I recall a few years ago an idea was proposed concerning the rewilding of American grasslands with a myriad of Asian and African counterparts to those found during the Pleistocene in America. Does anyone know the status of the proposal, and if anything is coming from it? The notion is ecologically sound, and the only true valid concern is that of ranchers. This really should be brought up again and instinctual dismissal should be put on hold until the matter can be fully analyzed.
Rewilding America
- Thread starter Kevin G
- Start date
at the heart of the debate is what caused the extinction of many of these great creatures in the first place. and that in itself is an even bigger long running debate amongst scientists. either way - in my mind, be it primitive man or climate, the extinction of mastodons, horses, camels etc from north america was entirely natural and thus "rewilding" isn't really about restoring the natural balance, its about creating an entirely new one.
in addition, an asian elephant might be the mammoths closest living counterpart, but that doesn't necessarily make it a viable alternative. mammoths were extreme cold climate adapted elephants, asian elephants do notoriously bad in cold weather for long periods. thus keeping them in barns during winters will be necessary for often up to six months of the year in northern states. hardly, "rewilding" and hardly ethical in my opinion.
its a great idea for a theme park in southern california. but thats about it.
i think before anyone considers releasing african lions into the wilds of the midwest, they might want to start with establishing a much more recently extinct cat, such as the jaguar in some of the southern states.
in addition, an asian elephant might be the mammoths closest living counterpart, but that doesn't necessarily make it a viable alternative. mammoths were extreme cold climate adapted elephants, asian elephants do notoriously bad in cold weather for long periods. thus keeping them in barns during winters will be necessary for often up to six months of the year in northern states. hardly, "rewilding" and hardly ethical in my opinion.
its a great idea for a theme park in southern california. but thats about it.
i think before anyone considers releasing african lions into the wilds of the midwest, they might want to start with establishing a much more recently extinct cat, such as the jaguar in some of the southern states.
Phoenix is 100% right. We can't even provide a safe haven for our native animals like wolves and grizzlies, so we should work on that. Introduced exotic species are one of the biggest ecological problems in the world right now. Why would so-called ecologists intentionally release large, non-native animals into a huge area of the country?
in addition there is already a debate raging over whether or not mustangs should be considered native and thus offered proper federal protection.
and this is a long, long established introduced species with prehistorical ties to the continent. i doubt very much that those same people arguing against the acceptance of the feral horse being a native north american species could be convinced to accept the cheetah or asian elephant as one.
here in australia we can't make up our mind over the status of the dingo. much like the mustangs its an introduced species, yet its been here for thousands of years and now plays a significant role in the ecology of the continent, having likely caused the extinction, yet ultimately replaced, the spot as our top mammalian carnivores.
and this is a long, long established introduced species with prehistorical ties to the continent. i doubt very much that those same people arguing against the acceptance of the feral horse being a native north american species could be convinced to accept the cheetah or asian elephant as one.
here in australia we can't make up our mind over the status of the dingo. much like the mustangs its an introduced species, yet its been here for thousands of years and now plays a significant role in the ecology of the continent, having likely caused the extinction, yet ultimately replaced, the spot as our top mammalian carnivores.
Ann Littlewood
Well-Known Member
I'm all for rewilding. More bison! More pronghorn! Also kit foxes, plains wolves, sage grouse, etc.
i brought up this topic some time ago here on the forum. maybe a merger is in order?
http://www.zoochat.com/22/pleistocene-rewilding-7108/
http://www.zoochat.com/22/pleistocene-rewilding-7108/