Conservationist Plan Would Give Lions, Elephants a Home on the Range
People hoping to glimpse lions, cheetahs, elephants and other megafauna in their natural environment must journey to Africa's wildlife reserves. But if one group of ecologists and conservationists gets its way, safari-goers could soon head for the Great Plains of the U.S. instead.
In a report published today in the journal Nature, Josh Donlan of Cornell University and his colleagues propose replacing the large carnivores and herbivores that disappeared from North America 13,000 years ago, at the end of the Pleistocene epoch. Noting that humans likely had a part in these extinctions and that our subsequent activities have stunted the evolutionary potential of most remaining megafauna, the scientists say we have an ethical responsibility to address these problems.
Huh? Ethical responsibility? I hate it when scientists afflicted with God-complexes feel compelled to start saving the planet by suggesting insane ideas like bringing African animals and turning them loose in the US. Good grief, people. I'm all for managing resources and all, but doesn't the notion of "bringing foreign species to our country to solve some sort of ecological problem" have a bad track record? Kudzu comes to mind, for starters...
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