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Green Light - Everyday Ecology

Started by Luftwaffles, March 23, 2017, 04:40:52 PM

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Luftwaffles


Changing the fate of the planet one step at the time!

I believe the fact needs no introduction, but I'll say it anyway: We are stripping this planet of its beauty at overwhelming speed (in fact, we are to its blue and green surface what explosions are to sand castles) but -a bit shockingly, considering our handwork over the centuries- not everything it's lost. Oh! There's no coming back now (not with such "achievements" like the extinctions of the Passenger Pigeon (once so numerous that its flocks used to block off the sun), the Rocky Mountain Locust (whose swarms were larger than the state of California) and the Huia (killed in cold blood due to its beauty) under our belts) but there's still hope.

In fact, let's forget for a minute that 99% of all species that have ever roamed the Earth are now extinct and let's instead focus on those 4574 plants and animals that currently classified as Critically Endangered and are struggling for their very lives -not to mention those who are Extinct in the Wild and are pretty much waiting for their final breaths because we REALLY needed that extra space-. Because having to read about contemporary species in history books is a curse that we cast amongst ourselves, but all that really means is that we have the power to lift it. Let's use that power!

But before I begin developing my ideas and suggestions, I want to stress that I'm totally against the idea of De-Extinction. Firstly because it is a really expensive and complicated process that only produces "imperfect" specimens that usually die within a few hours of getting to life... I mean, that's almost as cruel. Secondly, because the massive resources needed to carry on with the experiments could be put to a much better use by preventing already-struggling species from joining the ranks. But really, the thing that bothers me the most is the nature of the idea. I mean, I have grown to bitterly accept that I will never see a Great Auk walking around its breeding grounds with impeccable elegance and that my nights will never be haunted by the hysterical calls of a Laughing Owl, but that doesn't mean that I want them back; purely because it just wouldn't be fair to bring them back into a strange new world -where they will probably die quickly anyway- just to teach us a lesson that we should already have learned.

As to what can be done about all of this, well... we are fighting a defensive battle at best. Very little has been done over the centuries to prevent any of this from happening and, when it did happen, it was usually not enough to stop the impending disaster or the resources were put into play when all hope was already lost. However, there's been brilliant efforts by people way ahead of their time that show that there's light at the end of the tunnel. One example that automatically comes to mind is Lord Morton's effort to save the Quagga from extinction, in a time frame (although two centuries before it) when the Haast's Eagle was starved to death because of the human-caused extinction of the Moa... just to put everything in perspective.

Morton ultimately failed, and the Quagga became extinct in 1883. However, because he cross-breed the male he already had (the only one he was able to get his hands on) with a female horse, an offspring was born and the cycle went on, making the study of the thing suddenly possible by the means of having a living creature to comprehend (rather than a skin or pile of bones). This goes to show that a -seemingly- small effort can go a long way if done passionately and persistently. And was that it? No! Because of this, Reinhold Rau studied the Quaggas in every level possible and started the Quagga Project in 1987. This is based on the same principle employed by Morton several moons ago and has resulted on a long-scale cross-breeding project that has produced enough individuals for a re-insertion in the wild to be possible. THIS is the De-Extinction we should be aiming at, the one that takes action in a preventive matter rather than trying to right the wrongs once the wrongs have already happened.

But believe me when I say that you don't have to go as far as to grab an Endling (or almost) and desperately try to cross-breed it with a close relative to snatch a victim from the claws of oblivion. Lots of things can be done that are equally as effective -if not more-. We can make the difference in so many ways (like supporting organizations that fight against this kind of thing in a bigger and better scale) but the thing that we should never lose sight of is the fact that every time we fail, a domino effect is put in motion and it's just a matter of time before the whole structure collapses (Hell, it only took a Brown Tree Snake escaping to cause 65% of the avian population of Guam to become extinct). I don't know about you, but I try to take a good look at every bird, fish, reptilian and mammal I come across because everything goes at this point. As far as I know, those guys might not be here ten years from now... and what a sad world would that become.

I'd really rather have my children inherit a world in which a bird wouldn't be forced to perform a matting call to nothingness, due to it being -unknowingly- the last of its kind or in which another bird didn't have to be massacred because of its very social nature and the care for its species. Or maybe just don't pat something in the head with one hand while stabbing it with the other. Eh, mate?

I have talked a lot, so I'll now listen to you, my mates.
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LT Sandpaw


I'm behind you in a lot of ways. I mean, who doesn't like clean water and animals? I know I sure love the outdoors and the beauty of this world, but I'm not going to stress too much over animals going extinct. Whichever way you look at it, it has been happening for a long time and it will continue to happen no matter what we do.


