Threatened Species Day
Tasmanian Tiger
Threatened Species
On the 7th September 1936 the last Thylacine passed away in Hobart Zoo in Tasmania. The date of the death of this iconic marsupial carnivore was chosen to promote Threatened Species Day.
The Thylacine, also known as the Tasmanian Tiger was believed to be the last remaining representative of its kind. The 7th September is probably the best choice of day to draw the worlds attention to the the threats that animals face directly as a result of man.
The loss of the Thylacine Thylacinus cynocephalus should be a lesson to us all. A creature which shared our planet has gone forever directly as a result of man. It is not going to come back.
Under Threat
Presently Threatened Species Day is only celebrated in Australasia but is slowly getting attention and being adopted around the rest of the world. This needs to happen because our world is shrinking and more and more species are under threat than ever were before. What happens in one country, what species are under threat are more often as a result on the behaviour of us in a country so very far away.
Take the Orangutan. This animal is doomed to extinction in the wild unless the rest of the world makes some drastic changes to their eating habits. The destruction of the rainforests for Palm Oil Plantations is hastening the Orangutans own '1936'.
We need to do something. We have to do something. If we don't then we will lose species such as the African Elephant, the Rhinoceros and the Orangutan within the next twenty or thirty years.
What Can You Do On Threatened Species Day?
So what can you do on threatened species day? First and foremost you should think about the other creatures with whom we share our planet. The point here is that we ARE sharing. It isn't ours. It belongs to so many other creatures. All of us need to change. We need to change quite quickly too or it will be too late.
You can learn quickly even in a day if you visit your local GOOD zoo. By 'good' this means a zoo which is making a genuine contribution to education and conservation and not just talking about it. Such zoos are members of recognised bodies;
In the USA - AZA
In Europe - EAZA
In the UK - BIAZA
In Australasia - ZAA
There are others, many others but these tend to be invented organisations (some have many members) of collections which don't want to abide by the the rules of the GOOD zoos. Don't get taken in by the blurb they have written themselves, don't be fooled by fancy websites which they wrote as well. Many BAD zoos have thousands of visitors but do nothing for conservation, education or research.
Go and learn. Change your lifestyle. Make a donation. Never forget we share our planet and the lives of so many other creatures are in your hands....our hands.
There Are Other Important Days for Wildlife
There is a list of Other Animal Days on