The human race has a seemingly impossible challenge before them. While many focus on huge social issues such as terrorism and world hunger, which are completely valid and important issues, many have forgotten about the state of humanity’s neighbors within our very planet. Earth is in the midst of its sixth great extinction, keyed as the Holocene Extinction after the current epoch the planet is in. The Holocene Extinction, starting between 9,000 and 13,000 years ago, is the most recent since the Cretaceous-Tertiary mass extinction, during which the dinosaurs were wiped out (Heymann, Chibante and Brooks). Such knowledge of our current ongoing mass extinction event is not well known among the common populace. The simple fact is that the human …show more content…
race as a whole has not taken care of the world it exists in. It is undeniable that poaching is one of the biggest concerns of the natural world in the last century. It is essential that those with the power to make a difference pursue ways to protect the justice and fairness for all victims of endangered animal hunting.
Governments across the globe must work together as an international coalition to stop poaching and illegal trade of endangered animals worldwide.
Long past are the days when poaching was simply commoners hunting on owned property. Poaching is now one of the biggest causes of modern extinction. Today’s poaching does not only consist of animal poaching alone. Modern poaching includes the standard killing or theft of endangered animals as well as supplying exotic bird markets, illegal fishing or over-fishing, illegal harvesting of timber and exotic plants, and acquiring laboratory animals for Western pharmaceutical companies (Lemieux and Clarke). Hunting in itself is not inherently an evil thing, as many rural communities survive off of hunted meats and other “bush meat”. In ancient Eastern Asia, hunting was a lifestyle that was sustained by local communities that did not have economies reliant on mass trade. The aboriginal people would hunt largely for personal consumption, both for meat and use of body parts of all of their prey for various medicinal
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treatments (Rabinowitz). They would use various animal parts for treatments for illnesses as simple as colds and as serious as cancer. This pseudoscience, of course, was not based on science or accuracy, but nevertheless the people had beliefs and stuck to them. When the economy burst in the 80’s and 90’s, traditional cures became more affordable. When hunters realized that the parts of animals were worth more than their sum, the hunting and trading exploded. “The slaughter began (Rabinowitz).” Guns made poaching ever more efficient and before long the local animals were suffering. As time progressed, guns evolved into traps and poachers found an even more effective way to catch prey, both tigers and lesser animals alike. Nowadays, wildlife product traffickers do not rely on any singular product. Instead, they seek to gain profit from anything they can get their hands on. In Karl Ammann’s undercover research on the border of Laos and China, his team was told by a dealer that while rhino horn does not have aphrodisiac properties, it would reduce fever and cleanse the body. Other dealers claimed it a remedies for many maladies, including epilepsy, hepatitis, high blood pressure, even rabid dog bites and cancer. Poaching and using poached products has become a status symbol for those with more money than sense and dealers told Ammann’s crew that politicians in the area could be bribed with tiger pelts and other such artifacts (Ammann). Furthermore, the efforts made thus far have not had a satisfactory impact on either stopping poaching or creating preserves for animals such as tigers and rhinos.
