Reply To: The consequences of NOT killing lions
Losing a dominant member of a foodchain is never good…and losing even one member who can now be counted in the mere thousands (or even hundreds) can make a big difference (especially if it is a baby making machine).
The whole “cute name” or “bandwagon” element is of zero importance per whether lions should be protected or not. The mindless mob ultimately has little effect in overall policy or budgets for conservation (though with a lucky example they can drive up the budget a little more for a little while). If we were smart enough to give a popular name and allow online tracking with all highly endangered animals then we could hopefully keep at least a few species from their near certain end.
Conservation projects are generously funded by the UN and other international organizations…so selling permits to kill off one highly endangered animal to add what is ultimately a modest amount of money per the overall budget…is not an answer (it’s ludicrous). On the other hand…allowing people to sponser a specific animal (that is donate money to add extra protection) would be a grand idea.
