I've never had the chance to see a dinosaur, and you don't see me crying about it

Apr 26, 2014 23:07 GMT  ·  By

This question (i.e. Is it really worth it to invest time and money in saving endangered species?) has been bugging me for quite a while now. Extinctions have been happening since the beginning of life on Earth, and yet our planet is still going around the sun, and the moon is still going around our planet.

What's more, the argument that future generations deserve the chance to see lions, tigers, orangutans and whatnot does not sound like a very strong one to me. I've never had the chance to see a dinosaur and I probably never will, and you don't see me crying about it.

Why is it then that conservationists keep badgering us and telling us that we must act now to make sure that some species that are going through a rather rough patch do not fall off the biodiversity map? Honestly, it's like they have no idea how busy we are these days.

I mean, we have a whole lot other things on our mind to be bothered with biodiversity. Things like burning whatever dirty fuels we have until now managed to get our hands on, drilling in the Arctic to get even more, and complaining about how our unsustainable ways are messing with the climate.

Bottom line, we have much better things to occupy our time with, and since extinctions happened many times before humans even evolved as a species, is it really our job to make sure they don't happen again? Bad things happen to good people, c'est la vie – maybe we should settle for making cute cards with such sayings and send them to elephants, rhinos, and other members of the SoonToGoExtinct Club.

Or should we? Pardon the long introduction, and, if I've led you to believe that I'm against conservation efforts, please accept my apologies for this as well. I don't think we should not save endangered species. On the contrary, I am convinced it is our duty to protect these animals, and you'll learn why in the paragraphs below.

For Starters, This Time, It's Our Fault

Scientists believe that dinosaurs went extinct either because an asteroid or a comet collided with our planet, or because of a massive volcanic eruption. Either of these would have saturated the sky with debris, thus keeping the sun's energy from reaching our planet and reshaping biodiversity.

Humans weren't around when this happened, and, even supposing that they were, it's doubtful that they would have been big fans of playing fetch with celestial bodies or that they would have had the business of triggering massive volcanic eruptions all figured out. Hence, there is no way to blame our ancestors for the demise of T-Rex and its buddies.

The bad news is that, when it comes to extinctions occurring in this day and age, we most certainly are the ones to blame. In fact, it was earlier this month when a group of researchers published a paper saying that, ever since Homo sapiens first made an appearance, species have been going extinct at an unprecedented rate.

Specifically, it is estimated that, when compared to extinction rates documented before the arrival of Homo sapiens, the ones recorded after humans evolved as a species are about 100 to 1000 times greater. Is this pure coincidence? I think not, and I am quite certain that many of you will agree with me on this one.

More so since scientists themselves have stated that, “Humanity’s global influence is orders of magnitude greater than that of any other species, primarily because of the large human population size, anthropogenic CO2 production, biomass consumption, energy use and geographical range size.”

Otherwise put, we've made a pretty big mess ever since we arrived on this planet, and although I wholeheartedly oppose cleaning one's room or doing the dishes on command, I dare say that this mess is one we have the responsibility to deal with. Bottom line: we have created it, and this makes it ours to clean.

Humans are to blame for the fact that many species have gone extinct over the years
Humans are to blame for the fact that many species have gone extinct over the years

All It Takes to Ruin a Perfectly Good Engine Is a Missing Screw

First off, I must admit that I am utterly clueless about how engines work, so if no screws go into making them I ask that you not judge me too harsh for my ignorance. The point I am trying to make is that, in nature, everything is interconnected.

To put it in a nutshell, having just one species fall off the biodiversity map is bound to affect entire ecosystems. Imagine having aquatic plants, algae, and the like disappear from a given environment. One does not have to be a scientist to figure out that, should this happen, the animals that feed on them and that see them as their home will also pack their bags and leave.

Fast forward a few weeks, maybe even months, and the predators that rely on these animals to survive will no longer be around either. And voilà, this is how one ruins a perfectly good ecosystem simply by destroying a bunch of aquatic plants that most people do not think all that highly of to begin with.

For the sake of emphasis, here is one other way to look at things: imagine ecosystems like pyramids. Each of the blocks that make up such pyramids account for a plant or an animal species. Now imagine removing these blocks one by one. I am no architect, but I dare say that you will not manage to remove all that many blocks until the entire structure tumbles down.

Having just one species disappear can ruin entire ecosystems
Having just one species disappear can ruin entire ecosystems

Come On, It's Not like We Need Natural Ecosystems All That Much

Some might be tempted to bring forth the following argument: OK, so we destroy the world's natural ecosystems. True, some of them do make perfect backgrounds for Facebook pictures, but it's not like we need them or can't survive without them.

Well, I hate to break it to you, but we do need them. We need them because forests purify the air we breathe, purify freshwater sources, sequester carbon, which, by the way, is one really nasty greenhouse gas, and also help regulate the climate.

Not to mention the fact that there are a whole lot of plant species in this world that we can use as medicine. In fact, it is estimated that, of the medicines that human society now has at its disposal, about 50% are derived from natural products.

Add to this the fact that forests and other natural ecosystems constitute a food and income source for quite a lot of people, and it should be quite obvious why we should not be too quick to dismiss them and why we should bend over backwards to protect them.

Natural ecosystems are a source of food and income for many people
Natural ecosystems are a source of food and income for many people

The “for Future Generations” Argument

As mentioned, saying that we should protect endangered species for future generations does not really make much sense at first, simply because there are quite a lot of plants and animals that us modern humans have never had the chance to see in person and probably never will.

Shouldn't we then not care about the fact that our kids and grandchildren might never get to come face to face with a tiger, an orangutan, an elephant, a rhino, or whatever other animals are now in danger of going extinct? When one puts it like this, some might be tempted to say that no, we should not care.

The way I see things, there is one small problem with this reasoning. Sure, running alongside woolly mammoths and saber-tooth cats is pretty much out of the question for us modern humans. However, the fact remains that, even if these species and many other ones went extinct many centuries ago, others eventually took their place.

So we did get to see some biodiversity. Granted, today's biodiversity is a whole lot different from the one in the age of the dinosaurs, but it's still something. The problem with chopping down forests and polluting the environment in this day and age is that the conditions we are creating are not only causing species to go extinct, but they are also making it pretty darn hard for others to evolve in their place.

Imagine having the entire surface of our planet covered in urban areas, highways, factories and the like, and tell me if you really think that such a landscape could accommodate for anything other than humans and a handful of very lucky plants and animals that have somehow managed to adapt to these conditions.

It would be great if future generations were to have at least some animals to meet
It would be great if future generations were to have at least some animals to meet

So there you have it. These are the reasons why I for one think that not only we should bother to try and save endangered species, but that this should be a top priority for us. What do you think? Do let me known in the comments section below.

Photo Gallery (5 Images)

Good things alone come from protecting biodiversity
Humans are to blame for the fact that many species have gone extinct over the yearsHaving just one species disappear can ruin entire ecosystems
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