CITES, or the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, is an international agreement between governments to ensure international trade of wild animals and plants does not threaten the survival of those species. According to its website, it was first conceived in 1973 and “accords varying degrees of protection to more than 35,000 species of animals and plants, whether they are traded as live specimens, fur coats or dried herbs.” Nature reserves and parks in Asia are not performing satisfactory in their protection of the animals within their grounds. With inadequately patrolled borders, poachers and other criminals sneak in and lay out trap lines and hunt in the only places where these animals are thought to be protected. Hidden away from the outside world, these parks are emptying of their most important residents. Locations in between countries that may have laws specific to poaching are ripe with crime. These so called “border towns” are empty of law enforcement or regulators of any sort. Here, sellers and buyers of endangered products are free to go about their business with no fear of consequence. In the year 2003, 581 leopard skins and 31 tiger skins were seized on the China–Nepal border (Nijman and Shepherd). Even what laws are in place are not enough to deter these
criminals from doing their crime and getting away with it. Poaching in countries like Vietnam is relentless, with weak prison sentences as punishments being non-issues to those who partake in tiger crime. Throughout the past 40 years, conservation agencies “have exerted pressure on national governments and international agencies to tighten laws and increase legal penalties for wildlife crimes (Lemieux and Clarke).” While some countries are working on cracking down on punishments, such as China where hunting pandas holds sentences of at least ten years to a death sentence, others leave a lot to be wanted. As recently as 2013, Kenya fined a Chinese smuggler a mere $350 USD for a haul of 439 pieces of ivory before releasing him (Van Wyk). That changed with a new law, the Wildlife Conservation and Management Act 2013, put into effect in Kenya on January 10th, 2014. Sec. 92 of that Act introduced sentences of either imprisonment in life or a fine of 20 million Kenyan shillings, which equates to about $200,000 USD as of December 2015. The statistics of actual detection and detainment of poachers also leave a lot to be wanted. Early this year the Obama Administration of the United States of America put out a plan to take on traffickers in the US as well as put pressure on Asian countries to stop the buying and selling of endangered animal products (Nixon). While this is an excellent step in the process and conservationists have lauded the effort, it is not enough to just stop here. All governments must step in to stop poaching and illegal trafficking of ill-got products and endangered animal artifacts in both their own countries and any other countries they have the resources to affect. Governments must first work within their own countries to choke out any possibilities of illegally obtained produce in their countries. Countries must continue to send in troops, whether current or veteran, to combat poaching in a very real way, using whatever methods necessary. Already some countries are working to do this. For one very recent example, soldiers from the Royal Regiment of Scotland and other specialist corps trained for six weeks in the remote jungles of Gabon to learn how to hunt down and destroy poachers of elephants. This squad of twelve has trained a task force of sixty one “eco-rangers” with military skills and techniques in order to patrol the jungle. Other countries that have begun using military techniques and technology include Botswana, Cameroon, Kenya, South Africa and Zimbabwe. “Nations have used anti-poaching task forces to satellite imagery and even drones to guard vast areas of land (Giannangeli).” International governments must also pressure poacher-infested nations’ governments to crack down on all possible poaching and poaching-related-corruption in their countries. The Obama administration’s aggressive plan to track and target those traffickers that benefit from the $20-billion-a-year market via American Intelligence agencies was introduced just earlier this year. The plan came with a modest budget, which Crawford Allen, a wildlife trafficking expert with a program run by the World Wildlife Fund, had mixed feelings about. He explained that while it is fantastic that the US is doing this, the resources are still very limited and the government needs to focus on taking down the criminal organizations behind the trafficking. The United States of America has grown into “the second largest market for illegal wildlife products” and “officials say that millions of pounds of illegal products, including bear and fish bladders, are sold every year to American and foreign customers (Nixon).” Officers from the wildlife service are being sent to countries in Africa, Asia, and South America to combat poaching at the heart. Poaching, as one of the biggest causes of modern large-scale extinction, must be stopped at the heart by all means necessary. Illegal animal trafficking and trade is too rampant and widespread to be stopped by any one nation or any one organization. Governments across the globe have to work together to create a plan to truly stop poachers and traffickers from continuing their practices. Those nations that cannot afford their own defenses must be assisted by those nations that have the resources to spare. If the poachers and traffickers are not stopped soon, it will be too late to save many species that are on the brink of extinction.
