Article: Which Species Will Live?
Author: Michelle Nijhuis
When deciding which species should serve as a cornerstone for the organization's work, the Wildlife Conservation Society looked at three things: its importance to the ecosystem, its economic and cultural value, and its potential to serve as a conservation emblem. The U.S. Congress passed the Endangered Species Act in 1973; that act is considered to be the most powerful environmental law in the world. A lot of people have different thoughts about which species we should save and why. The Evolutionary Distinct and Globally Endangered of Existence program argues for prioritizing species at the genomic level, and favors the most genetically unusual threatened species. The "evolution first" approach emphasizes the importance of preserving genetic diversity.
I think it's sad how some people consider some species not worth saving, either because they're too expensive or it's too late to try. I think they're all worth saving, because they're all valuable and vital to the ecosystem/environment in their own way. A lot of scientists think only the important animals like the keystone species and umbrella species should be saved because many other species also depend on them for their survival. They're right, we should save them, but why don't we save all species? They have a right to be on this Earth too.
Author: Michelle Nijhuis
- The Wildlife Conservation Society spent months analyzing thousands of declining bird/mammal species around the world and had chosen a couple hundred that could serve as a cornerstone for the organization's work
- They judged each species on three things: its importance to the ecosystem, its economic and cultural value, and its potential to serve as a conservation emblem
- In 1973, the U.S congress passed the Endangered Species Act, which is considered the most powerful environmental law in the world
- In journalist Charles C. Mann and economist Mark L. Plummer's book Noah's Choice, they described the Act's reasoning as the Noah Principle: "all species are fundamentally equal, and everything can and should be saved, regardless of its importance to humans"
- An umbrella species is one whose own survival ensures the survival of many others
- The EDGE (Evolutionary Distinct and Globally Endangered) of Existence program argues for prioritizing species at the genomic level, or "evolution first"; the EDGE favors the most genetically unusual threatened species, including the Chinese great salamander
- The "evolution first" approach emphasizes the preservation of genetic diversity
- Species are valuable for different reasons; some are vital to the ecosystem, some have unique genes, others provide services to humans
- Hotspots are places full of plants found nowhere else on the planet
- 25 hotspots worldwide, including coastal California, that top priority lists; combines the function-first and evolution-first processes, protects ecological relations and genetic diversity
When deciding which species should serve as a cornerstone for the organization's work, the Wildlife Conservation Society looked at three things: its importance to the ecosystem, its economic and cultural value, and its potential to serve as a conservation emblem. The U.S. Congress passed the Endangered Species Act in 1973; that act is considered to be the most powerful environmental law in the world. A lot of people have different thoughts about which species we should save and why. The Evolutionary Distinct and Globally Endangered of Existence program argues for prioritizing species at the genomic level, and favors the most genetically unusual threatened species. The "evolution first" approach emphasizes the importance of preserving genetic diversity.
I think it's sad how some people consider some species not worth saving, either because they're too expensive or it's too late to try. I think they're all worth saving, because they're all valuable and vital to the ecosystem/environment in their own way. A lot of scientists think only the important animals like the keystone species and umbrella species should be saved because many other species also depend on them for their survival. They're right, we should save them, but why don't we save all species? They have a right to be on this Earth too.