Many processes associated with human habitation of an area cause loss of this area and decrease the carrying capacity of the land for that species. In many cases these changes in land use cause a patchy break-up of the wild landscape. Agricultural land frequently displays this type of extremely fragmented, or relictual habitat. Farms sprawl across the landscape with patches of uncleared woodland or forest dotted in-between occasional paddocks.

Examples of habitat destruction include grazing of bushland by farmed animals, changes to natural fire regimes, forest clearing for timber production and wetland draining for city expansion.

Impact of introduced species

Mice, cats, rabbits, dandelions and poison ivy are all examples of species that have become invasive threats to wild species in various parts of the world. Frequently species that are uncommon in their home range become out-of-control invasions in distant but similar climates. The reasons for this have not always been clear and Charles Darwin felt it was unlikely that exotic species would ever be able to grow abundantly in a place in which they had not evolved. The reality is that the vast majority of species exposed to a new habitat do not reproduce successfully. Occasionally, however, some populations do take hold and after a period of acclimation can increase in numbers significantly, having destructive effects on many elements of the native environment of which they have become part.

Chains of extinction

This final group is one of secondary effects. All wild populations of living things have many complex intertwining links with other living things around them. Large herbivorous animals such as the hippopotamus have populations of insectivorous birds that feed off the many parasitic insects that grow on the hippo. Should the hippo die out, so too will these groups of birds, leading to further destruction as other species dependent on the birds are affected. Also referred to as a domino effect, this series of chain reactions is by far the most destructive process that can occur in any ecological community.

Another example is the black drongos and the cattle egrets found in India. These birds feed on insects on the back of cattle, which helps to keep them disease-free. Destroying the nesting habitats of these birds would cause a decrease in the cattle population because of the spread of insect-borne diseases.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hunting</span> Searching, pursuing, and killing wild animals

Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products, for recreation/taxidermy, although it may also be done for resourceful reasons such as removing predators dangerous to humans or domestic animals, to eliminate pests and nuisance animals that damage crops/livestock/poultry or spread diseases, for trade/tourism, or for ecological conservation against overpopulation and invasive species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Habitat conservation</span> Management practice for protecting types of environments

Habitat conservation is a management practice that seeks to conserve, protect and restore habitats and prevent species extinction, fragmentation or reduction in range. It is a priority of many groups that cannot be easily characterized in terms of any one ideology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wildlife conservation</span> Practice of protecting wild plant and animal species and their habitats

Wildlife conservation refers to the practice of protecting wild species and their habitats in order to maintain healthy wildlife species or populations and to restore, protect or enhance natural ecosystems. Major threats to wildlife include habitat destruction, degradation, fragmentation, overexploitation, poaching, pollution, climate change, and the illegal wildlife trade. The IUCN estimates that 42,100 species of the ones assessed are at risk for extinction. Expanding to all existing species, a 2019 UN report on biodiversity put this estimate even higher at a million species. It is also being acknowledged that an increasing number of ecosystems on Earth containing endangered species are disappearing. To address these issues, there have been both national and international governmental efforts to preserve Earth's wildlife. Prominent conservation agreements include the 1973 Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). There are also numerous nongovernmental organizations (NGO's) dedicated to conservation such as the Nature Conservancy, World Wildlife Fund, and Conservation International.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trophy hunting</span> Hunting of wild animals for trophies

Trophy hunting is a form of hunting for sport in which parts of the hunted wild animals are kept and displayed as trophies. The animal being targeted, known as the "game", is typically a mature male specimen from a popular species of collectable interests, usually of large sizes, holding impressive horns, antlers, furs, or manes. Most trophies consist of only select parts of the animal, which are prepared for display by a taxidermist. The parts most commonly kept vary by species but often include the head, hide, tusks, horns, or antlers.

The ethics of terraforming has constituted a philosophical debate within biology, ecology, and environmental ethics as to whether terraforming other worlds is an ethical endeavor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wildlife tourism</span>

Wildlife tourism is an element of many nations' travel industry centered around observation and interaction with local animal and plant life in their natural habitats. While it can include eco- and animal-friendly tourism, safari hunting and similar high-intervention activities also fall under the umbrella of wildlife tourism. Wildlife tourism, in its simplest sense, is interacting with wild animals in their natural habitat, either actively or passively. Wildlife tourism is an important part of the tourism industries in many countries including many African and South American countries, Australia, India, Canada, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Maldives among many. It has experienced a dramatic and rapid growth in recent years worldwide and many elements are closely aligned to eco-tourism and sustainable tourism.

