Fish & Wildlife Service Lists 2 More Bird Species As "Extinct"

[hatrack]

"Last month, with little fanfare, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service removed two tropical birds, the Mariana mallard and the Guam broadbill, from its list of species that are endangered. The birds are extinct, having joined a growing list of animals that have disappeared from the face of the Earth.

The announcement that these two birds, which were native to the islands of the western Pacific, had vanished forever elicited little attention. Their numbers had been declining for decades. And few people, other than the most avid bird enthusiasts, even knew what they were or had ever seen them. So there will be few who will mark their passing with the same nostalgia or sense of loss that might accompany the disappearance of a better known species like the snow leopard, the Siberian tiger or the black rhinoceros — all on the brink of the same abyss.

The fact that the extinction of these two creatures was virtually a silent one is a tragedy. Both were the product of millions of years of evolution. Both were connected to a larger network of species that interrelate and depend on one another in many ways that still remain a mystery to science. And both succumbed to the same types of human- induced pressures that threaten so many other animals in this country and elsewhere in the world: habitat loss, over-hunting and the introduction of nonnative species against which they have little or no defense.

EDIT

Take, for example, the case of Easter Island. This remote, barren island in the South Pacific, which is best known for its huge, mysterious stone statues, was once covered by a subtropical forest. But its Polynesian inhabitants eventually deforested the island, driving most of its tree species into extinction along with every species of native land bird. With no wood available to build boats for fishing, and the soil so depleted that crops could not be grown, an estimated 90% of the human inhabitants died of starvation."

EDIT

[blindpig]

1. sorrow

thus we are all diminished. And accused. And maybe accursed.
I want my Carolina Parokeet back.

[Earth_First]

2. A perfect example...

how we need to pressure Washington to cease the gutting of the Endangered Species Act.

Find out more/how here: http://www.nesarc.org/

[Pale Blue Dot]

3. Welcome to DU, Earth_First!

Thanks for the link. It's sad that we need to kill off a few species to be reminded how important wildlife is.

[Earth_First]

4. Thank you...

your warm reception is grately appriciated! Any word on how many of these replies one has to garner in order to make topics of his own? Thank you in advance...

[Pale Blue Dot]

5. That figure is undisclosed.

Just keep on posting and you'll be starting threads sooner rather than later!

:hi:

[420montana]

7. the number is unknown but I

have only posted a few times more than you and can start my own threads. Welcome to DU! This is my third go around here. The baiters and flamers always get to me.....dont let them get to you.

[Dogmudgeon]

6. Too late!

The Earth is experiencing one of the most dramatic "extinction events" in its history. There is also evidence that while humans may have started it, the extinction event process is now moving along on its own momentum.

We should still save what we can, but I don't think it will go well. For every species we know is extinct, there may be five, 10, or 100 more that are gone that we didn't know about.

It's sad, ain't it?

--bkl