5 Major Contributors to Forest and Wildlife Extinction

Extinction means they're gone forever. Save our forest and the vanishing wildlife before it's too late.

Love your forest and the wildlife that lives on it. But somehow, more and more people abused these natural resources of the planet. They cut down trees but never cared to replace them. Our forests occupy most of Earth’s land surface - decades ago. These forests housed 80% of animals and plant species, which are doomed for extinction if people won’t stop their own selfish intentions to this wildlife world.

Have you ever thought what you can do for nature other than what nature can do for you? We know for a fact that we need forest for all our needs and supplies. But why can’t they replace a small plant when they cut down trees? Is that very hard to do? Replacing these trees will also benefit the people of tomorrow. We should not let our mountains be barren and dead.

We must take into consideration on the consequences of our own doings to nature. Think first before you act. We need nature. We need our forests and the wildlife that lives on it. We don’t just take and take; we must also do our share to give back to nature what it deserves.

So what are the five major contributors on the decline and possible extinction of our forest and wildlife?

Kaingin is a Filipino term for slashing and burning of trees on the forest and mountains for cultivation purposes. People who practice kaingin are called Kaingeros.

Did you know that kaingin is worst than illegal logging? This method of agricultural cultivation burned trees first to produce charcoals which they sell to people on town. The burned area was then cultivated until such time the soil is not good enough to plant the crops and vegetables. So they will again transfer to another place and begin the cultivation. The nutrients in the soil as well as the seeds and plants are being destroyed on the burning process and will never be brought to life again.

Kaingin has been practiced by almost all locales in every province in the Philippines. It is illegal but people just don’t care about the environment, the nature and the effects later on. All they wanted was money and their products.

Illegal logging causes enormous damage to forest. The cutting down of trees illegally can cause extreme impact on environment and global warming. This human activity cut down trees without the proper consent of government and therefore also violating the law.

There are parts in the forest that is prohibited to cut down because they are protecting species in the forest. The extraction of logs and timbers is done on illegal ways. And sometimes, some endangered species who lose their habitat vanished forever.

Due to the increasing change of climates from time to time, forest became more sensitive to the global carbon emissions brought by global warming. Due to the atmospheric changes, the growth and productivity of the forest has been affected severely.

Many wildlife species has grown less in number. We should always think that trees can absorb carbon dioxide and gives us more oxygen for fresher air. It traps pollution and cleanse the air. Climate change is due to the abused of man on burning plastics and other materials that can cause the depletion of our ozone layer.

Use fewer plastics, conserve energy and lessen the carbon footprints may save the forest as well as our ozone layer.

Wildfires is considered to be the uncontrollable cause by lighting, volcanic eruptions, sparks from rock-falls and spontaneous combustion, though some may be of the carelessness of people visiting or camping inside the wilderness.

Wildfires mainly happen in long, hot summer and are considered as one major threat to the decline of species and can lead to forest extinction. The effects of weathers, climate changes and other weather patterns contribute heavily to this uncontrollable disaster.

Deforestation or what they commonly called as Clearing/Clearance is the permanent destruction of indigenous forest and woodlands to be converted to non-forest uses, farms, ranches or urban use.

The wildlife once peaceful living on these areas is forced to ‘evacuate’ and find another place to live. Some of these species will not survive on their new habitat and would likely to be extinct.

Deforestation also occurs for so many reasons. People need timbers and logs to build houses and fuel. The removal of trees without thinking of replacing what they got would most likely to damage the wildlife habitat and biodiversity of all living things.

As a result of these destructive activities, our forest ecosystems are now threatened for extinction as well as the plant and animal species inside it. Well, not all endangered forest animals and plant species are large. Hundred of plants and smaller insects and creatures are lost ever year due to this activity and disasters.

People on the lowland may suffer tremendous effects of this abused in the form of floods and massive landslides because no more trees to hold the soil on its place. They will only realized these effects later on when they see lifeless victims of these cruelty to forest and other living things on the environment.

Remember that trees are the lungs of the planet. They give the supply of clean air and oxygen while absorbing carbon dioxide. With population growth, do you think millions of people will survive if forests and trees are gone forever? It’s not too late to change the way things were. We still have chance if everybody would only contribute their fair share to forest and nature. Let us be aware and stop future damage of our world.

The best movie example for this is WALL-E, which showed the Earth on year 2700, uninhabitable, full of mountains of garbage, no life and no trees. People are abusing our resources to make the world a deserted, hot planet with no living things. Is that the planet we would like for our future generations to see?

Plant one tree at a time. We must really do this for the sake of future and the Earth will not be like another barren land.