Today, we honor World Endangered Species Day. A report by the IPBES found approximately one million animal and plant species are threatened with extinction. This is mostly due to human actions. As wildlife populations continue to diminish, the loss of key individuals causes a cascade effect throughout the entire ecosystem.
A prime example of this is when wolves were killed off in Yellowstone National Park from 1914-1926 and what transpired for 70 years after the wolves were no longer an apex predator.
Elk overpopulated the area and overgrazed the land and trees. Without the trees, songbirds were in decline. The beavers didn’t have trees to build dams which led to stream degradation and without the shade from trees, the water temperatures were too warm for cold-water fish.
Then in 1973, the Endangered Species Act was passed and wolves were reintroduced into Yellowstone National Park. Their reintroduction balanced the elk populations, allowing the trees to grow. The end of overgrazing helped to stabilize the rivers. Eagles, songbirds, foxes, and beavers came back.
This is the essence of interconnection and is fundamental to life on Earth.
Interestingly, one of the ways you can make a difference for wildlife is by reducing the amount of animal products you consume. 80% of the world’s land is used for animal agriculture. This translates into massively reduced wildlife habitat and food sources. As biodiversity decreases, less carbon is sequestered, less oxygen is provided, and soil degradation occurs, impacting our environment.
If you live in the U.S., you can also make a difference for wildlife by calling your federal legislators and stating you want to ban trophy hunting of endangered and threatened species. As we are experiencing the Earth’s sixth mass extinction process in real-time, how are we allowing endangered wildlife to be hunted for sport? Change occurs when we, as a collective, take action. Let’s change the narrative for wildlife and ourselves because what affects them also affects us.
You can find your federal legislators at www.pluralpolicy.com.
