Hello and welcome to Environmental Minute! This is a segment brought to you by WDIY, in part by the Estate of Don Miles, and I am your host, Maddie Yang, a rising senior in high school at Moravian Academy, in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. I am super passionate about all things climate change, sustainability, and empowering and educating others to take action against the climate crisis. My goal for this segment is to provide listeners with a glimpse to a whole variety of topics in the vast realm of sustainability from biodiversity to ecotourism, and plant-based diets to sustainable swamps.
As of now, there are over 172,600 species on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (also known as the IUCN) Red List, an indicator that describes biodiversity on a global scale. And within those 172,600 species, 48,600 are currently threatened with extinction.
The IUCN breaks down these species into nine distinct groups based upon how close they are to extinction. This list includes least concern (organisms that are abundant), near threatened (organisms that are likely to become threatened in the future), vulnerable (organisms that face a high risk of extinction in the wild with less than 10,000 individuals in existence), endangered (organisms that face an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild, with populations declining over 70% and have fewer that 2,500 individuals in existence) , critically endangered (organisms whose populations have declined over 90% and have fewer than 250 individuals in existence), extinct in the wild (organisms that are only alive in captivity), and extinct, with no living individuals remaining on Earth.
But why are so many species disappearing?
The main cause: habitat loss. As forests are cleared, wetlands drained, and oceans contaminated, animals lose the places they need to live, find food, and reproduce. Another major factor is climate change. Rising temperatures, shifting weather patterns, and warming oceans disrupt ecosystems, leaving animals having to say goodbye to the homes they once knew. Pollution also plays a major factor. Whether it be plastics harming marine life, pesticides messing with pollinators, or chemical runoff affecting our rivers and streams, species as widely known as the humble bee are facing serious consequences due to harmful human activity.
Overexploitation also holds a massive amount of weight in the topic of wildlife conservation. Overfishing, poaching, and illegal wildlife trade cause animals such as rhinos and elephants to be hunted for their valuable body parts. And while global conservation efforts attempt to undo the damage of these practices, many wildlife populations have already sustained dramatic damage.
From Tibetan Antelopes and Spider Monkeys to Ocelots and Quokkas, endangered species not only represent the decline of an individual species, but an overall crisis in biodiversity.
Every species plays a crucial role in its ecosystem. Predators control prey populations. Pollinators help plants reproduce. Plants stabilize soil and produce oxygen. When one species disappears, a domino effect ensues.
However, strides have been made in terms of bringing back species that we once thought were long gone. Species such as the bald eagle, which was on the Federal list of endangered species in 1967 experienced a major rebound in population thanks to protective legislation efforts like the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Today, their population sits at over 400,000 birds across North America — a major success story.
In the early 1900s, the grey wolf was exterminated by the government, with the last of their population being killed by park rangers in Yellowstone National Park. By the mid-20th century, the grey wolf population was essentially gone aside from remote areas in Michigan and Minnesota, officially listed as endangered. Luckily, the US Fish and Wildlife Service and scientists stepped in, capturing 31 Canadian wolves, reintroducing them to Yellowstone and Idaho triggering a trophic cascade. Plants like willows and aspens were able to regenerate and the beaver, fish, bird and bear population were able to thrive.
Success stories like these show that extinction is not always the end all be all. There are solutions. Support conservation organizations. Learn about local wildlife. Spread awareness. We are in this fight together to preserve the delicate balance of life on Earth.
Thank you so much for tuning into this episode of Environmental Minute, and I hope this conversation has inspired you to think more deeply about biodiversity and wildlife conservation. Until next time, I’m Maddie Yang, and this has been Environmental Minute.
