Comments on: 11 Extinct Animals That Have Been Photographed Alive

By: Johnny Cat

Johnny Cat — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 05:53:45 +0000

the bees may have an impact on us as a species. I’ve always been against the decision to remove homo sapiens from natural selection, officially. We could be removed as easily as a fruit fly. Neat, I know. But true. We could be taken out by other life forms, such as AIDS, cancer, superflu, or bird flu +5

Not to mention what happened to Dino. Yucatan crater, anyone? If an asteroid hit that was comparable (think the size of Texas), the entire planet would plunge into darkness, and there’d be no more funk. That would suck.

By: Miss Cellania

Miss Cellania — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 03:48:44 +0000

You got me, I was just paraphrasing the linked article.

By: danoso

danoso — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 02:57:41 +0000

That’s why I said “most”. There have been bigger extinctions, but on a timeline of the earth’s history they take up a small space.

Ok, I’ll bite — why are extinctions somehow more prevalent now? Is there some scientific study you can point to? Considering how little we know now about what species inhabit the planet, any measurement of the number going extinct is nonsense. And the idea that we have any feel at all for the rate at which this occurred over the entire history of the earth is also complete drivel, moreso in fact.

Now I realize it’s there’s a human tendency to think the era in which we live is singularly special. Add to that the guilt and arrogance of thinking every bad thing that happens is somehow our fault and you end up with silly statements like yours. I’m sure a great many folks would nod their dopey little heads in agreement. But species have been evolving and dying off for billions of years. Humans, like every other living thing, have an effect on the survivability of other species on the planet, both positively and negatively. And the number of species we have a direct impact toward is tiny compared to the diverse fauna of earth (again, a number we still have no idea how to measure).

By: Mac-attack

Mac-attack — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 01:29:48 +0000

I grew up in hong kong on an island that required daily ferry-rides to the mainland. I’ve personally seen the baiji-dolphin (aka the pink river dolphin)a few times. Fantastic sight. Shame about what was inevitably going to happen. Many people blame their extinction on the building of the new int’l airport.

By: ted

ted — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 01:29:27 +0000

“The last Bubal Hartebeest was probably a female which died in the Paris Zoo in 1923.”

So, they weren’t sure if it was a female?

By: lunacy

lunacy — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 00:33:26 +0000

“Animals are going extinct at a much higher rate now than through most of the earth’s history. ”

How could you possibly know that? There are species that are yet to be discovered. There are species and subspecies that have just begun. IE: Bolivian fresh water dolphin, various bird subspecies, various viruses, insects and plants.

see – http://tinyurl.com/c7bc6y

or – http://www.panda.org/index.cfm?uNewsID=152622

I could go on, or you could since you made the assertion.

How could anyone possibly know that species are declining at a much higher rate?

By: Kalel

Kalel — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 21:33:49 +0000

Did anyone snap a pic of that last smallpox virus?

By: Miss Cellania

Miss Cellania — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 17:24:13 +0000

That’s why I said “most”. There have been bigger extinctions, but on a timeline of the earth’s history they take up a small space.

By: Ron

Ron — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 16:55:17 +0000

“Animals are going extinct at a much higher rate now than through most of the earth’s history.” I doubt it. There were probably more extinctions when the dinosaurs became extinct.

By: LisaL

LisaL — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 16:35:06 +0000

Ugh, don’t like articles like this b/c it always makes me so depressed.

By: Johnny Cat

Johnny Cat — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 16:31:28 +0000

I took a perfunctory look. I’d love a citation on the blanket statement “Animals are going extinct at a much higher rate now than through most of the earth’s history.”

Because it’s a well documented fact that over 99% of all species that ever lived are gone. It’s actually one of the most wonderful things about life – the eternal cycle. There are countless reasons why beautiful creatures die out, and having a few photos to see what some were is actually kind of nice.

But I’m not going to dwell on them.

By: Chuckie D.

Chuckie D. — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 16:15:53 +0000

Hey, this is just natural selection. Some species survive, others don’t.

Evolution is a fact! Deal with it.

By: OddNumber

OddNumber — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 14:31:15 +0000

It is always depressing to hear about species that are gone forever. Although I did smile for a moment as I pictured a “Far Side” comic like depiction of the last Ibex being found under a fallen tree.

By: Jim R Feliciano

Jim R Feliciano — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 05:56:26 +0000

Horribly depressing