Poaching in Africa MEA-100

Описание: In Africa, poaching is a very serious problem that continues to have dramatic impacts on the environment and wildlife. Endangered animals are being killed and slaughtered illegally every single day, and the most common of these are African elephants, lions, grevy's zebras, black rhinos, and mountain gorillas. Rhinos are hunted mainly for their horns, and elephants for their ivory tusks. The people illegally hunting these animals use high-technology weapons that allow them to kill multiple animals at once without being caught. There is a high demand for the meat, skin, and other parts of these endangered animals, and people will pay a lot of money for the products made from them. When there is a demand, even if it is for an illegal good, someone will be willing to supply. At the rates these animals are being poached, several of them could be extinct from the planet in our lifetime. People and rangers who are making efforts to stop poaching and protect wildlife are often murdered by poachers if they try to interfere. Between 2009 and 2016, 600 people were killed for this exact reason. People also travel often to see these amazingly fascinating animals, and a lot of communities rely on these tourists for income. If the main attraction is extinct, people would stop traveling to these places and the economy would be greatly impacted. Each of these species play an active role in their environment, and without them there would be serious disrupts in the lives of other species who's population is controlled by these animals. Though poaching has the most direct effects on the biosphere it could also have impacts on earth's other systems. The reduction of biodiversity because of poaching making animals endangered or extinct can have serious impacts on the climate and Earth's atmosphere.
SOURCES:
“Africa's Poaching Crisis.” AWF, https://campaign.awf.org/poaching-inf....

Estrada, Orietta C. “The Devastating Effects of Wildlife Poaching.” One Green Planet, One Green Planet, 30 Apr. 2021, https://www.onegreenplanet.org/animal....

Hall, Jani. “Poaching Animals, Facts and Information.” Animals, National Geographic, 3 May 2021, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/an....

“The Pandemic Is a Gift to Poachers in Africa.” The Economist, The Economist Newspaper, https://www.economist.com/middle-east....

“Poachers Responsible for 30% Drop in Savanna Elephant Populations in Africa.” ZME Science, 1 Sept. 2016, https://www.zmescience.com/ecology/an....

Powell, Andrea. “Couple Rescues Baby Zebra Entangled in Poaching Snare with Wire Wrapped Tightly around Its Neck.” The Animal Rescue Site News, 2 Apr. 2020, https://blog.theanimalrescuesite.grea....

Shuchat, Shimon. “The Long Term Effects of Poaching on Forest Elephants.” Medium, ELP Rumbles, 24 Apr. 2017,   / the-long-term-effects-of-poaching-on-fores...  .

“South African Poachers Hack off the Face & Paws of a Lion Named Mufasa, Poison & Kill 4 Others.” IndiaTimes, 5 Oct. 2018, https://www.indiatimes.com/trending/e....

“Threats to Gorillas.” WWF, https://wwf.panda.org/discover/knowle....