There is
almost nothing natural about current rates of extinction. It
is difficult to even find an endangered species that hasn't been forced
into that tenuous category because of human action through habitat
loss, pollution, over harvest, introduction of invasive species, or
fragmentation of remaining habitats and populations into smaller and
smaller bits and pieces. And like falling dominoes, the loss
or alteration of one species ends up affecting dozens, hundreds, even
thousands more. We are the ultimate culprit in almost every
case.
But for me, the real issues that argue for conserving endangered
species are human values and ethics, rather than pure science.
For those who are interested in the ecological ramifications
of not conserving pygmy rabbits, or the ethical arguments
involved in saving endangered species, I offer my personal assessment
at the end of the full report, which may be downloaded.
With
a bit of luck and lots of help from WSU students and our many research
colleagues on the WDFW science team and the federal endangered species
recovery team, we feel cautiously optimistic that we can get these
endangered animals back out on the landscape where they belong.
Rod
Sayler, Conservation Biologist
Washington State University
10
January 2004
Why Save Endangered Species? Considering the Possible Extinction of the Columbia Basin Pygmy Rabbit
