Animal Conservation: Altruism or Obligation?

The death of Lonesome George in June 2012 brought global attention to the fragile state of some species. Lonesome George was a Pinta tortoise (Geochelone elephantopus abingdoni) from the Galapagos Islands. Scientists theorized that he was the last of his subspecies. The focus on his story shed light on the reality that conservation efforts can be unsuccessful. National Geographic explains that we are in the midst of the Sixth Great Extinction, the first mass extinction to occur during the existence of humans. Further, it is an extinction characterized as almost exclusively driven by humans; between 17,000 and 100,000 species become extinct each year. In this time of urgency, many are driven to take part in conservation initiatives by a desire to help. Others take part because they feel an obligation to animals. And there are also people who believe protecting other species is a necessity for the sustainability of ecosystems.

Several months ago, I participated in a rather ambiguous debate where we ranked different types of catastrophes caused by humans. We ranked them on a scale from one to ten, based on how terrible we considered each catastrophe. One of the topics that came up was the potential extermination of a species of whale. Some people, including myself, ranked it very high, while others ranked it quite low. One of the recurring themes throughout the debate was the question: What does this species of whale offer to humankind? The general consensus was that the extermination of a whale species would be catastrophic only if the species provides something unique and beneficial to humans.

I became frustrated at the way some people approached and rationalized this subject. In a time when many species are in danger of extinction, I don’t believe conservation efforts should be provided exclusively to animals that provide humans with a particular resource. All living things have an ecological function at stable populations in their natural environments. This way, even though an animal may appear insignificant in the web of life, its disappearance could be disastrous.

My first encounter with the complexities of ecosystems was in elementary school when I borrowed a children’s book from the library, Wolf Island by Celia Godkin. The book describes the changes that occur on an island after a family of wolves moves to the mainland. For the wolves, the primary prey source were the deer and eventually, the absence of the wolves causes the deer on the island to multiply rapidly. The larger deer population consumes so much vegetation that rabbits and mice suffer from a food shortage and subsequent starvation. This causes the rabbit and mouse populations to decrease and results in less food for animals who prey on them, such as foxes and owls. The text explains how the disappearance or decline of a species can affect the food chain and endanger other species. In the end, the wolves return to the island and eventually restore the balance of the ecosystem.

The elementary example in Wolf Island shows how the natural balance can easily be disrupted, often in unexpected ways. Human actions can inadvertently disturb ecosystems. For example, the once common Indian vulture has suffered a catastrophic decline since the mid-1990s. According to The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, the Indian vulture population has declined by over 97 per cent and the species is classified as critically endangered. Extensive research has determined that the veterinary drug diclofenac is the cause of this decline. The non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug was used to treat domestic livestock and was ingested by vultures feeding on their carcasses. Vultures who fed on the carcasses of animals treated with diclofenac died from visceral gout caused by renal failure.

The plummeting vulture population resulted in the availability of more livestock carcasses for rats and feral dogs in India. Consequently, rat and feral dog populations have increased significantly. The booming population of feral dogs has resulted in a rabies epidemic, causing the death of thousands of people in India annually.

There are many other examples of the delicate balance in ecosystems. When one studies them, it’s clear that many species, such as the Indian vulture, are beneficial to humans and we often don’t realize the benefit of the species until they become endangered.

So my verdict on the potential extermination of a whale species is that it would be catastrophic. I believe conservation efforts should be made to protect species from extinction, regardless of whether we believe they provide something unique and beneficial to humans . . . for we might not discover the significance of the species until it is lost.

I hope more people will realize the importance of animal conservation.  Whether it’s due to a desire, obligation or necessity in mind, the fight for conservation should not be left behind.