Among the many species of creatures that are in jeopardy of fading into oblivion, there is little information on the African Wild Dog. These canids once roamed freely throughout much of Sub-saharan Africa but are now predominantly confined to parts of Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia, Tanzania, Mozambique, and South Africa. But the countries where they are still found comprise a much larger area than the patchwork of small national parks and reserves held within them. It’s like connecting the dots to form a blotchy and incomplete geographic space. Once an African Wild Dog leaves the sanctity of a reserve, they’ll have tto run a hazardous gauntlet until finding the next. Unfortunately, and not unlike any animal, they can’t read signs or comprehend borders. Worse yet, there can be long distances to be traversed before they can safely find a new home. The areas between the sanctuaries are where these animals are at the greatest risk, from being hit while crossing roads, poaching, or being shot for straying too close to a native farmer’s goats or cattle.
As is the case with almost all threatened species, loss of habitat due to human encroachment is front and center as the main problem these creatures face. As humans, activities such as logging, farming, and mining have quickly spread throughout the African continent and more and more creatures have ceased to exist in and around these regions. Among other things, loss of habitat means a drop in food resources as apex predators like the African Wild Dog, lion, leopard, cheetah, and hyena quickly decimate the remaining herds of ungulates and other prey species that are caught in their own struggle for a place to call home. They share the same or similar fate from incidental human interaction and poaching, which continues to run rampant even today when measures are in place to help curb the animal parts trade. But the analogy of the “thumb in the dyke” in an ill-fated attempt to keep billions of gallons of water from slashing its way downstream and taking with it everything in its path, seems appropriate. There aren’t nearly enough resources to fight the poaching problem head-on. Worldwide bans on the “animal parts” trade have helped but it’s akin to fixing one dent on a car with severe hail damage.
We are living in a time when most people are aware that Mother Earth is displeased with our goings-on and the damage we’ve done in our wake. It would seem that Ted Kyzinsky’s manifesto on “Industrial Society and its Future” wasn’t far off the mark. I read his essay when it was first published by the New York Times in 1996,while he was still hard-at-it making bombs to be unleashed on those he viewed as the proprietors of current and probable future technology. In a nutshell, it blames humanity for taking technology too far and well past the point of diminishing returns. Open your minds and read it. I obviously don’t condone his means for getting his point across. There was a part of him that was truly sociopathic, but it shows that even a madman with a high IQ can see the world more clearly than the rest of us. He knew what was coming and what the world has been up to since his demise proves it.
I fail to understand how global society can continue on its social media-driven path while allowing for the wholesale extinction of some of the world’s most beautiful, intelligent, and fascinating animals. I am not a member of any of the social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. You will never see me “tweet” about anything. There’s simply too much at stake to get lost in such foolishness. It is akin to an ostrich putting its head in the sand.
I do not think humankind has proven itself to be responsible enough to be the world’s top apex predator while also being charged with being the planet’s number one caretaker. I suppose that many of you reading this will find that to be a harsh blanket statement, but someone needs to be an oracle for creatures who, while incredibly intelligent, simply don’t speak our language (though some of their languages have been shown to be far more intricate, elegant, and complex than our own). I just don’t meet enough people who would risk the relative ease of their lives to do whatever it takes to save some of these creatures, including the African Wild Dog which, by the way, happens to be a close cousin to our most beloved and favored companion, the domestic dog.
There are, of course, certain wildlife conservation groups that have been tasked with the monstrously huge job of saving these animals from the rest of us, but these groups are vastly understaffed and underfunded and are just not militant enough to address the very significant issue of poaching. I don’t care if a poacher is some person from a native tribe (as is often the case) trying to make ends meet. Whatever his reasons, his actions border on evil. Get some funding out there so he can be given a job protecting these species in lieu of annihilating them.
There are now close to eight billion people populating the globe and fewer than 5,000 African Wild Dogs (650 breeding pairs). This statement should serve as a “shock and awe” tactic but it will likely die with the creatures it is intended to protect. When a population of any animal gets too small to be viable (no longer sustainable because there aren’t enough of individuals left to formulate a healthy gene pool), there is no return. When the number of animals for a given species has reached this point, there is little that can be done, particularly if that species has proven itself unfit for captive breeding. Some animals are simply too wild and require continent-size areas in which to thrive. Perhaps they don’t breed in captivity as a way of saying “we’re too good for this sort of thing!”.
Thanks for taking a moment to read this. If you feel as guilty as I do for being a human being and, however unwittingly, having a part in the destruction of our planet, perhaps you’ll do some research of your own and find a nature conservancy you feel good about supporting. It just might be the most important thing you’ve ever done.
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