THE HEIDELBERG SCIENCE LIBRARY I Volume 2

THE HEIDELBERG SCIENCE LIBRARY I Volume 2

Extinct and Vanishing Animals A biology of extinction and survival by Vinzenz Ziswiler Revised English Edition by Fred and Pille Bunnell SPRINGER-VERLAG NEW YORK INC. I967

First published in 1965 I "Bedrohte und Ausgerottete Tiere" First English edition 1967 ISBN 978-0-387-90003-2 001 10.1007/978-1-4615-6991-6 ISBN 978-1-4615-6991-6 (ebook) All rights reserved, especially that of translation into foreign languages. It is also forbidden to reproduce this book, either whole or in part, by photomechan ical means (photostat, microfilm and/or microcard or any other means) with out written permission from the Publishers. by Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 1965 Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 65-25116 by Springer-Verlag New York Inc. 1967 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1 st edition 1967 Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 67-25112 Title No. 3912

Recommended by the WORLD WILDLIFE FUND

Foreword In the limited scope of this book I wish to present a brief review of the progressive destruction of nature, particularly in the domain of animal life, and at the same time to illustrate some of the possibilities by BIII:- Ion-.--------------, which man can prevent this destruction. As the mightiest creation of na- 2,51- a _ ture, man extends his influence into all of nature's provinces and in- 2 1--- - -------1---; 3 ~ - - - - - - - - ~ f ~ L... - _ j habits all zones of the earth.,,51----------1'------1 Civilization and technology, ultimate consequences of his unique 1 cerebral development, have promoted man to this position of O ~ >, I,.", o o' - = - --- - - I - - - power. An enormous population increase in recent centuries has 1850 1100 1700 1800 1BIIO 1800.110. 2000 made him one of the most numerous of all animal forms. A comparison of the alarming climb of earth's population curve (Fig. la) with the graphical representation of exterminated animal species (Fig. Ib) establishes a striking conformity. The steeper the human population curve climbs, the higher stretch the bars representing the number of exterminated animal species. Many facts and figures are included in this book; factual evidence speaks louder to us of the twentieth century than do passionate appeals to sentiment. The figures make the extent of the damage An 5 - ",0 r-. - 30 r- 20 r- h 0-10 r- h -r-rn- 1650 1700 17150 1800 18SO 1900 19SO 2000 vii Fig. 1. ( a ) The increase in human population over the last three hundred years. (b) The number of exterminated mammals forms (white bars) and bird forms (black bars) eliminated over the last three hundred years. Each bar represents a 50-year period.

viii Foreword tangible and clearly indicate the necessity for corrective actions. All examples included in this book are presented with the same basic reasoning: when man continues to destroy nat'ure, he saws off the very branch on which he sits since the rational protection of nature is at the same time the protection of mankind. It follows from the theme of this book that its contents must be compiled from a great many widely differentiated sources all of which are impossible to cite. I wish to take this opportunity to offer my sincere thanks to all my colleagues and to all those who have contributed drawings. My special thanks go to the Director of the Ziirich University Zoological Museum, Hans Burla, who placed his personal help and various other important resources at the disposal of this effort, and to the international nature protection organization, the World Wildlife Fund, whose photoarchives I was allowed to utilize. I am deeply indebted to Pille and Fred Bunnell for their translation and revision of my book from its original German version. Zurich, January 1, 1965 VINZENZ ZISWILER

Contents Chapter 1. DIRECT EXTERMINATION 1 M eat and Eggs 1 Hides, Furs and Feathers 8 Souvenirs 14 Superstitious Beliefs 14 Live-Animal Trade 17 Trophy Hunting and Morbid Pleasure in Killing 18 Animals as Competitors 22 Chapter 2. INDIRECT EXTERMINATION 25 Dest1'1lction of the Natural Vegetation 25 Drainage of Wetlands 33 Ravaged Waters 37 Air Pollution 39 Radioactive Radiation 40 Animal Traffic Victims 40 Domestic Animal Diseases c 41 Animals as Indirect Victims of Biocides 42 Denaturalized Fauna 44 Chapter 3. LOCAL EXTERMINATION 48 Chapter 4. THE BIOLOGY OF EXTINCTION 55 "Killed Off and Dying Out" 55 The Extermination Process 57 The Dangers of Island Life 60 The Balance of Nature 71 Man and the Balance of Nature 75 Chapter 5. PROTECTING NATURE 76 The Necessity of Research 77 Nature Protection Through Conservation 79 ix

x Contents Maintaining and Breeding Threatened Animal Forms in Captivity 85 Nature Protection Through Restoration 88 Wildlife Management 91 In Closing 103 Appendix I. LIST OF BIRD AND MAMMAL FORMS ALREADY EXTINCT 106 Appendix II. LIST OF THE MOST GRAVELY THREATENED ANIMAL FORMS 115 Literature 128 Index 129