"Sometimes its not about winning, but how you lose." - John Gwynne

"Facts don't care about your feelings." -Ben Shapiro

Luftwaffles

Quote from: LT Sandpaw on March 23, 2017, 09:25:17 PM

I'm behind you in a lot of ways. I mean, who doesn't like clean water and animals? I know I sure love the outdoors and the beauty of this world, but I'm not going to stress too much over animals going extinct. Whichever way you look at it, it has been happening for a long time and it will continue to happen no matter what we do.

Thanks a lot for sharing your opinion, mate. I truly appreciate it :)

And you are absolutely right: it won't stop happening... because that's Nature's way. However, if a species needs to go, I'd much rather it being because they are no longer fit for living on this planet and not because we wanted to make clothes out of them.
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MatthiasMan

#3
Riding my bike is one of my favorite things. Period. I could ride forever if only I had hat luxury.

I used to think the area I lived in was a clean area, and that pollution wasn't really a problem.  However, the first thing I always notice when roaring my bike down every single road is how much trash is thrown out the window. It breaks my heart to see such a careless attitude.
In my opinion, humans will be the ultimate cause of human extinction. There are too many careless or uneducated people on the matter of pollution and it's effects on nature.

I'm no fact genius, but I know that manufactured items like stirophome (spelling??) and plastic take unnaturally long times to decompose. It's ironic how we justify cars and technology and just all this stuff by saying it improves society, but underneath it kills the planet.

Luftwaffles

Oh, we have done a lot of stupid things in the name of "progress". It's actually quite unbelievable in a way, considering we depend on the environment and the silent work of those plants and animals around us to keep our very existence going. I wonder for how long will we be able to turn a blind eye on this... I'm sure someone is bounded to notice if Cows or Sheep become extinct. Hopefully, it won't take that much.

QuoteRiding my bike is one of my favorite things. Period. I could ride forever if only I had hat luxury.

Ditto :)



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Ashleg

I'm not consciously trying to be green or anything, but it really peeves me when I see a bunch of litter around. If you're not gonna do it for the planet at least do it for yourself; I'm quite sure nobody would prefer to stare at a bunch of old plastic bottles in comparison to something clean.

LT Sandpaw


Don't mess with Texas, am I right?

So many people are just lazy and don't care about the problems that arise from not taking the extra thirty seconds to throw their trash in a can. All you can really do is clean up after them and hope their conscious gets the better of them.


"Sometimes its not about winning, but how you lose." - John Gwynne

"Facts don't care about your feelings." -Ben Shapiro

Luftwaffles

#7
Thanks a lot for your valuable replies, mates. I really appreciate you taking the time to give your input on such an important topic. Please keep them coming if you so desire :)

Now, I would like to talk about an issue that shouldn't even be such, but that's humanity for you: introduced/invasive species.

As the name implies, introduced species are those that are -either forcefully or carelessly- thrown into a whole new ecosystem where they start competing with the local inhabitants for space and resources. Both plants and animals can be qualified as invasive and, in most cases, the results are terrifying for the original dwellers. I have already mentioned the Brown Tree Snakes on the original post, but really, anything can have a devastating effect on their new surroundings... even a snail can (and had). This is because Nature bases its ways on beautifully-crafted, yet incredible fragile schemes that pretty much force every member of the food chain to be just barely capable of keeping the circle going and lets them vulnerable to outside threats.

It is no coincidence that the vast majority of the causality list up to this point is composed of ground-dwelling birds, small rodents and little mammals of every kind, this is because they grew unprepared to deal with rats, cats and even dogs brought with the settlers when they first arrived to their land. But that's sadly just the tip of the iceberg. I could be talking for an hour about how this completely eradicated the Dodo, but that wouldn't be worth the effort, not because the case didn't deserve it, but because it's grown to be celebrated over the years by the means of turning it into comedy and parodying of the thing... and I'm not partaking in such despicable action. So, instead of mourning the dead, let me throw a warning to the living: We need to take action now, because we have gotten to a point in which introduction of foreign species to remote environments has gotten so out-of-hand that both local animals and their uninvited guests are suffering from it, forever engaged in a deadly battle for survival.

One example that immediately opened my eyes was that of the Cane Toad.

This little amphibian is native of Center and South America, but has appeared in Oceania in true hordes. It is a rather amusing creature in its own environment, but deadly as a shotgun blast when jumping on foreign ecosystems which are unprepared to deal with it and its massive breeding demands (just to give a number, females of the species can lay thousand eggs on a single season). However, the toad is also a victim here, because it is as well unprepared (or ill-prepared, at the very least) to deal with some of the local fauna and this makes it an easy catch for the Merten's Water Monitor. If only it were that simple...

