This analysis was written by Jeremy Hance, and published on 3 August 2020 in Mongabay. Jeremy draws attention to the issue of critically endangered species not being offered the help needed to ensure their survival.
70% of Critically Endangered Species Receive No Help
- Many critically endangered species receive no conservation action because they are deemed ‘uncharismatic’ and fail to attract funding.
- Charisma challenged species are often small, less colorful, and little known to the public.
- Scientists have long argued that umbrella species protect uncharismatic species, but is that true?
Meet the Tanzanian gremlin. Shhhhhh … though. She’s shy. But check out those bat-like ears. And those massive eyes. And that long scaly tail that ends in a flamboyant bush. And look how tiny she is: at around 100 grams (3.5 ounces) she’s the size of a newborn chihuahua. Yes, I know her name isn’t actually the Tanzanian gremlin, it’s the Rondo dwarf galago (Paragalago rondoensis). But I prefer gremlin. For one thing, let’s be honest, most of us probably don’t know what a galago is (it’s a primate in the suborder that includes lorises, lemurs and pottos) and gremlin is more evocative. Still, whatever her name is, isn’t she lovely?
Oh, did I mention? She’s critically endangered — and, at the moment, no one is working to save her.
She’s not alone. The Rondo dwarf galago, or the Tanzanian gremlin, is one of hundreds, if not thousands, of species already identified on the IUCN Red List as endangered or critically endangered that is receiving zero direct conservation attention or funding.
Little help for the charisma-challenged
“Large sections of the tree of life [are] completely absent from the conservation agenda,” says Olivia Couchman, the Zoological Society of London’s (ZSL) manager for its EDGE of Existence program.
The EDGE program, which stands for “evolutionarily distinct and globally endangered,” is a unique conservation program in that it seeks focal species not based on the potential for dollars raised or articles written or Instagram followers secured, but on the desire to preserve, as far as possible, distinct evolutionary branches that are in danger of being chopped off.
To do this, EDGE has created lists of the top 100 mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles (as well as shorter lists for corals and sharks and rays) of the most evolutionarily distinct and endangered species: Basically, the world’s most unique species, often single members of an evolutionary line, that are imperiled with extinction.
“Charisma is subjective and even though EDGE species may not be traditionally charismatic there is nothing else like them on Earth, they are unique in the way they live, look and behave,” Couchman says.
To date, there isn’t much hard data on how many less-popular species lack direct conservation funding or assistance, but anecdotally, it’s a lot.
The IUCN analyzes the conservation actions taken for each species, but using 12 criteria it can be difficult to ascertain the amount of attention paid to one animal versus another, especially en masse. The IUCN doesn’t categorize species based on level of action. Still, to give us an idea, the EDGE program has labeled its 400-plus potential species under four straight-forward categories of conservation attention: very low, low, medium, and high.
This is part 1 of a series written by Mongabay columnist Jeremy Hance. You can read part one of the original article below. Part 2 is also available via Mongabay.
https://news.mongabay.com/2020/08/why-are-some-endangered-species-ignored/
In the U.S., the Center for Biological Diversity sues the U.S. government to list species as endangered or threatened if U.S. Fish & Wildlife fails or refuses to do so. They do not limit the species they work on to charismatic ones. They constantly work for large and small animals, charismatic and uncharismatic ones.
And BTW, this story doesn’t mention plants, which are more fundamental to life on Earth than animals and therefore more biologically and ecologically important. The Center works to get plants listed as endangered or threatened also. Talk about neglected endangered species, how many of you even thought of plants when you posted this story? The plankton and phytoplankton in the oceans are decreasing because of human harms to the environment, and those are the most important species of all not to lose, because they provide about 70% of the oxygen on Earth. So while humans are animals and naturally relate more to them than to plants, we should be working to save the most fundamental life first, because if we lose those species, it’s game over.
Excellent point, Jeff. And while efforts must be made to save individual species, let’s not forget the millions that could be saved if just ONE species — our own — stopped behaving as if the planet were a demonic chemistry lab, with the sole purpose of short-term human profit at the expense of everything else.
Let’s not forget that “for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” Every time we alter the Earth unnaturally for our benefit, we violate the most fundamental law of physics: We steal from others in the false belief that we are helping ourselves, when in fact, ALL species suffer when Nature suffers. And there is no law more inviolable than the Laws of Nature.
Thus industrial man is an inherently criminal enterprise. And violation of the most basic law demands the ultimate penalty.
If you can’t do it without fossil fuels, electricity, or the transformation of base metals, it is a capital crime to do it at all.
DEATH TO INDUSTRIAL MAN, AND THE IRON HORSE HE RODE IN ON!
Excellent point, Jeff. And while efforts must be made to save individual species, let’s not forget the millions that could be saved if just ONE species — our own — stopped behaving as if the planet were a demonic chemistry lab, with the sole purpose of short-term human profit at the expense of everything else.
Let’s not forget that “for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” Every time we alter the Earth unnaturally for our benefit, we violate the most fundamental law of physics: We steal from others in the false belief that we are helping ourselves, when in fact, ALL species suffer when Nature suffers. And there is no law more inviolable than the Laws of Nature.
Thus industrial man is an inherently criminal enterprise. And violation of the most basic law demands the ultimate penalty. If you can’t do it without fossil fuels, electricity, or the transformation of base metals, it is a capital crime to do it at all.