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Books > Earth & environment > The environment > Conservation of the environment > Conservation of wildlife & habitats > Endangered species & extinction of species
Following the downgrading of the snow leopard's status from
"endangered" to "vulnerable" by the International Union for
Conservation of Nature in 2017, debate has renewed about the actual
number of snow leopards in the wild and the most effective
strategies for coexisting with these enigmatic animals. Evidence
from Pakistan and other countries in the snow leopard's home range
shows that they rely heavily on human society-domestic livestock
accounts for as much as 70 percent of their diet. Maintaining that
the snow leopard is a "wild" animal, conservation NGOs and state
agencies have enacted laws that punish farmers for attacking these
predators, while avoiding engaging with efforts to mitigate the
harms suffered by farmers whose herds are reduced by snow leopards.
This ethnography examines the uneven distribution of costs and
benefits involved in snow leopard conservation and shows that for
the conservation of nature to be successful, the vision, interests,
and priorities of those most affected by conservation policies-in
this case, local farmers-must be addressed. A case history of
Project Snow Leopard in the mountains of northern Pakistan, which
inspired similar programs in India, Bhutan, Nepal, Mongolia,
Afghanistan and Tajikistan, describes how the animal's food habits
are studied, how elusive individuals are counted, and how a novel
kind of "snow leopard insurance" has protected the species by
compensating farmers for livestock losses. The Snow Leopard and the
Goat demonstrates that characterizing this conflict as one between
humans (farmers) and wildlife (snow leopards) is misleading, as the
real conflict is between two human groups-farmers and
conservationists-who see the snow leopard differently.
What good is a rattlesnake? What purpose do animals serve? All
species play a vital role in their biological communities, and the
removal of just one can have a noticeable and catastrophic ripple
effect. Yet social and political pressures frequently pit species
conservation against economic progress and prosperity, and
scientists fear that we may be in the midst of a mass extinction
event. Brian R. Chapman and William I. Lutterschmidt make the case
that the effort to preserve animals is the responsibility of every
Texan and that biodiversity contributes enormous economic value to
the citizens of Texas. Texans on the Brink brings together experts
on eighty-eight endangered and threatened animal species of Texas
and includes brief descriptions of the processes that state and
federal agencies employ to list and protect designated species.
Species accounts include a description of the species accompanied
by a photograph, an easy-to-read account of the biology and ecology
of the species, and a description of efforts underway to preserve
the species and its required habitat. Sobering examples of species
that were once part of the Texas fauna but are now extinct or
extirpated are also given to further demonstrate just how
vulnerable biodiversity can be. All species require healthy
habitats, and every species-even a rattlesnake-provides important
services for the biotic communities in which they live. It is
imperative to learn as much as we can about these animals if we are
to preserve biodiversity successfully in Texas.
Antelopes constitute a fundamental part of ecosystems throughout
Africa and Asia where they act as habitat architects, dispersers of
seeds, and prey for large carnivores. The fascication they hold in
the human mind is evident from prehistoric rock paintings and
ancient Egyptian art to today's wildlife documentaries and
popularity in zoos. In recent years, however, the spectacular herds
of the past have been decimated or extripated over wide areas in
the wilds, and urgent conservation action is needed to preserve
this world heritage for generations to come. As the first book
dedicated to antelope conservation, this volume sets out to
diagnose the causes of the drastic declines in antelope
biodiversity and on this basis identify the most effective points
of action. In doing so, the book covers central issues in the
current conservation debate, especially related to the management
of overexploitation, habitat fragmentation, disease transmission,
climate change, populations genetics, and reintroductions. The
contributions are authored by world-leading experts in the field,
and the book is a useful resource to conservation scientists and
practitioners, researchers, and students in related disciplines as
well as interested lay people.
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