Image [1]. R, Lydekker. (1898).
Approaching the topic of the Anthropocene and Extinction as the theme for the final major project, it became apparent very quickly that the volume of writing about the topic is ever growing due to the nature of the theme. As the natural world develops and as the scientific and journalism fields work endlessly to find solutions and work to showcase their findings with the world, the result is the dating and almost voiding of information previously found. Animals that were deemed once extinct make a recovery, reversing the data on them for a period, only to become extinct yet again.
One such animal is the Pyrenean ibex, commonly known as a bucardo , became the first animal in history to have been recorded extinct twice. This spectacular event occurred due to the cloning of the last specimen, named Cecelia who died in 2000, The World Economic Forum (2017). Scientists took cells from her ear and flank, removing the nuclei, injecting them into sheep eggs. 57 of these hybrid eggs were implanted with only seven being partially successful. Six of the hybrids unfortunately miscarried, with one being brought to term, The World Economic Forum (2017). The animal suffered breathing complications and passed away 10 minutes later. The public was not aware of this until 2009 when the official scientific paper was published. Ventures such as this bring to light the topic of ethics and the idea of playing God. Although, how does this idea work with the idea of conservation? Does bringing species back from extinction benefit or harm the planet further?
Although this story alone brings many questions to the forefront, one project specific concern is the idea of keeping up to date. How do I ensure that the imagery and the information I am displaying in the application screens are current? Linked to this is the concern of which animals to showcase. Through the reading undertaken for the project proposal and through this research period, I became aware of the disturbingly large amount of creatures going extinct every year due to climactic changes and human impact. How do I organise and sort through this volume of information and ensure that the animals chosen both have a wide array of information about them to showcase, capture the users imagination and also allow for users to later take action? Do these actions need to be species specific? Or will general conservation actions be enough? One example to look towards would be how organisations such as the WWF approach their roster of animal adoptions.
As I continue to read about the state of the planet and the animal kingdom I will naturally find answers to these questions.
References
The World Economic Forum. (2017). This animal went extinct twice. The World Economic Forum. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2017/12/bucardo-goat-went-extinct-twice/
Figure List:
Image [1]. R, Lydekker. (1898). Wild oxen, sheep & goats of all lands, living and extinct. [Illustration]. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrenean_ibex#/media/File:Pyrenean_Ibex.png
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