Shrink to Fit
By David Malakoff
Spring 2011 / Vol. 12 No. 1
Discussion Questions
- In what ways does large body size put a species at risk of extinction?
- How did the spread of humans place both direct and indirect ecological pressure on megafauna species?
- What might the ecological consequences of megafauna extinction be? What is meant by the term “dead species walking,” and what are the ecological and conservation policy implications of such species?
- How might future climate change influence the patterns described in this article?
- What choices do conservationists have for addressing the causes and consequences of megafauna shrinkage and extinction?
Websites for Further Information
- The Rewilding Institute: http://rewilding.org/
- African Wildlife Foundation: http://www.awf.org/
Hunting and Fishing in the News
- Under attack, Japan will recall whaling fleet (New York Times, February 17, 2011): http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/18/world/asia/18japan.html
- U.N. rejects export ban on Atlantic bluefin tuna (New York Times, March 18, 2010): http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/19/science/earth/19species.html
- Ivory for sale, legally (and controversially) (New York Times, October 28, 2008, 2010): http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/28/ivory-for-sale-legally-and-controversially/
Key Concepts
- Evolution
- Extinction
- Body size
- Megafauna
- Overkill
- Hunting
- Global warming
