So I thought of something interesting to write about. Mostly because I'm supposed to be writing a term paper. But, this kind of has to do with my class.
So- In conservation biology we have learned that the genome is more important than the population which is more important than the individual. Let me explain. Above all else, when a species becomes threatened or endangered of going extinct, the most important thing to do is keep the genetic information alive. This has been done using seed banks, for plant species, which is just the storage of thousands of seeds in a big refrigerator, basically. Or breeding animals in captivity, such as in zoos, or simply as personal pets. Some species of ferrets only remain as peoples (illegal) pets. Once the persistence of genetic information is guaranteed, then it is important to maintain a living population. This is done through the formation of reserves, and protected natural parks. This is important for keeping certain behaviors in the social gene pool, such as hunting or migratory patterns. A certain species of gazelle went completely extinct in the wild, and when a captive population were released back into the wild, they did not follow the annual migratory pattern that was required for them to persist. Similarly with wild dogs, when a population went extinct and a group raised in captivity were released, they didn't know how to hunt as a group and they starved to death. So if genetic information is secure, and there is a stable wild population persisting then, and only then, does anyone care about the individual animal. For example if a certain species is becoming threatened in a certain ecosystem due to predation, conservation biologists will not hesitate to wipe out most of the predatory species. Especially if the predatory species is not endemic to the ecosystem. If hawks migrate into a new area and start eating all the foxes, and the foxes become endangered, the conservation biologists come in and kill off all the hawks.
This is what I've been learning in my WFC class this quarter. I was fascinated learning about this hierarchy. It really confused me at first hearing about conservation through destruction of huge populations, just to maintain a few endangered individuals. But for the persistence of biodiversity, this is how it's done.
Conversely to how human society is set up. We value the individual well over the group as a whole. We do all we can to keep the individual alive, even if it is detrimental to the group as a whole. Everything and anything is done to fight for each individual life. We pay little attention to the overall health of our society, we take things on a case by case basis. Similarly we weigh our genetic information last. We try to block out the fact that we are even genetic beings. We are not working hard to maintain the genetic uniqueness of each race. In fact we are mixing them all up.
So I guess the conundrum is what is more important; population persistence or individual freedom? and why is it different for animals and humans?
So -- back to writing about Panda's. They are mostly vegetarian! Like me!
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