“By the time we’re done, it’s quite possible that there will be among the great apes not a single representative left, except, that is, for us,” Kolbert deduces (225). Hunting a species has caused the endangerment and extinction of many species of animals and plants. Six out of eight species of the world’s bears are categorized as “vulnerable” or “endangered” to extinct (222). Advocating for rights of endangered species, and protecting the forests they habitat is a noteworthy method to prevent extinction caused by humans. As an individual, one could help by supporting and donating to organizations such as the World Wildlife Fund, the National Wildlife Federation, the Wildlife Conservation Society, and more (262). Humans may ease their conscience by not actively killing endangered species, but protecting them
The exotic pet trade is a booming industry, raking in millions of dollars every year. Everything from harmless leopard geckos to hyenas can be found in 30 of the 50 states. Of those 30 states, only 21 require permits to own these animals (Webber 2010). Indiana has just recently withdrawn its own requirement for permits, making 10 states that allow any kind of exotics without documentation (Kelly 2015). It is estimated that 15,000 big cats are being kept as pets in the United States alone, with more captive tigers in Texas than there are in India. Approximately 15,000 primates and 7.3 million reptiles are also being kept in the US (Webber 2010). What does all of this mean and, more importantly, what can be done about it?
Wildlife conservationists are constantly working to supervise the rivers, forest, and other natural resources of Africa in order to preserve and protect them through prudent management. In Kenya, laws against trophy hunting has assisted these conservationists in maintaining wildlife populations. However, park rangers face a huge battle against the illegal poaching of these rare trophy animals, such as lions and elephants. In Asia, the demand for ivory continues to surge, despite the long-time ban on its international trade. The demand is so high that the Tanzanian government has developed plans to construct a commercial highway through the Serengeti in order to more efficiently trade goods with Asia (“The Need for Serengeti Watch”). However, the highway will also provide a faster route to the coast for ivory smugglers. The controversy surrounding the highway and its positive or negative effects on the economy, Tanzania as a whole, and the Serengeti is countless. Despite the debate over its benefits and...
Anthropologists must be sure that we outline what, precisely, we mean by hunting, whether the focus is on a technique, prey size, or a suite of behaviors that the society itself considers hunting. Hunting can refer to a broad range of actions, very roughly equivalent to “procuring meat resources”, but it is often preferable to examine more specific hunting behaviors, and we must be sure to fully explain which behaviors, precisely, we are studying. Explanations for the sexual division of labor suffer when there is not a clear definition of hunting and gathering. The lack of adequate definitions hides important exceptions and limitations to what has been proposed. We cannot begin to make sense of the numerous theories about the sexual division of labor without understanding what, precisely, we are talking about. The following are prevalent theories regarding this division, with some of their weaknesses
Hunting centuries ago was a cruel way of survival for humans but now it's no more than a violent form of recreation. Hunters should only hunt if they need it for sustenance which most
A social outrage has broken recently amid the scandal of Cecil the Lion’s death. Cecil was illegally hunted and killed by the American dentist Walter Palmer. Since then, it has caused the world to change their minds on the effects of trophy hunting. Succeeding the death of the renowned lion, a recent poll in America displays that on a three to one margin, the respondents said they would rather be tourists in a country that prohibits trophy hunting, instead of one that does not. The debate is ascending as more hunters proudly present their ‘trophy’ on social media. Many nature conservatives and animal protection agencies are raising awareness because of the fact that Cecil died in a meaningless and violent manner.The problem is not only in America, but around the globe. Trophy hunting should be illegal in the world because it is merely killing animals without a meaningful purpose, and it produces harmful effects to the environment.
Wildlife trade had been occurring for many years. Each year, millions of plants and animals are traded to fulfill our consumption. Those can be for medicine, leather, food, pets and many other. Although most of the goods are traded legally and cause no harm to the wildlife populations, a portion of those products are coming from the illegal trade of various endangered or threatens wildlife species. The business of wildlife trade had become the second biggest direct threat to species according to WWF. In 1990s alone, there were a report that about 160 US billion dollars’ worth of wildlife product were marketed around the globe (Unsustainable). Even though many of the countries, through the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora
Some describe trophy hunting as a game, where hunters choose animals in the wild to hunt down and bring part of the animal body home as a prize or a souvenir, but others describe it as a destruction to the nature of the wild. Trophy hunting has existed ever since the existence of the human race; however, trophy hunting in the history had a different meaning. Instead of hunting for one’s enjoyment or show of strength, human hunts animals for animal body parts that are useful, such as animal skins for clothing, and hunting to protect the village from animals that possess a threat. Hunting animals to protect the village is acceptable similar to other animals on Earth killing others that hold a threat against them. The animals that live in the
For every wildlife animal legally hunted another is killed illegally; this is called poaching. The people who commit the type of crime such as that of hunting illegally are known as poachers. The worst part about this crime is that it is committed where no one can see or know what is happening. The motive of poachers can vary from wanting a trophy or pointlessly killing animals to harvesting a profit from ivories, horns, or antlers. If this environmental problem of poaching continues, then many species will either become endangered or extinct. This has been an ongoing problem for many years now and there have been many efforts to stop or catch poachers. There are various solutions that have been tried and tested but the latest and most effective solutions have yet to be explained.
