Friday, 14 August 2009
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Asian Animal Driven to Edge of Extinction
Before I read this article from National Geographic News, I didn't even know what a pangolin is. It's a scaly anteater that dwells in parts of Asia that is driven to the edge of extinction because it is being hunted for it's meat and scales. The pangolin is being hunted in countries in Asia such as China. The reason being is that pangolins only produce 1 pup per litter. That's not a big number! Last year, 38 tons of frozen pangolin carcasses were caught being smuggled into China.
This animal is known to have a number of medical benefits including helping with allergies.
Below is a photo of pangolin fetus soup. It is believed to increase a man's virility.
Also, the pangolin performs millions of dollars worth of pest control a year. The problem is as stated in the article:
"We cannot afford to overlook their ecological role as natural controllers of termites and ants," said Simon Stuart, Chair of the IUCN Species Survival Commission, in a statement."
National Geographic and other associations are doing what they can to keep the pangolin from being extinct. What do you think of all this?
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About the Author
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- From: anne
- Name: anne
- About Me: Age: 27, Location: New York, NY Favorite places I've visited: Trick question! I've been to so many amazing places, but if I absolutely had to pick, I'd settle on a couple places to shorten the list. Madrid, Spain because that's where I did my study abroad program when I was 18 and it was there that the travel bug bit me so hard it left a scar. I haven't been the same since. And Vietnam. That's where my family is from. Although, I'm Vietnamese American, I never actually visited Vietnam until I was 26. It was an awesome experience to learn about my family's history and I was quite pleased to show off my vietnamese language skills to the locals. It's quite a big deal for an american-born.
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Comments (18)
Poor anteater !!! D:
That's so sad :\ It's actually a cute animal considering it's covered with huge scales and has a snout vaguely anteater-esque. Can't they start a breeding program or something? Just because it has only one pup per litter doesn't mean that it's hard to breed, although it certainly could be.
God save the pangolin! The baji too!
It's just sad that not enough people care.
Certainly, they could make a law and perhaps a breeding clinic to bring this animal species into an abundant number. It's the same thing as the Americans back then with buffalo.
Aww..but it's so cute 8[[
): argh. i like how it eat ants, I HATE ANTS D:
it's sad how humans causes other species on this planet to go extinct...
:(
Aaw :(
i should have adopted one. i used to have ants in my house before i spend a hit load of money getting rid of them.
That last photo is sick. ): It's sad that people continue to repeat mistakes we did in the past.
That's horrible! :( Such neat animals too. I wish American zoos had some and were able to breed... though it's better that it happen in their native land.
How sad !!!
the anteater fetus looks scary ! :(
other animals used for asian medicine/ food are:
bear, alligator, and other exotic animals :X
that soup pic is gross...
I think that it's about time we looked at the food chain and reinvented it. We've lost a number of great creatures in our time, like the Baiji Dolphin, West African Black Rhino, and the Spix's Macaw to name a few. We have to find a way of saving these extraordinary creatures. They are a part of us, just as we are a part of them.
This is a great article. Thank you for the information.
Noe Rosales
GROSS, how can someone eat that? similarly baiji dolphin fetus was considered to be a delicacy... no thanks. anything fetus-y is just... ergh