Jefferson Allen McMahan is an American moral philosopher. He has been Sekyra and White's Professor of Moral Philosophy at the University of Oxford since 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rodrigues flying fox</span> Large species of bat native to the island of Rodrigues

The Rodrigues flying fox or Rodrigues fruit bat is a species of bat in the family Pteropodidae, the flying foxes or fruit bats. It is endemic to Rodrigues, an island in the Indian Ocean belonging to Mauritius. Its natural habitat is tropical lowland forests. The bats are sociable, roost in large groups during the day and feed at night, squeezing the juice and flesh out of fruits. They are hunted by humans for food and their numbers have been dwindling, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated the species as being "endangered". In an effort to preserve them from extinction, some bats have been caught and are being bred in various zoos around the world.

Disease is described as a decrease in performance of normal functions of an individual caused by many factors, which is not limited to infectious agents. Furthermore, wildlife disease is a disease when one of the hosts includes a wildlife species. In many cases, wildlife hosts can act as a reservoir of diseases that spillover into domestic animals, people and other species. Wildlife diseases spread through both direct contact between two individual animals or indirectly through the environment. Additionally, human industry has created the possibility for cross-species transmission through the wildlife trade.Furthermore, there are many relationships that must be considered when discussing wildlife disease, which are represented through the Epidemiological Triad Model. This model describes the relationship between a pathogen, host and the environment. There are many routes to infection of a susceptible host by a pathogen, but when the host becomes infected that host now has the potential to infect other hosts. Whereas, environmental factors affect pathogen persistence and spread through host movement and interactions with other species. An example to apply to the ecological triad is Lyme disease, where changes in environment have changed the distribution of Lyme disease and its vector, the Ixodes tick. The recent increase in wildlife disease occurrences is cause for concern among conservationists, as many vulnerable species do not have the population to recover from devastating disease outbreaks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Endangered species</span> Species of some organisms facing a very high risk of extinction

An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, invasive species, and climate change. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List lists the global conservation status of many species, and various other agencies assess the status of species within particular areas. Many nations have laws that protect conservation-reliant species which, for example, forbid hunting, restrict land development, or create protected areas. Some endangered species are the target of extensive conservation efforts such as captive breeding and habitat restoration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Defaunation</span> Loss or extinctions of animals in the forests

Defaunation is the global, local, or functional extinction of animal populations or species from ecological communities. The growth of the human population, combined with advances in harvesting technologies, has led to more intense and efficient exploitation of the environment. This has resulted in the depletion of large vertebrates from ecological communities, creating what has been termed "empty forest". Defaunation differs from extinction; it includes both the disappearance of species and declines in abundance. Defaunation effects were first implied at the Symposium of Plant-Animal Interactions at the University of Campinas, Brazil in 1988 in the context of Neotropical forests. Since then, the term has gained broader usage in conservation biology as a global phenomenon.

Sentientism is an ethical view that places sentient individuals at the center of moral concern. It holds that both humans and other sentient individuals have interests that must be considered. Gradualist sentientism attributes moral consideration relatively to the degree of sentience.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wild animal suffering</span> Suffering of wild animals due to natural processes

Wild animal suffering is suffering experienced by non-human animals living in the wild, outside of direct human control, due to natural processes such as disease, injury, parasitism, starvation, malnutrition, dehydration, weather conditions, natural disasters, killings by other animals, and psychological stress. Some estimates indicate that these individual animals make up the vast majority of animals in existence. An extensive amount of natural suffering has been described as an unavoidable consequence of Darwinian evolution, as well as the pervasiveness of reproductive strategies, which favor producing large numbers of offspring, with a low amount of parental care and of which only a small number survive to adulthood, the rest dying in painful ways, has led some to argue that suffering dominates happiness in nature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Welfare biology</span> Proposed field of research

Welfare biology is a proposed cross-disciplinary field of research to study the positive and negative well-being of sentient individuals in relation to their environment. Yew-Kwang Ng first advanced the field in 1995. Since then, its establishment has been advocated for by a number of writers, including philosophers, who have argued for the importance of creating the research field, particularly in relation to wild animal suffering. Some researchers have put forward examples of existing research that welfare biology could draw upon and suggested specific applications for the research's findings.

