3.01.2010

threatened animals in my inbox: please give three clicks

I have three recent emails about animals that are threatened with almost to the point of extinction because of human selfishness and stupidity.

Sometimes I'm amazed that humans aren't past this by now, that trophy hunting hasn't been discarded as the insane ignorance of a bygone era. But then, our species is still killing each other en masse, and seems intent on trashing the only home we will ever know. So what makes me think humans would learn to stop destroying other species.

For each animal - grizzly bears, beluga whales and bobcats - there's a simple action you can take to add your voice in protest. Please click.

From the David Suzuki foundation:
Grizzly bears are at risk of disappearing or are already extinct in many parts of the world. British Columbia's wilderness provides one of the last global safe havens for these bears. Sadly, trophy hunting is threatening their ability to survive here – including hunting in provincial parks, where most people expect grizzlies to be protected. The government can change this by banning sport hunting across the province and turning provincial parks into true sanctuaries for threatened wildlife.

Join an international network of groups – representing more than 15 million members and constituents from over 40 countries – calling on the B.C. government to end the slaughter of bears for sport.

With your help, we can maintain B.C. as one of the last safe havens for grizzlies and save these iconic bears from disappearing. Click here to tell Premier Gordon Campbell and Minister Barry Penner to ban the sport hunt and protect B.C.'s bears!

From the NRDC:
Industry giants are pressuring the Obama Administration to abandon endangered beluga whales in Cook Inlet, Alaska. We need your urgent action to help protect these rare whales from extinction.

Please tell the National Marine Fisheries Service to finalize its proposal to designate an area of more than 3,000 square miles as critical habitat for Cook Inlet beluga whales.

Cook Inlet belugas live in one of the most populated and industrialized regions in Alaska. Their health and habitat is continuously threatened by the devastating effects of development and pollution.

In fact, this genetically distinct population of beluga whales has plummeted in number from 1,300 in the 1980s to fewer than 400 today.

Following years of advocacy by NRDC and others, the National Marine Fisheries Service proposed designated critical habitat for Cook Inlet beluga whales under the Endangered Species Act this past December.

Without these habitat protections, which are backed by decades of scientific research and data, Cook Inlet beluga whales could be wiped out forever.

Yet powerful industries are falsely claiming that designating critical habitat will hurt local development.

In truth, this designation simply helps ensure that new development projects will move forward with safeguards necessary to protect belugas and their habitat.

Please make your voice heard right now.

And from the Humane Society International:
In just a few weeks, delegates from 175 countries that have signed the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) will meet to discuss more than 40 proposals to increase or decrease protection for internationally-traded animal and plant species.

For the fourth time, the United States is proposing to remove CITES protection for bobcats. Each time before, their proposal has failed or they have withdrawn it in the face of strong opposition. Help us ensure they fail again: Tell the U.S. government to withdraw its proposal to remove international protection for bobcats!

The bobcat, one of only two iconic American wild cat species, is the most heavily traded cat species in the world. More than 50,000 bobcats are trapped and killed each year so their skins, or items made from their skins, can be traded internationally.

Bobcats were first listed on CITES Appendix II because their skins cannot be distinguished from those of other lynx species, some of which are critically endangered. Delisting bobcats would reduce control of the trade in their fur and leave other small spotted wild cats more vulnerable to illegal international trade.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is once again bowing to pressure from trappers who want to sell bobcat skins internationally without any federal or international regulation. We cannot let a small group of people who profit from killing these animals for their skins remove international protection for wild cats everywhere!

Please sign our petition to U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar by March 1st, urging him to withdraw this proposal from consideration at CITES.

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