My stance in my propaganda proposal is to stop Elephant Poaching. Elephant poaching is when elephants are killed because “poachers” want the ivory from the elephant’s tusks. A perfectly healthy elephant will be violently killed for the unacceptable reason of valuable ivory. What is the difference of murdering an innocent animal, than killing an innocent human-being? This is not only cruel, but these animals are being unfairly slaughtered.
Animals have always been the human race’s first choice when it comes to food, clothing, and unfortunately, decoration. Black bears fur is cut into family room rugs, and deer heads are mounted on the walls of Hunters houses everywhere. Although deer mounting and rug making are practices mainly found in the U.S, humans have extended their decorative tastes across international waters. Humans have been slaying hundreds of exotic African animals, such as rhinos and elephants, in exchange for the animals’ horns and tusks. Since these items are imminently rare, humans are paying graciously to get some of their own to display in their homes, show off to their peers, and create items that could have easily been created with
There are so many reason why poaching is a concern, so I am going to come up with idea to stop the poaching. Poaching is a vast and continuous thing that happen everywhere, but m prime concern is the poaching of elephants. We could put more sanctuaries in Africa and other places, poaching hurts the elephant population. So we need to protect the elephants that are left, and what can we do to help the baby orphaned elephants put more sanctuaries in africa and other places.
Everyone’s all seen those wildlife shows on tv. The shows on National Geographic and such, showing animals in beautiful environments, everything lush and growing and nothing at all wrong that could threaten these creatures and places. But, have anyone seen the other side? The side where all these beautiful creatures and plants starve, are decimated by predators that have never been there before, and sometime even become poisoned by their very own homes and habitats? Of course no one has. That doesn’t mean that its not happening. It is happening, and its happening everywhere. And guess who is to blame? People. Society. Humans as a race pollute the environment, hunt animals simply for their parts, fish way more than humans will ever need just for the sake of money, introduce new species to new places for our own gain, and even purposefully destroy entire regions just for human expansion. And its starting to take its toll. While it is true that nature is constantly in flux and certain species come and go, humans are causing more species to disappear in the past few hundred years then nature has ever caused since the age of the dinosaurs, and therefore it is up to humans to repair the damage caused, be it cleaning the environment and habitats of these creatures, or taking more direct action to protect and preserve the species that are on the brink of extinction.
Although it may not seem saving or protecting endangered animals is important, it actually and truly is important because animals around the world are being killed for wildlife market goods which is illegal and destroys the species population in that environment. Citizens should take more concern with taking care of these endangered animals before they become totally extinct and will no longer be seen on the face of the earth. Recently researchers have found that poachers (hunters who hunt animals for their value with trading illegal merchandise) are killing thousands of animals a day, and they are doing so even to this day. These species should be treated with more responsibility and care. They are even being killed by human interactions
Human beings, ever since its creation has never been alone on the earth. As we all know we share this planet with lots of different species of living creatures, such as animals, and plants. But even though we name ourselves the superior species due to our ability to think, make decisions and choose how we want to live our lives, we start to grow. Our growth ranges among many different aspects, such as infrastructure and lifestyle. This led to us somehow neglecting the fact that we are not alone in this planet. We start pushing other species out of the way, and we sometimes don’t realize that the impact felt by those other species has terrible and sometimes deadly consequences, and also we sometimes fail to understand that it can also cause harm to us.