Wildlife Protection: Combating Animal Poaching and Exploitation
“Poaching is the illegal harvesting of game or fish. Until the twentieth century, most poaching was subsistence hunting or fishing to augment scanty diets. In the early twenty-first century, poaching usually is committed for sport or profit”. The leading questions ask, how do we protect endangered animals? What penalties should be in place? Endangered animals should be protected and should have consequences to anyone who harms these animals. Protecting the wildlife, educating the public, and preserving the land for the animals is what should happen in order to stop poaching.
Most of the poaching happens in Africa and the animals that are being hunted down are black rhinos whose population has decreased 97.6% since 1960, mountain gorillas with a standing 1,000 to remain, African elephants that had 35,000 killed in the past year, lions which are extinct in seven African countries and Grevy’s zebras that have only a remaining 2,000 adults. The African Wildlife Foundation, the leading international conservation organization focused highly on Africa says that “Endangered animals are slaughtered so that a single body part-like tusks, pelt, or bones – can be illegally sold for huge sums of money.” For example, rhino horns are thought to treat hangovers, fevers, and cancer, but it was proven to cure none of those. Also, ivory from elephants is being carved into jewelry, utensils and religious figurines which is definitely not worth the life of an elephant. “As much as 70% of illegal ivory goes to China, where it is sold on the streets for up to $1,000 a pound”.
How does this happen?
Poaching caused by organized crime members that are vulnerable to higher powered technology and weapons to hunt down and eliminate multiple animals at once without being spotted by military or the police. Environmental Encyclopedia says that “Poachers tracked and shot wolves from airplanes, and caught and killed sturgeon and paddlefish for their caviar” which is a way of technology being used to track down animals. In Africa elephants and tigers are susceptible, zebras are endangered, and rhinos and gorillas are critically endangered. “In 1970 there were about 4.5 million elephants in Africa, but by 2007 there were only 500,000-600,000. Protection from poachers and the 1990 ban on the international trade in ivory (which caused a drop in the price of ivory) temporarily slowed the slaughter of African bush elephants”. That just shows how elephants are now endangered and threatened everywhere from ivory poaching.
What can we do to end this?
To protect these helpless animals, gathering scouts or troops to train them with what they should be aware of when they’re in the wildlife by supplying them with vehicles that can withstand all-terrain, GPS’s along with satellite phones. John L. Brooks says that “in the United States, the National Park System and the National Wildlife Refuge System incorporate vast areas of protected land” which shows how others also care for these animals. In cooperation with anti-poaching exertion, wildlife passageways are altered to allow animals to go from one park to another in Africa. Henri Nsanjama says that “The key to successful conservation of African wildlife and the continent's park system lies in the sustainable management of the resource itself. Such a management approach must take into account the widest scope of needs and interests.” Educating the public as in socializing with other groups and administrations to increase the alertness of poaching of animals.
Why do people poach these animals? What's so good about it?
Though there are many downsides to poaching, some people poach animals to collect their body parts as trophies such as using their heads to place on a wall. In some cases, “A smaller number of individuals poach because this is their means to find food for survival. This type of poaching is said to be not what causes the animals to become extinct. Some people find poaching a method of survival rather than a way to add to their collection or to get wealthy”. Those people who kill those animals may not have food so they poach to find food because it could be there only resource to live. Why Do People also said that “satisfaction is a reason enough why people poach animals, especially if the animals are very rare. Another reason for people poaching is to capture living animals, in order to sell them into the illegal pet selling trade.” Wistfully, some people kill these animals for the fun of it.
Everyone should contribute to help save these endangered animals. Africa's population is gradually decreasing possibly leading to the extinction of some animals. You would not want to be poached so why kill these animals? If this problem isn't stopped soon then we will not have any more of these endangered species to exist and no wildlife to enjoy their life as an animal.
