Endangered Species: Modern Environmental Problem

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Introduction

Endangered species refers to a situation whereby certain animals and plants are in danger of being destroyed. In the current world there are certain plants and animals which existed a hundred years ago but today they are no where to be found. This shows that there are species which are highly endangered in the environment more than others. The endangerment has resulted to death and loss of very important species of both plants and animals in the society, because of this there are many organizations which have come up to protect different species in our society from being harmed by human activities and other related activities. (Conserve wildlife)

This research is carried out in order to shade some light in regards to endangerment of species in our society; it will focus on what has contributed to the endangerment as well as the impact of endangerment in our society and finally come up with recommendations on how we can protect these species from being in danger. The study will focus mainly on plants and animals that have been endangered in the society and how to protect them. (The Royal Society)

Abstract

From the study it is clear that human activities have contributed highly to the destruction of the ecosystem for the existence of animal as well as plant species. It has affected species from local to global coverage, since there are factors like global warming which have there portion in endangering of plants as well as animal species. There are also changes in biodiversity which has been as a result of certain actions which as a result alter the biodiversity hence affecting the ecosystem in which these species inhibit. (The Royal Society)

From the study factors which cause danger to the species have been highlighted as well as the impact which is caused by endangering the species on population, community, ecosystem as well as biodiversity. Finally conclusions and recommendations have been made on what should be done to protect the species in future.

Current situation

In the current world and environment there are at least 1246 species of animals and plants in United States that are highly in danger or threat from human activities and other related activities. In most of the countries there are over 1800 species and only half of them have started plans to recover the lost species. This however shows that protection of endangered species has not been put in action in most parts hence posing danger of loosing very important species. On the other hand the countries which have adopted the recovery plans are doing much to see that these species are highly protected. (Conserve wildlife)

Causes of endangerment of species

In the current world there are many activities both human and non human that are carried out that pose great danger to animal and plant species in the society. Some of these species are rare and ought to be protected for future since if not protected they will be no where to be found in future. Some of the activities which cause danger to these species include the following;

Habitant loss

This refers to loss of a place to live for the animals and can also be expressed as the ecosystem or the suitable environment that enables the animals and plants to survive or certain species to stay in. For instance there are those animals which stay in swampy areas once the swamps are dried up it means that the animals are subjected to danger of either dying or being eaten by other animals. This is also the same for the animals that stay in rainforests once there are deforestation they are exposed to danger of death due to lack of food as well as a place to live in which suits them. (Conserve wildlife)

Habitant loss has been highlighted as one of the major cause of species being in danger. There are certain activities that have resulted to loss of habitats for the species and they include the following;

Construction of homes, buildings and roads, these are some of major human activities that have resulted to loss of habitants for species. During Construction of homes, buildings and roads there is a lot of destruction which is done to the environment where most of the species live. A person can decide to set up a home or a building in a forest where there are plants and animals leaving there. The first thing which is done is clearing of the plants that are there, it is possible that some of the plants that are cleared can not be found anywhere else hence loss of such plants. (Conserve wildlife)

On the other hand there are certain animals which stay in that environment when it is cleared it means that they are exposed to danger. In the first place the ecosystem is destroyed this is because some depended on the plants for food and shelter and if they are destroyed some of them can even die while others can shift to places which are not suitable for their survival hence being in any kind of danger.

The other activity is timber harvesting, this is important but it should be done in a way that does not endanger species. For instance trees that are rare to be found should not be harvested since this may result to loss of those plants completely. Also it should be done by experts who should select the trees which should be harvested especially the old ones, young trees which are not mature should not be harvested. (Conserve wildlife)

Pollution

Pollution is another major cause which has been highlighted especially for animals and some plants. There are different ways of pollution which affect our species and they include water, ground and air pollution. There are many activities which result to pollution in our environment and which affect different plants as well as animal species. (Conserve wildlife)

Water pollution is caused by different human actions for instance dumping of waste products in rivers and sea’s by industries. These waste products poison the water and become dangerous for the animals and plants therein. For instance fish and other animals that stay in water suffocate because of these toxics and they end up dying. This also applies to plants in water. (Conserve wildlife)

This not only affects the animals that stay in water but also other animals that drink that water. Animals stay in forests but they go to the rivers to get water hence if the water is poisoned they end up dying. This is the reason you find that at times there are many animals which lie died in forests. Also to the plants that are near the waters end up drying up.

When toxic substances especially from industries are dumped in forests they destroy the environment from soil to the plants. For instance some of these substances destroy soil contents hence affecting the species that stay in the soil like bacteria and insects. Death of these species may mean death of other species because there are birds that feed on these insects and will not have food hence may die. Also this may result to drying up of plants since the bacteria in the soil provide certain ingredients for the plants; this on the other hand will affect the animals since some of them depend on plants for food. This shows how a given activity can affect the whole ecosystem for species hence being in danger. (Conserve wildlife)

Unregulated or illegal killing

Human beings have posed great danger to survival of animals, since ancient times human beings were predators, they hunted certain animals for food. These hunting activities were not regulated hence animals were killed any how, this resulted to loss of certain species which were highly populated by then, some of the species are no where to be found today. This was not only done for food but also was seen as a commercial activity since most of the rhino’s were killed because of their tusks which were sold out. This is the reason you find that some of these species are rare today and in danger of getting lost completely. (Conserve wildlife)

Currently most of the countries have set rules and regulations that govern illegal killings of animals and the people found are answerable for it hence reduction in such activities. In most countries hunting and fishing are highly regulated and this is done by specialists in that area.

