Complete information on the Poaching of Wild Life

Another major problem is the poaching and killing of animals and birds. Many species of animals and birds are hunted for their fleshes, skins, furs, feathers, bones, tusks, horns, and venomes and so on. This unjustified killing is going on even today. Apart from poachers and smugglers, various ethnic groups or Adivasis are used to kill faunal wealth for satisfying their faith, taboo or for amusement. In addition, the clearing of natural forests to make room for commercial plantations causes innumerable damage to wildlife.

It is followed by monoculture of plants. Monoculture of a particular plant species may result in genetic uniformity and quick mass transport of pathogens during the outbreak of a disease. Monoculture also causes a drastic change in the food habit or certain herbivores and birds depending on plants. It may lead to elimination of species and as a result the food chain of an ecosystem faces a real crisis.

In the first of the century, lion and in particular tiger have been decimated by the British and the Indian royalty for purposes of sport at present tiger is being killed on account of the sale of its bones and other parts to meet the unprecedented demand for traditional Chinese medicine.

Man Wild Life Conflicts

There are about 1, 50,000 species of fauna in the world and India possessed about 75,000 species of animals.

The illegal poaching and unauthorized hunting has harmed the fauna to such an extent that many species of animals have become extinct and many are on the verge of extinction. At least 30 per cent of the trade is illegal and stands next only in value to narcotics trade. As long as this type of money is involved, rare animals will continue to be killed illegally.

There is a conflict between biodiversity conservators and general public because the public is not taking interest in wildlife management. A general awareness has to be developed. People’s participation and more stringent implementation of anti poaching laws and better backup facilities like faster vehicles, modernised weapons and more power to tackle poachers at the field level can perhaps reduce the magnitude of the problem of indiscriminate poaching and extermination of many rare species.

Endangered Species

Endangered species that have a high likelihood of going extinct in the near future endangered species (according to Mace and Lande) with a 20 per cent probability of extinction within 20 years or 10 generations the following degrees of endangerment have been defined:

(i) Critically Endangered:

These species with a 50 per cent or greater probability of extinction within 5 years or 2 generations whichever is longer. Critically endangered species probably cannot survive without direct human intervention.

(ii) Threatened Species:

These species are abundant but are declining in total numbers.

(iii) Rare Species:

Rare species that have small total numbers of individuals but are not necessarily in immediate danger of extinction.

There are many ways by which a species can become rare and the process has diverse ecological consequences. Human-induced perturbations such as habitat loss are identified as one of the important causes of rarity. However, intrinsic features such as breeding behaviors, dispersal modes, habitat specificity etc. are also likely to govern the distribution and survival of species in their natural habitats and hence might render species to become rare and endangered.

Earlier analysis has revealed that among Indian orchids, a greater proportion of species occupying terrestrial habitat are endangered than the epiphytic species and rare orchid’s species differ in their flowering phenology compared to the common ones.

In the past, most extinction was due to natural causes. In fact, extinction is a naturally occurring phenomenon at a rate of roughly one to five species per year; however, scientists currently believe that habitats across the globe are losing dozens of species each day. Endangered species – plants and animals in imminent danger of extinction – remain the focus of many national and international conservation programs, particularly “charismatic mega fauna,” such as African lions, Siberian tigers, and panda bears.

The World Conservation Union (IUCN) maintains a “Red List” of endangered species around the world where species are categorized as extinct, extinct in the wild, critically endangered, endangered, vulnerable, or near threatened. As of September 2007, 41,415 species appear on the IUCN Red List and 16,306 of them are threatened with extinction.

The biggest threats to endangered and threatened species include habitat loss and degradation, the introduction of non-native species, over-exploitation, and pollution and disease. Climate change is also increasingly being considered as a threat to endangered species. The leading cause that can lead to extinction is thought to stem from human activity, with nearly all threatened species at risk.