The End of The Wild ~~ AN ARTICLE

The End of The Wild By Rhonda Marie Ledbetter Hayman    This article is rated “G” by the Author. Last edited: Monday, July 24, 2006 Posted: Tuesday, June 06, 2006

My expess views on the wild and what is left of it. This is a 3 part article and I hope that everyone who reads it gets something from it that they didn’t know or realize before. And that their heart grows.

Part one         ~ In The Beginning

     God created all the creatures that walk the earth. When man came along he was meant to use what he needed for nurishment. But man in his greed and ignorance decided he wanted more than food from the animals. Humans wanted heads to hang, skins to decorate and the most stylish of boots.
    

Part two

       ~ The Creatures In Danger

     Forever has man been taking advantage of what has been granted to him. Creatures have fought long and hard to survive.
     One of the greatest cats to walk the earth, which also happens to be my favorite animal is in terrible danger. My grandchildren may not ever get to see a real Tiger.  This big, awesome, magestic and beautiful cat will be killed off by greedy and uncaring persons. It’s hard to believe but there is actually people that walk the earth who don’t care one way or the other if this cat exists.
     There are 36 different wild cat species, one of the most recognizable being the tiger. In 2005, a new subspecies of tiger was identified in Malaysia. Like the others, it is critically endangered. There is also the Siberian, South China, Indochinese, Bengal and Sumatran tigers. There are only 4870 to 7300 left in the wild. Over the last 70 yrs these have already become extinct, the Bali, Javan and Caspian tigers.

     The black bear is threatened today greatly, especially in Florida, by habitat destruction, hunting, poaching, highway fatalities and over development that cuts them off from the food, water and shelter they need. Unfortunately, black bears are not protected under the Endangered Species Act. There are those in Florida who refuse to list the black bear.

     The wolf is in danger also, in Alaska Governor Frank Murkowski’s horrid policy that allows aerial gunners to use airplanes to hunt and kill wolves is one of the reasons. Information I have read says that “entire wolf packs are being completely wiped out”, quoted from Defenders of WIldlife. That is a whole family killed.
     Sadly there are also other people in office that refuse to use their power to stop the slaughter in Alaska. Wolves in other states are in trouble too. In Idaho and Wyoming it would be hard to be a wolf. Wyoming, most of it anyways, is open to unrestrained slaughter of wolves..again. Sad, since a wolf pack is more human than humans..they help to raise eachothers pups, they care and look out for eachother. Thus…the pack.

     I don’t know about anyone else, but I think that the Jaguar is a beautiful cat. They are shot as vermin and have been hunted to near extinction for their coats. There have been fewer than 20 confirmed sitings of the jaguar in the United States since the mid-1800′s. The jaguar is the third largest of all the big cats. Worldwide there are only an estimated 15,000 remaining in the wild. None of those are in the States. How unfortunate for us.

     Other animals on the endangered list or
should be, is the: Sea Otter, come on…how cute are they?!… Polar Bear, an awesome big strong, enduring creature…. Dolphin, So smart, Almost human but better with it’s kindness….  Snowy Owl,wow, wise, beautiful….Panther, Agile, beautiful, amazing….Elephant, protective of its young, such a strong family unit, much better than humans….Whale, intelligent creature, gentle giants….Cottentail, too cute.

     It happens everytime & it’s amazing but I get a smile on my face just thinking about these animals and each of their individual qualities.
      Part three

     ~What Can be Done??

     I personally don’t understand the need to destroy. I love animals and respect their right to live and to be here 100 yrs from now, 1000 yrs from now. Unfortunately a lot of people don’t feel that way or they just are so wrapped up in them selves that they don’t have time to consider them or remember them.
     Animals are needed for the environment, the ecosystem. They each play their own role on this planet. People are so wrapped up in me…me…me, that they can’t see what goes on around them. Every person is neccasary in helping to keep this a clean and healthy world.
     The polititians are worried about who’s in office next term and what their pay will be. So it is up to us citizens to make sure that they know that we won’t let up on them to do what is right.
     It is sad; some of the responses I have recieved from some polititions. These are the people that we elect to office. The people that we count on to make decisions for us daily. They say all the right things to get elected but then once in office do what they want.
     We as humans are the care takers of these now vulnerable creatures. They are like our children when first born, it is up to us to make sure that they are safe and cared for.
     How many people can say they have ever just stopped to look at the lines on a tiger and see the beauty of it’s design. Or try to watch for the intelligence that a whale shows. And Dolphins, they are all about gracefulness. Let’s look at the wolf;  they take care of eachother always. We as humans don’t even do that. Look how many homeless and starving American children there are. Forget Africa, India and China, the US is in enough trouble of it’s own that isn’t getting fixed.
     People have lost sight of the important things in life. Money and power and getting ahead. Industrialism, polution, building after building being built when there is plenty of used space not being used. But we must have a new building in a new spot and more roads and more and more houses to take up more and more space and destroy more and more animals homes and lives.
     There are so many houses that could be torn down and that space reused. Everyone wants to live in the country, but there is no more country. Where are the bears supposed to live. What about the dear? They have to live somewhere. There are more and more animals laying dead on the side of the road everyday.           We need every tree that is cut down, every river destroyed as well as every stream. We don’t need bigger trucks that just cause more polution and use more gas. God forbid we go without having a Hummer or an F-350 Deisel. We continue to try to find our happiness, but we aren’t finding it and so we must have more and more.
     After this is all gone…that’s it! You can’t wave a magic wand and wish it back. Once the Tiger is gone…it’s gone and we are left without it’s beauty.
     How about we start realizing that it takes all of us caring and being thoughtful to make the world go around. It’s not just all about me or you. I teach my children that everything they do will directly or indirectly effect someone else. And that matters. I tell them all the time that, it’s not just about what makes you happy at the moment. It’s not just, “ All that matters is that I’m happy”.
    We are apart of something bigger than ourselves and we are destroying it. The government isn’t doing their part either. They should all be fired. 

~~~ It is amazing that we are the ones that walk upright. We design and create and progress. When these animals all are better parents and citizens of their environment than any human is. We could learn from them yet we destroy them. For what? If I sound anti-human, then I come across as harsh, as I intend to do. Sometimes it takes harshness to get across something of importance. I am not anti-human, I am merely being frank. I have so much to learn to be the kind of person that I am meant to be for these creatures and our planet, but I am up for the challenge as I hope that some of you are.~~~

I have given up hope but I still try everyday to try to save what I can. I have given up hope for mankind, yet I still write this. Is there hope? I guess it’s up to you now..did I reach you?

Notes:
I get most of my research info from the Defenders of Wildlife group that I am a member of. There are so many groups that a person could become a part of to do their part. I can give you many names. I myself am a member of 6 groups. It doesn’t take a lot of time. 2 minutes of your day to send an email that is already prepared for you. If you would like to know about some of my groups let me know.