Disease

Diseases occur naturally while there are others that are caused by pollution of the environment. It is natural for the animals to die but there are certain activities which cause diseases to animals that are not natural. For instance use of insecticides by people to protect their crops, in the first place they kill the insecticides and also they pollute the environment. Some of the insecticides are strong such that when they are absorbed in the soil result to death of certain plant species and also when they combine with water it may be poisonous to animals and plants. On the other hand they may affect the food chain which may result to destruction of the ecosystem. (Conserve wildlife)

Deforestation

Deforestation is another major human activity that has highly endangered both animals as well as plant species. There are places that were once forests but they are no longer forests instead they have become an example of desert. There were plants in these forests but now they can’t be found as a result of deforestation, on the other hand there were animals in those forests which depended on them for survival but due to deforestation they either died or shifted to other places. Tropical species are not only affected by deforestation but also by the global climate change which is contributed highly by deforestation. (Impact of deforestation-Extinction)

Impact of endangered species on ecosystem, biodiversity and evolution

Ecosystem and biodiversity are interrelated in that one factor leads to the other and affects the operation of the other. Based on endangered species human activities have resulted to changes in earth’s biodiversity which has caused high ethical as well as aesthetic concerns. Whenever biodiversity is altered in any way as it has been altered by human activities like deforestation and pollution it results to negative effects on the ecosystem properties hence highly affecting species that are based in the given ecosystem. (The Royal Society)

It is evident that ecosystem properties highly depend on biodiversity hence when certain alterations are made on biodiversity ecosystem suffers together with its species. Ecosystem depends on biodiversity in the following aspects, the functionality of the organisms in the given ecosystem and the way the organisms are distributed and their population within given area and term. When biodiversity is altered in any way these factors are affected, for instance alteration in biodiversity may result to decline in population of given species over a certain period of time within given area of operation. (The Royal Society)

Human activities which also endanger species have contributed much to climate changes and scarcity of resources important to the species. For instance actions of deforestation has resulted to climate changes since rains no longer fall as they used to and this affects species in certain ecosystems. (Impact of deforestation-Extinction)

Loss of certain species in an ecosystem may result to poor functionality in that given system. For instance there are those animals that feed on grass whenever there are no rains it means that there is no grass, on the other hand the animals that depend on the grass for food may end up dying. There are other animals that depend on these ones for food which are subjected to danger because they lack food. This shows that one species in an ecosystem endangers other species which depend on them in one way or the other. (The Royal Society)

On the other hand there are certain ecosystems that are usually insensitive to species loss; this is because in certain ecosystems there are multiple species that serve same purpose hence loss of one may not be realized. This is dangerous since some of the species may be lost completely since they may not be easily noticed. (The Royal Society)

Effects on population and community

The population of many animals as well as plant species in the society has been highly reduced by human activities which destroy their ecosystem. Apart form the human activities reducing population of the species also the global climate change has played a great role. This is because change in climate in one way or the other contributes to destruction of certain ecosystems, for instance due to climate change rains do not fall as they used to hence ecosystems which depended on rain being destroyed. (The Royal Society)

It has been observed that many forest communities manage the global climate changes by way of migrating from one place to the other hence surviving. Many of the species within these communities manage to go through the difficult times within the ecosystem through these movements. (The Royal Society)

Recommendations for sustainable society and ecosystem

It is important for people while carrying out their human activities on daily basis should be mindful of the species which are in that environment. For instance the construction of homes, buildings and roads should not be done on areas that endanger lives of species in order to ensure that these species survive.

On the point of timber harvesting, before the trees are harvested for timber equivalent number of trees should also be planted as this will replace the ones which have been lost and this will ensure that there is no loss of trees and our animals will have a conducive environment to stay in.

Actions should be taken by governments on industries which direct there waste products to waters since they endanger animals and plants that stay in water.

Rules and regulations should be set by governments to govern illegal and unregulated killing of the animals as well as cutting of trees which has been evident in the society.

Deforestation by all means should be discouraged and where it has taken place reforestation should be done in order to replace the trees which have been lost. Through this many other plant species will be put in place and this will also provide a good environment for survival of animal species since some will get food and create a good ecosystem.

Conclusion

It is clear that different species within different ecosystems have been endangered by human activities among other natural factors. Also the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem has been seen and how they relate to each other. Finally recommendations have been made on how to protect the species within the ecosystem.

Works Cited

Conserve wildlife. What causes an animal to become threatened or endangered? Web.

Impact of deforestation-Extinction, Web.

The Royal Society. Biodiversity-climate interactions: adaptation, mitigation and human livelihoods, Web.

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