Clare Palmer is a British philosopher, theologian and scholar of environmental and religious studies. She is known for her work on environmental and animal ethics. She was appointed as a professor in the Department of Philosophy at Texas A&M University in 2010. She had previously held academic appointments at the Universities of Greenwich, Stirling, and Lancaster in the United Kingdom, and Washington University in St. Louis in the United States, among others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oscar Horta</span> Spanish animal rights activist and moral philosopher (born 1974)

Óscar Horta Álvarez is a Spanish animal rights activist and moral philosopher who is a professor in the Department of Philosophy and Anthropology at the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC) and one of the co-founders of the nonprofit organization Animal Ethics.

Animal Ethics is a nonprofit organization formed to promote discussion and debate around issues in animal ethics and to provide information and resources for animal advocates. They also do outreach work in several countries on the issue of speciesism. Their aim is to create a world where moral consideration is extended to all sentient beings. The organization's website covers topics such as speciesism, sentience, veganism and wild animal suffering and has content translated into several languages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Predation problem</span> Consideration of predation as a moral problem

The predation problem or predation argument refers to the consideration of the harms experienced by animals due to predation as a moral problem, that humans may or may not have an obligation to work towards preventing. Discourse on this topic has, by and large, been held within the disciplines of animal and environmental ethics. The issue has particularly been discussed in relation to animal rights and wild animal suffering. Some critics have considered an obligation to prevent predation as untenable or absurd and have used the position as a reductio ad absurdum to reject the concept of animal rights altogether. Others have criticized any obligation implied by the animal rights position as environmentally harmful.

Catia Faria is a Portuguese moral philosopher and activist for animal rights and feminism. She is assistant professor in Applied Ethics at the Complutense University of Madrid, and is a board member of the UPF-Centre for Animal Ethics. Faria specialises in normative and applied ethics, especially focusing on how they apply to the moral consideration of non-human animals. In 2022, she published her first book, Animal Ethics in the Wild: Wild Animal Suffering and Intervention in Nature.

"The Meat Eaters" is a 2010 essay by the American philosopher Jeff McMahan, published as an op-ed in The New York Times. In the essay, McMahan asserts that humans have a moral obligation to stop eating meat and, in a conclusion considered to be controversial, that humans also have a duty to prevent predation by individuals who belong to carnivorous species, if we can do so without inflicting greater harm overall.

