Human activities like agriculture expansion, logging, and poaching are usually the biggest causes of flora and fauna extinction, and biodiversity loss. Over the last four decades, human activities have greatly pushed some animal species to near extinction with an estimated loss of about 10,000 species per year accounting for the loss of half of the world’s wildlife population.
For example, poachers are to blame for putting some horned animals like rhinoceros and elephants to near extinction in Africa with a good example being the white rhinoceros in Kenya. Other factors such as climate change causing frequent droughts and flooding, deforestation, overpopulation, and consumer culture are also to blame for endangering wildlife species. In a bid to counteract this, wildlife conservation is mandatory as it comes with numerous benefits for both animals and humans.
13 reasons why it is important to conserve wildlife
1. Promotes pollination and continuity of native plant species
Small animals particularly bees, insects, butterflies, and birds play an important role in food production. Conservation of these animals, therefore, aid in pollination.
Since they depend on nectar from flowers, they are vital in crop production, inter-cropping, and promoting the continuity of native plant species. By moving from one flower to another in search of nectar, bees carry pollen by sustaining the process of crop growth.
2. Medicinal value
Although plants are the major sources of medications, some animals are also vital in the production of medications. For example, the venom from cobra is an important ingredient in making the medications for leprosy while lobsters can be used as antifungals.
It is also worth noting conserving wildlife also means conserving their natural habitats including trees and vegetation, which is paramount for medicinal research and the sustainability of the pharmaceutical industries.
3. Preserves heritage and culture
Conserving wildlife means conserving heritage and traditional culture. Some places are known for their flora and fauna in relation to the native practices and ways of livelihood, which means that failing to conserve the environment, will lead to loss of their land and native heritage.
For example, big cats like lions, leopards, cheetahs, and huge herbivores like elephants and giraffes are often associated with Africa Safaris that has lately been coined as “magical Africa.”
4. Promotes tourism attraction
The reason why most people choose to visit a certain country over others is basically due to the country’s fauna and flora, as well as natural habitats such as forests, mountains, and water bodies. Countries with the largest portion of wild animals are known to attract a bigger number of tourists, which is the case in regions such as the Amazon and countries such as Tanzania, Costa Rica, Kenya, Brazil, Thailand, and South Africa.
5. Protection of biodiversity and endangered species
In the jungle, a lot of animals depend on each other through food chains and food webs. For example, carnivore animals like lions, cheetahs, and leopards depend on herbivores like antelopes for their survival. If antelopes become extinct in the jungle, the effect can be detrimental to the survival of the cats.
It will also affect the survival of other herbivores in the jungle as the cats will depend on the remaining animals for their survival, which can greatly reduce the population of big animals like giraffes, which take longer to recreate.
6. Protecting ecological stability and balance
Conserving fauna and flora encourages ecological stability and balance in the world. The plants, for example, play an important role in ensuring a healthy ecosystem by balancing carbon dioxide and oxygen in the environment.
If animal species become dominant whether it is humans or wildlife, it will cause a lot of instability affecting the survival of all plant and animal species in the world.
7. Can enhance food security
Among the most fundamental roles of wildlife conservation to humans is to enhance food security. By protecting natural habitats from degradation and forests against deforestation, the availability of a variety of food products would rise.
8. Education and learning
Studying wildlife and their habitat is an important learning experience for children, students, and scholars of all ages. Watching animals helps children to conceptualise ideas and develop their imagination, which is important for their growth.
In fact, taking children to zoos and game parks is part of the education system and as such, failure to conserve wildlife will leave teachers with fewer educational resources in biology and science subjects.
9. Important for the identification of new plant and animal species for research
Despite the increased animal research over the last decades, it is estimated that a significant number of animals and plants are not yet discovered. When one puts into consideration the fact that most human medications came from microbial organisms, animals, and plants, it highlights the need to conserve wildlife and its habitats.
In fact, some researchers believe that the medications for some of the incurable diseases will most likely from animals or plants that are yet to be discovered and hence the need to conserve the natural habitats.
10. Economic benefits associated with tourism
Tourism heavily contributes to the economic growth in countries (the GDP of the nation) because of the wildlife conservation centres and their preserved natural habitats. For example, countries like Thailand, Costa Rica, Brazil, Australia, Kenya, Tanzania, and South Africa, greatly benefit from tourism.
11. Creation of jobs
Wildlife has helped create thousands of jobs both directly and indirectly. For example, in places where there are wild animals, whether it is a zoo or a game park, it is common to find people working in those areas.
There are also people employed to take care of the animals and there are also other professionals such as journalists who play the role of reporting and developing documentaries about the life and nature of different wildlife species.
12. Protects the livelihoods and knowledge of indigenous people
The people living around the forest areas and natural ecosystems such as lakes and rivers always depend on these resources for their livelihoods such as harvesting timber and firewood for construction and cooking respectively fish for survival, and traditional medicines, fruits, vegetables, and food for survival.
Therefore, the conservation of wildlife resources can help in protecting livelihoods and indigenous people together with their traditions. Furthermore, conservation of wildlife now requires the involvement of the local or native populations to enhance environmental protection.
13. It serves as a preserve for future generations
If conservation measures are not put in place, future generations will not have a chance to see some of the wild animals that exist today. So many wild animals are reducing at an alarming rate due to human activities and several such as the Amur leopard, Cross River gorilla, Black and Javan rhinoceros, Hawksbill turtle, South China tiger, pangolin, and Sumatran elephant are on the verge of extinction.