What happens here is that the Cane Toad has no chances against the stronger and more agile Monitor, but since it is a poisonous creature, it kills the predator once it has also been killed. It's a principle as old as bee stings, but disastrous for both ends of the stick. There's been some serious efforts to fix the situation (which I truly appreciate) but this is a long attrition battle and it had no rights to happen. And the saddest part is that having an option to fix the irking situation is a luxury; as some species (like the Choiseul Pigeon) had to go under before the problem could be even acknowledged as such.

We can only improve, I guess.
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alexandre

I think the song Paradise, by John Prine is fitting for this topic

Lyrics in the spoiler
Spoiler
When I was a child my family would travel
Down to Western Kentucky where my parents were born
And there's a backwards old town that's often remembered
So many times that my memories are worn

And daddy won't you take me back to Muhlenberg County
Down by the Green River where Paradise lay
Well, I'm sorry my son, but you're too late in asking
Mister Peabody's coal train has hauled it away
Well, sometimes we'd travel right down the Green River
To the abandoned old prison down by Airdrie Hill
Where the air smelled like snakes and we'd shoot with our pistols
But empty pop bottles was all we would kill

Then the coal company came with the world's largest shovel
And they tortured the timber and stripped all the land
Well, they dug for their coal till the land was forsaken
Then they wrote it all down as the progress of man

When I die let my ashes float down the Green River
Let my soul roll on up to the Rochester dam
I'll be halfway to Heaven with Paradise waitin'
Just five miles away from wherever I am
[close]
Why they try to tear the mountains down to bring in a couple more
More people, more scars upon the land

               ~ John Denver

And daddy won't you take me back to Muhlenberg County
Down by the Green River where Paradise lay
Well, I'm sorry my son, but you're too late in asking
Mister Peabody's coal train has hauled it away

                ~ John Prine

Luftwaffles

#9
Thanks for the song, mate. I'd also like to recommend Animal Nation by Peter Gabriel as it is a wonderfully-composed piece that approaches the topic harshly and sweetly at the same time, delivering a powerful message. I like how he highlights an unspoken truth: Intelligent life is all around us.

It definitely is.

I'd also like to link you guys to the Biodiversity Heritage Library, a gigantic archive of written works which had been digitized and are provided freely to researchers and users alike. It's a fantastic resource and I personally use it daily, as it has helped me gathering information on a more efficient way. I'd wholeheartedly recommend you to check it out!   
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Luftwaffles

#10
Just a little update:

* As of late 2016, the Bramble Cay Melomys has been declared extinct. This makes it the very first mammal victim of anthropogenic climate change.

* It has been deemed possible that a small population of Ivory-billed Woodpeckers might still exist in the wild. However, several searches have failed to find the animal -which hasn't been recorded properly since 1944- and it is unclear whether or not the remaining individuals are enough to continue on with the species, as it's been hinted that no more than a dozen might still be occupying their old range.

* The Pink-headed duck changed its conservation status from "extinct" to "critically endangered". Always a rare bird, the duck seems to have sought shelter on marshlands and remote areas unreachable for us humans. No concrete evidence of this exists, but the new surroundings seem to be appropriated for the needs of the duck and are close enough to their old range for it to be at least possible.
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Luftwaffles

Here's a true miracle: http://www.npr.org/sections/krulwich/2012/02/24/147367644/six-legged-giant-finds-secret-hideaway-hides-for-80-years

I could sum up the story on here, but that would only strip it of its truly inspiring nature. Click on the link above if you have fifteen minutes to spare and be ready to be amazed by the fantastic tale of how a species survived by unknown means for nearly a century (and by how we have the power to keep it around).

(A big thanks to @James Gryphon for telling me about this article).
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Luftwaffles

#12


Allow me to introduce you to Lyuba. She doesn't look like it, but she's 42000 years old.

We didn't do anything to her, her species met their demise when Nature decided to be whimsical.

However, there's something fantastic about this young lady: She still has her eyes, even though they no longer see. Her skin and fur are also there and her organs are in perfect shape. You'd think she's just about to get up and walk.

It's incredibly inspiring in its own way, seeing this creature from another time just standing in there, and I wanted to share it with you, guys.
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Luftwaffles

I know that this is turning into a lament of dead animals, but you can't raise awareness in a topic without showing just how devastating it is to ignore it... so here we go:

This is the Santa Lucian Giant Rice Rat. The fellow was monstrously huge (being the size of a small cat) and could have very well been the inspiration for Redwall, given its size and ferocious nature. But we, of course, didn't give it the chance, as the species became extinct in 1881.

Very little is known about them and we won't be studying them in detail any time soon, as the specimen pictured below is the only remaining skin of the entire taxon. A rather underwhelming end to one of the biggest dwellers of this Earth of ours. 

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