Animals Vs. Humanity

Animals Vs. Humanity

Recently, humanity continues to carry out fundamental

activities around the world. Some of these activities are important and are carried out for the welfare and macroeconomics of nations.

Corporations around countries are exploiting many resources such as oil, power plants, manufacturing of goods in industries, minerals and among others which are damaging our environment and leading thousands of animals in different ecosystems to the brink of extinction. Not only that, it is also causing severe climate change and diseases to living organisms.

Human beings are the greatest threat to the survival of endangered species through all these activities.  Studies have shown that the extinction of certain animals is on the rise along. There is an article released in the 29th of October last year from The Guardian which showed that humanity has wiped out 60% of mammals, birds, fish and reptiles since 1970, leading the world’s foremost experts to warn that the annihilation of wildlife is now an emergency that threatens civilisation.

This was a quantitative study based on the kinds of species

that are in the rise of extinction, by statistics and trends. According to an educational video by a man that goes by the name of Prince Ea, there is a saying that our planet is about 4.5 billion years old, mankind About 140,000 years old,  If we put that in perspective: If you condense the Earth's lifespan into 24 hours, which is one full day, then we have been living on this planet for 3 three seconds (Prince Ea, 2015).

This saying means that throughout our whole lives we have been wiping millions of animals during the peeks of our existence, quickly, easily and tragically. In face of all this massive destruction of life and creatures, there has to be solutions from someone.

Here is a list of species that are going extinct because of us:

1- Orangután.

Since the millennium, the Sumatran Orangutan has been classified by the IUCN as Critically Endangered with approximately 80% of the population lost in the past 75 years mainly as a result of mass deforestation. This awful trend continues to put pressure on the remaining population of 6,600 Sumatran Orangutans that are estimated to remain on this earth.

2- Saola.

In 1992, the discovery of this mythical creature, sometimes referred to as the Asian Unicorn, in Vietnam was hailed one of the most spectacular zoological discoveries of the 20th century. Yet already, this elusive and beautiful animal been deemed by the IUCN to be Critically Endangered and is one of the rarest large mammals to exist on Planet Earth.

3- Vaquita.

With less than 100 thought to exist, the Vaquita is the rarest marine mammal in the world. Time is running out for these elusive little sea porpoises, with extinction predicted as soon as 2018.

4- Pangolin

Despite their tough appearance, these small, warrior built

mammals are losing the battle against poachers and habitat loss. All eight species of pangolin are under threat, ranging from Vulnerable to Critically Endangered. They are the most trafficked animal in the world, hunted for their scales which can be sold on the black market for up to $3,000/kg.

Bibliographic reference:

https://onekindplanet.org/top-10/top-10-worlds-most-endangered-animals/

By Jorge Gutiérrez, Step 11