The amount of animals and plants alive on Earth is difficult to simply comprehend, and it is a true tragedy that these amazing species are at risk. Habitat destruction and climate change have devastated many animal and plant populations around the globe, and some have even gone extinct. Endangered species are likely to become extinct, and extinct species have no remaining surviving members, in the wild or in captivity. Each year, we see more and more species added to the endangered and extinct lists, and this is a trend that we ought to work tirelessly to reverse.
Nineteen years ago, in 1998, there were 1,102 endangered animal species and 1,197 endangered plant species. Fourteen years later, there were over 3,000 endangered animal species and over 2,500 endangered plant species. The decrease in population of these species can be attributed to a combination of habitat destruction, poaching, pollution, and global climate change. It is only with the elimination of these threats that the populations of these species will be able to recover.
Many countries have put in place laws in order to try and protect endangered species. Nations can ban hunting, restrict land development, create nature preserves, and erect national parks. While these acts are extremely important in protecting endangered species, they are only effective if enforced, so it is crucial that countries be aware of the importance that these practices have. More, however, still needs to be done. Over 40% of all the species on Earth today are at risk of extinction, a number that truly reveals just how much damage humans have done to Earth’s natural ecosystems.
As mentioned earlier, it is possible for species to recover if their living conditions improve. For example, the California sea otter population was decimated as a result of the fur trade, as huge numbers of them were being killed for their soft fur. Once this practice was outlawed, though, their population was able to recover. We hope that other species can follow this pattern if their own situations were to be improved, and there is no reason why most of them would not be able to recover, but of course, a change needs to be made first.
In order to best understand how to protect endangered species and protect them from extinction, we need to carefully analyze their situation and identify their primary threat. This may be logging, poaching, or pollution, among other things. Once we know what is causing the die-off, we can work to eliminate this threat and allow the species to recover. This process is hardly simple, and it will take a lot of people working together to carry it out effectively. We should never lose hope, though. These endangered species are worth fighting for!
As much as some may want to believe otherwise, animal and plant extinction is not a threat of the future; it needs to be faced today. In The Future of Life, scientists estimate that “up to half of presently existing plant and animal species may become extinct by 2100.” While 2100 is decades away, it is the actions that we take today that will determine whether or not this statement will ring true. The scariest thing about extinction is its permanence, and species extinction is not something that can ever be undone. Thus, we must do all we can to protect the species that we have now and prevent them from suffering this tragic fate.