References

  1. Usher, M. B. (1986). Wildlife conservation evaluation: attributes, criteria and values. London, New York: Chapman & Hall. ISBN   978-94-010-8315-7.
  2. Harris, J. D.; Brown, P. L. (2009). Wildlife: Destruction, Conservation and Biodiversity. Nova Science Publishers.
  3. Greenfield, Patrick (September 9, 2020). "Humans exploiting and destroying nature on unprecedented scale – report". The Guardian . Archived from the original on September 9, 2020. Retrieved September 10, 2020.
  4. Woodyatt, Amy (September 10, 2020). "Human activity has wiped out two-thirds of world's wildlife since 1970, landmark report says". CNN. Archived from the original on June 10, 2021. Retrieved September 10, 2020.
  5. "¿Qué es la CITES? | CITES". cites.org. Archived from the original on 2020-11-14. Retrieved 2020-11-15.
  6. CITES 2013. Member countries. CITES Secretariat, Geneva.
  7. Izzo, J. B. (2010). "PC Pets for a Price: Combating Online and Traditional Wildlife Crime Through International Harmonization and Authoritative Policies". William and Mary Environmental Law and Policy Journal. 34 (3).
  8. Vié, J.-C.; Hilton-Taylor, C.; Stuart, S.N. (2009). Wildlife in a Changing World – An Analysis of the 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (PDF). Gland, Switzerland: IUCN. ISBN   978-2-8317-1063-1 . Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  9. Smith KM, Anthony SJ, Switzer WM, et al. (2012). "Zoonotic viruses associated with illegally imported wildlife products". PLOS ONE. 7 (1): e29505. Bibcode:2012PLoSO...729505S. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0029505 . PMC   3254615 . PMID   22253731.
  10. Smith, KF; Schloegel, LM; Rosen, GE (2012). "Wildlife Trade and the Spread of Disease". In Aguirre, A. Alonso; Ostfeld, Richard; Daszak, Peter (eds.). New Directions in Conservation Medicine: Applied Cases of Ecological Health. Oxford University Press. pp. 151–163. ISBN   978-0-19-990905-6.
  11. "Goal 15 targets". UNDP. Archived from the original on 2017-09-04. Retrieved 2020-09-25.
  12. Shepherd, Chris R.; Thomas, R. (12 November 2008). "Huge haul of dead owls and live lizards in Peninsular Malaysia". Traffic. Archived from the original on 1 April 2012. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
  13. Phd, Sally Kneidel (November 10, 2008). "Veggie Revolution: Monkeys and parrots pouring from the jungle..." Archived from the original on February 9, 2010.
  14. "Charles Lagus BSC". Wild Film History. Archived from the original on 13 November 2012. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
  15. Bélange, Claude (2004). "The Significance of the Eagle to the Indians". The Quebec History Encyclopedia. Marianopolis College. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
  16. "Eid Al-Adha 2014: Muslims Observe The Feast Of Sacrifice". Huffington Post. Archived from the original on 21 March 2015. Retrieved 3 March 2015.
  17. Wikisource-logo.svg One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain : Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Animals in Christian Art". Catholic Encyclopedia . New York: Robert Appleton Company.
  18. 1 2 Scanlon, John (22 June 2017). "The world needs wildlife tourism. But that won't work without wildlife". The Guardian.
  19. "How Tourism Benefits Nature and Wildlife - Sustainable Travel International". sustainabletravel.org. 25 January 2021. Archived from the original on 2021-01-25.
  20. 1 2 Tomasik, Brian (2015-11-02). "The Importance of Wild-Animal Suffering". Relations. Beyond Anthropocentrism . 3 (2): 133–152. doi: 10.7358/rela-2015-002-toma . ISSN   2280-9643.
  21. 1 2 Faria, Catia; Paez, Eze (2015-05-11). "Animals in Need: the Problem of Wild Animal Suffering and Intervention in Nature". Relations. Beyond Anthropocentrism . 3 (1): 7–13. ISSN   2280-9643.
  22. Horta, Oscar (2014-11-25). "Egalitarianism and Animals". Between the Species . 19 (1).
  23. Dawkins, Richard (1995). "Chapter 4: God's Utility Function". River Out of Eden . London: Orion Publishing Group. ISBN   978-0-297-81540-2.
  24. 1 2 3 Horta, Oscar (2010). "Debunking the Idyllic View of Natural Processes: Population Dynamics and Suffering in the Wild" (PDF). Télos. 17 (1): 73–88.
  25. Iglesias, Alejandro Villamor (2018). "The overwhelming prevalence of suffering in Nature". Revista de Bioética y Derecho (42): 181–195.
  26. For discussion of wild animal suffering and its relation to the problem of evil see:
  27. For academic discussion of wild animal suffering and its alleviation from a secular standpoint see:
  28. Delon, Nicolas; Purves, Duncan (2018-04-01). "Wild Animal Suffering is Intractable". Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics. 31 (2): 239–260. doi:10.1007/s10806-018-9722-y. ISSN   1573-322X. S2CID   158886418.
