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Re: Brashears on Hanson
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Subject: Re: Brashears on Hanson
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From: "D. Braun" <dbraun@u.washington.edu>
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Date: Tue, 10 Dec 1996 11:52:00 -0800
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Article: 17179 of alt.sustainable.agriculture
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In-Reply-To: <32AC7B27.3B1F@boeing.com>
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Newsgroups: alt.agriculture.misc, alt.org.earth-first, alt.politics.economics, alt.politics.greens, alt.save.the.earth, alt.sustainable.agriculture, sci.agriculture, sci.econ, sci.energy, sci.environment, talk.environment
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Organization: University of Washington
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References: <5840b9$g2p@news1.io.org> <5850e9$6pg_001@pm1-81.hal-pc.org> <Pine.A41.3.95b.961204163414.13254A-100000@dante07.u.washington.edu> <585cb3$a9c_001@pm6-75.hal-pc.org> <32A8AAAB.7FC0@xmission.com> <32AC7B27.3B1F@boeing.com>
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Xref: newz.oit.unc.edu alt.agriculture.misc:6752 alt.org.earth-first:7312 alt.politics.economics:95232 alt.politics.greens:24530 alt.save.the.earth:27354 alt.sustainable.agriculture:17179 sci.agriculture:17077 sci.econ:61723 sci.energy:60018 sci.environment:114474 talk.environment:80805
On Mon, 9 Dec 1996, Fred McGalliard wrote:
> Jim wrote:
>
> > I would submit that environmental problems are not sufficiently
> > described by "some animals being inconvienced". Although knowledge of
> > global biodiversity is sketchy, virtually all biologists are in
> > agreement that mankind is causing what would be the sixth mass
> > extinction the earth has experienced, and may cause a majority of the
> > world's species to go extinct.
>
> Most of the rest of Jim's post I entirely agree with, but this part cannot go unchallenged. We may be
> an important predator, and responsible for some of the changes that wipe out species, but we are by no
> means the only game in town. I think we are clearly in the middle of a die off of large proportions,
> but I do not think we are the prime cause. The question should be, why have the species stopped
> adapting to the changes that we and other factors are making in the environment? If a major species
> bloom were to happen, would we be able to survive? Perhaps we should be thankful that we are in an
> extinction period.
?! This question is rather easily answered by students of ecology or
evolutionary biology, never mind by experts. Habitat change, caused by
humans for the most part, has occurred and continues to occur more
rapidly than species can adapt. Species with limited ranges, or narrow
niche requirements go first. Generalists like rats and roaches (particular
species of these which are generalists) will probably outlive humans as a
species.
Dave Braun
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