The future of the large herbivores isn’t completely hopeless, but with all the poaching and habit loss they are being threatened.
This isn’t a cheerful subject, but the above cartoon was too brilliant not to share. I especially liked the aside at the bottom right, “Sorry, we were too busy taking selfies to notice.” As this Science Magazine article points out,
…without radical intervention, large herbivores (and many smaller ones) will continue to disappear from numerous regions with enormous ecological, social, and economic costs.
Now is the time to act boldly, because without radical changes in these trends, the extinctions that eliminated most of the world’s largest herbivores 10,000 to 50,000 years ago will only have been postponed for these last few remaining giants.
Are you more hopeful than I am?
May 13, 2015
http://www.kcc.org.nz/tuatara – they were around when dinosaurs roamed the world – and we still have a few lurking about – mostly on remote islands but also in animal enclosures…
Wow! What an interesting article. So after all these millions of years they may die out because the warming earth will mean all the new ones will be male. Unless they change that pattern through evolution.
No, I am not. Too many have already perished and the natural culling process cannot be stopped.
The question is, will we be culled too?
I hate to sound so negative but the aside is the most telling, I think.
Sure, people care enough to hit the “like” tab on the photos shown on Facebook and such.
But not enough to put down their phones and do anything about it.
Unless action is taken soon, these giants and the planet itself, is doomed.
Sorry to such a Debbie Downer.
xo
I doubt that the planet will be doomed. Cockroaches are one of the most successful species. They have been on earth for 300 million years compared to our 200 thousand. (They were here before the dinosaurs.) My guess is they would survive even if we humans managed to kill ourselves off.
rich developers. corporations. the human race over breeding.
greed. people still buying ivory. rain forests being devastated daily.
we’re sealing our own doom and we’re too arrogant and stupid apparently to know it.
so no.
i can’t say i’m hopeful.
but it is a great cartoon. poignant. the selfie movement says it all.
I agree, it’s a great cartoon. And bet on the cockroaches, not us humans. 😀
WOW!
that was interesting to learn about the tuatara!!! fascinating little creature.
i hope it survives! to imagine it was here when the dinosaurs were!!!!
thanks cathy and monk!
Oh yes, we will be culled too.