  29. Callicott, J. Baird (1980-11-01). "Animal Liberation: A Triangular Affair" (PDF). Environmental Ethics. doi:10.5840/enviroethics19802424. S2CID   41646945. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2019-02-20. Retrieved 2021-03-21.
  30. Simmons, Aaron (2009). "Animals, Predators, The Right to Life and The Duty to Save Lives". Ethics & the Environment. 14 (1): 15–27. doi:10.2979/ete.2009.14.1.15. S2CID   89542818.
  31. Sözmen, Beril İdemen (2013-11-01). "Harm in the Wild: Facing Non-Human Suffering in Nature" (PDF). Ethical Theory and Moral Practice. 16 (5): 1075–1088. doi:10.1007/s10677-013-9416-5. ISSN   1572-8447. S2CID   143964923.
  32. Regan, Tom (2004). The Case for Animal Rights. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 357. ISBN   978-0-520-24386-6.
  33. Kapembwa, Julius (2017). Wildlife rights and human obligations (PhD thesis). University of Reading. p. 50
  34. 1 2 Horta, Oscar (2015-01-05). "Why the Situation of Animals in the Wild Should Concern Us". Animal Charity Evaluators. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  35. Sebo, Jeff (2020-01-15). "All we owe to animals". Aeon. Retrieved 2021-03-15.
  36. "Helping animals in the wild". Animal Ethics. 2013-08-28. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  37. Vinding, Magnus (2020). "Reducing Extreme Suffering for Non-Human Animals: Enhancement vs. Smaller Future Populations?". Between the Species. 23 (1).
  38. Wiblin, Robert; Harris, Kieran (2019-08-15). "Animals in the wild often suffer a great deal. What, if anything, should we do about that?". 80,000 Hours. Retrieved 2019-10-25.
  39. Dirzo, Rodolfo; Young, Hillary S.; Galetti, Mauro; Ceballos, Gerardo; Isaac, Nick J. B.; Collen, Ben (2014). "Defaunation in the Anthropocene" (PDF). Science . 345 (6195): 401–406. Bibcode:2014Sci...345..401D. doi:10.1126/science.1251817. PMID   25061202. S2CID   206555761. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2017-05-11.
  40. Kolbert, Elizabeth (2014). The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History. New York City: Henry Holt and Company. ISBN   978-0805092998.
  41. Ceballos, Gerardo; Ehrlich, Paul R.; Barnosky, Anthony D.; García, Andrés; Pringle, Robert M.; Palmer, Todd M. (2015). "Accelerated modern human–induced species losses: Entering the sixth mass extinction". Science Advances . 1 (5): e1400253. Bibcode:2015SciA....1E0253C. doi:10.1126/sciadv.1400253. PMC   4640606 . PMID   26601195.
  42. Ripple WJ, Wolf C, Newsome TM, Galetti M, Alamgir M, Crist E, Mahmoud MI, Laurance WF (13 November 2017). "World Scientists' Warning to Humanity: A Second Notice". BioScience . 67 (12): 1026–1028. doi: 10.1093/biosci/bix125 . hdl: 11336/71342 . Moreover, we have unleashed a mass extinction event, the sixth in roughly 540 million years, wherein many current life forms could be annihilated or at least committed to extinction by the end of this century.
  43. Cowie, Robert H.; Bouchet, Philippe; Fontaine, Benoît (2022). "The Sixth Mass Extinction: fact, fiction or speculation?". Biological Reviews. 97 (2): 640–663. doi: 10.1111/brv.12816 . PMC   9786292 . PMID   35014169. S2CID   245889833.
  44. Vidal J (March 15, 2019). "The Rapid Decline Of The Natural World Is A Crisis Even Bigger Than Climate Change". The Huffington Post . Archived from the original on October 3, 2019. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  45. Stokstad, Erik (6 May 2019). "Landmark analysis documents the alarming global decline of nature". Science. doi:10.1126/science.aax9287. S2CID   166478506.
  46. "Biodiversity: Almost half of animals in decline, research shows". BBC. May 23, 2023. Archived from the original on July 17, 2023. Retrieved July 12, 2023.
  47. Finn, Catherine; Grattarola, Florencia; Pincheira-Donoso, Daniel (2023). "More losers than winners: investigating Anthropocene defaunation through the diversity of population trends". Biological Reviews. 98 (5): 1732–1748. doi: 10.1111/brv.12974 . PMID   37189305. S2CID   258717720.
  48. Greenfield, Patrick (September 19, 2023). "'Mutilating the tree of life': Wildlife loss accelerating, scientists warn". The Guardian. Archived from the original on September 25, 2023. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
  49. Ceballos, Gerardo; Ehrlich, Paul R. (2023). "Mutilation of the tree of life via mass extinction of animal genera". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America . 120 (39): e2306987120. Bibcode:2023PNAS..12006987C. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2306987120 . PMC   10523489 . PMID   37722053.
  50. Diamond, J. M. (1989). Overview of recent extinctions. Conservation for the Twenty-first Century. D. Western and M. Pearl, New York, Oxford University Press: 37-41.
  51. "Critical Species". Conservation and Wildlife. Archived from the original on 19 May 2012. Retrieved 14 July 2012.