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I still don’t understand why species count matters. All organisms share the same basic genetic drive. Species go extinct when environmental niches shift too rap
by pfannkuchen 3y ago
I still don’t understand why species count matters. All organisms share the same basic genetic drive. Species go extinct when environmental niches shift too rapidly. But, as long as the niches stabilize eventually, they will be filled back in through natural processes and we will end up with new species. This does take a long time, but a reduction in species diversity is fundamentally not permanent.
- huytersd 3y agoThat’s a ridiculous perspective. We’re losing genetic marvels forever.
- pfannkuchen 3y agoNew ones will appear eventually. Though of course you and I won’t get to see them, because it will take a few hundred thousand years or more. If people are concerned about species extinction’s impact to humans, that is a defensible position. Most people seem to act like it isn’t about human enjoyment though, as if there is some intrinsic value to species count even if humans were out of the picture. The time it will take to re-diversify is the blink of an eye in geologic terms.
- huytersd 3y agoThere is inherent value to a large species count. Exaggerate the situation and say the only animals left in the world were dogs, cats and cows. Extrapolate that same sense of massive loss to this situation. If you don’t care then I guess there isn’t anything else to say to you but recognize that the loss of species diversity causes many people to feel an immense sense of loss, comparable to say large scale genocide of a human ethnic population.
- voltaireodactyl 3y agoSpeaking solely for myself, I’m bummed that I miss out on the diverse ecology of our forebears. I also imagine some are worried that — as development continues to cut down on wilderness of every category — perhaps those environments won’t be as conducive to new species forming as past, pre-civilization circumstances.
- Blehmo 3y agoWe literaly took 1000 species and probably a LOT more who evolved over thousands of years and just wipe them out. And I need to explain to you why this doesn't feel okay? Do you actually enjoy your life? Colors? Art? Music? Foot? Sry to be annoyed by your comment but wtf come on...
- ranguna 3y agoI do agree that the ecosystem is ever changing, and saying we are making species extinct by itself serves as no argument, because new and maybe even more diverse species could emerge. The question is, are new species emerging at the same rate as they were before the human industrialization era?
- RGamma 3y agoThe mental gymnastics one has to do to even ask such a question is astonishing. We are reducing this planet's capacity to support any wildlife at rapid speed. Modern people can afford to be blind to this, because it's not their necks that are at stake (for now). Look at satellite pictures for a start... Farms are no habitat.
- pfannkuchen 3y ago> We are reducing this planet's capacity to support any wildlife at rapid speed If this is happening then of course it is a problem. Note that I was specifically asking about the species count being a problem. I am not asserting that organism count declining isn’t a problem. The former isn’t exactly a proxy for the latter, since by definition near-extinct species don’t contribute much to the organism count.
- aziaziazi 3y ago“I trashed all by books but it’s fine: I got a dictionary as a backup” :)
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]