• Question: How do you feel about the Extinction of various animals? Do you think humans should let it go and accept it as a natural fact or do something about it to preserve all the species?

    Asked by anna96 to Pete, Rebecca, SallyB, Sally, Sian on 20 Jun 2010 in Categories: .
    • Photo: Peter Styring

      Peter Styring answered on 16 Jun 2010:

      Evolution means we will lose some species, it’s always been the case. Natural extinction usually occurs for a reason and humans trying to prevent it are probably just delaying it rather that preventing it. Man-made extinction through hunting is completely different and we should be doing as much as we can to prevent it.

    • Photo: Sally Fenton

      Sally Fenton answered on 16 Jun 2010:

      I think extinction is something that happens as part of evolution and it is something that has allowed the world to evolve into what it is today. If the dinosaurs had never become extinct we would probably not be here! So i think it is a natural process which will just continue to happen in some species..and is necessary for the world to continue to evolve.

      However…I think where possible we should try and preserve what we can. For example..if some species are becoming extinct due to hunting and fishing and things like that…I think we should so something to stop it. They would become extinct because of human and not through natural processes and I don’t think this is right.

    • Photo: Rebecca Randell

      Rebecca Randell answered on 20 Jun 2010:

      Its sad that animals are becoming extinct as i would like my children (when i have them) to see animals that i have seen. Personally i think its a good thing that humans are helping them as it could be our fault that some animals are becoming extinct.

    • Photo: Sian Lawson

      Sian Lawson answered on 20 Jun 2010:

      Depends. Evolution says that some species will eventually have no place but species dying out due to man’s behaviour is a little harder to take (even if you could argue that this is just another selection pressure).

      I do get annoyed when people only want to to save the fluffy ones though. I think that if you’re going to interfere you need a better reason. Pandas for example, are the ultimate evoluntionary dead end – they only eat bamboo, have to eat an incredible amount of it as they can’t really digest it properly (due to having the most amazingly poorly designed digestive tract), and refuse to mate, but they are adorably cute. If half the amount of resource that goes into saving pandas went into insects and lizards….

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