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When to cull? Here is a dilemma that modern humans will have to face increasingly more often as we finally become morally responsible for the devastating consequences of our self-interested actions, and especially as we come to acknowledge how detrimental those consequences are to the ecosystems of the world. One particularly egregious example of short-sighted human disregard is when people introduce a non-native species to an area, and that species then spreads throughout its new habitat, becoming an extremely destructive invasive pest. Sometimes this is done deliberately, perhaps in a misguided attempt at solving other problems, as was the case with the cane toad’s introduction to Australia.
Oftentimes it is due to negligence and ignorance, as with what happens with irresponsible pet owners and pet breeders. Whatever the case, when humans are the culprits, we need to not only admit our guilt, but also take immediate and effective action to mitigate the fallout of such catastrophic ecological devastation. Cats, dogs, fish and birds, among other luckless species, are fairly commonly kept for human pleasure around the world, and sure enough, their feral populations are evident in varying degrees around the globe wherever they have been kept as pets. Worse than that, formerly captive species are now found in increasingly remote habitats, where they have spread after being released into the wild, either deliberately or accidentally. Unfortunately, this has already resulted in the extinction of many species of native fauna on all continents where the feral populations exist, and the mass extinction will only continue to worsen until many mammals, birds, fish and reptiles are totally wiped out. This article, in addition to detailing the current scheme to decrease feral cat numbers in Australia, also mentions some of the absurd reactions from uneducated celebrities and others who do not realise that by opposing the culling of feral cats in Australia, or any feral animals in any region of the world, they are advocating the extinction of native species. It really is unclear what hope the native creatures of the world have with ignorance and selfishness like this pitted against them. 參考資料: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/25/magazine/australia-cat-killing.html |
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