The Wildlife Conservation Process
Did you know that wildlife creates a balanced natural world? However, as the human population has expanded, wildlife habitats have shrunk. Therefore, in contrast to the Endangered Species Act, which protects plants and animals and attempts to increase their populations, wildlife conservation also focuses on preserving the habitats of threatened or endangered plants and animals. These are a few things organizations are doing to protect wildlife.
Reserves
Some individuals and organizations have created conservations and reserves to house endangered and threatened wildlife. These conservations are typically non-profit organizations and can be found all over the world. Some of these facilities search for captive animals outside accredited zoos and rescue them from poor living conditions, while others are on land set aside in their natural habitats. For example, you can search for local reserves, e.g., “wildlife conservation Smith County.” You may also find elephant reserves in Africa where they live normally.
Additional Conservation Efforts
Several organizations, such as the World Wildlife Fund, don’t house and protect these animals in the traditional fashion. Instead, they use marketing and information campaigns to protect them. One way they do this is through demand reduction campaigns. For example, several decades ago elephants were being slaughtered for the ivory in their tusks. To stop this, these organizations campaigned directly to consumers to encourage them not to buy ivory products. When it became taboo to have ivory products, demand was significantly reduced and the elephant population began to rebound.
Public Lands
Because habitat destruction is a primary cause of animal survival, the US and other countries have set aside public lands, such as national forests and parks, that provide food, shelter and space for these animals to live and reproduce. These areas are open to the public, so everyone can go and see these species, but they are not allowed to take anything from these lands. Although national forests allow the hunting of some species, the number of hunting permits is strictly controlled to prevent overconsumption.
If you want to learn more about conservation efforts near you, contact a local reserve.