How People is a Danger to Animals

In the current society, people and their actions affect the living and the existence of the animals. It has been reported that Pangolin scales have been removed from the list of ingredients approved for use in traditional Chinese medicine. Human’s uncontrolled consumption of pangolin’s meat and scales has led to the severe threat of extinction faced by the species. According to the article, WildAid estimated that as many as 400,000 pangolins are consumed to satisfy people’s need for pangolin’s meat and scales in Asia.
As a result, three out of four species in Asia are placed on the list of endangered animals by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Under such situations, the move made by traditional Chinese medicine is considered as a crucial one by animal protection groups, along with China’s National People’s Congress’s decision to ban the consumption of wild animals’ meat.
Blake, the chief representative of WildAid in Beijing, suggested that the two actions were significant progress in controlling illegal trade and protecting wildlife. However, there is still a long way to go toward a solution to this problem. Zhou mentioned the existence of wrong findings in medicinal research that could harm pangolin species. Some studies suggest that pangolins may have been the intermediate host of Covid-19, but neither pangolins’ meat nor their scales have been positively identified as a virus’ intermediate source to humans.
Considering that almost all the samples positive for Covid-19 are from the area where wildlife was sold, China’s government made the decision to shut down the market, with no details released about the wildlife found there. The outbreak of the virus has greatly lessened the number of pangolin seizures around the world, but efforts still need to be made to figure out the origins of seizures.
Secondly, many species as well as subspecies have been identified to be unique to Canada, which is the world’s second-largest country. However, a large number of the country’s endemic species are facing the threat of extinction, with only 10% of them are considered “globally secure”. Efforts for protection have been made by the Canadian government: “it has previously pledged to set aside 17% of its land and freshwater areas for protection by the end of the year”.
The protection of the country’s endemic species is not an easy job, because the species are vulnerable to many factors including climate crisis, habitat loss, climate change, and invasive species. Unique species of insects, plants, and mammals have grown in various locations with different geography across the country, and are all facing the threat of habitat degradation and overhunting.

Due to research, Researches show that as many as 515 animal species are facing the threat of extinction. Unlike previous mass extinctions, which are caused by the change of environment, the current one is mainly caused by human, driven by activities like “habitat destruction, habitat fragmentation, poaching, illegal trade, overharvesting, the introduction of non-native and domesticated species into the wild, pathogens, pollution, and climate disruption”.
According to research, the endangered species will go extinct soon, and the rate of extinction will continue to increase, reaching an extinction rate in 2050 that is 117 times higher than the background rate over the past 2 million years. The extinction of a specific species would lead to even more harmful effects: because of the unique role played by the extinct species, more species in its ecosystem will disappear along with it. Humans have noticed severe situations and taken actions to protect the environment. Restrictions were made by CITES to regulate the global trade of endangered animals. The Trump administration acted against ESA and supported the industry with fewer regulations.

References
“Animals used in research in Canada in 2013.” 2015. speaking of research. https://www.statista.com/chart/17663/number-of-illegal-pangolins-seized-by-origin-and-destination-country/
Cecco, Leyland. “Many of the 300 Plants and Animals Endemic to Canada at Risk, Report Finds.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 4 June 2020, www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jun/04/canada-plants-animals-species-at-risk-report-aoe.
Kimbrough, Liz. “New Research Finds These 515 Animal Species Are on the Brink of Extinction – and Less than a Thousand of Each Remain.” TheRising, 10 June 2020, therising.co/2020/06/10/brink-of-extinction-515-species/.
“Pangolin poster” 2017, WildAid. https://wildaid.org/programs/pangolins/pangolin-poster/
Standaert, Michael. “China Raises Protection for Pangolins by Removing Scales from Medicine List.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 9 June 2020, www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jun/09/china-protect-pangolins-removing-scales-medicine-list-aoe.
“Where Illegal Pangolin Trafficking Is Rampant” 2019, statista. https://www.statista.com/chart/17663/number-of-illegal-pangolins-seized-by-origin-and-destination-country/