FINAL PATHFINDER

Title: Wildlife Conservation for the Protection of Endangered Species and their habitats

By Lacey Pearson
Final Pathfinder
Learning for the 21st Century
Winter Quarter, 2008.


Introduction:

The words "endangered species" means any specie, plant or animal, that is in immediate danger of becoming extinct. These species are included in "The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species", which is maintained by the World Conservation Union, and is updated every four years. According to the red list, there are approximately 7,850 animal species around the world that are considered either critically endangered, endangered, or vulnerable to extinction. The protection of these species and their habitats is crucial to their survival. In this pathfinder, I will research endangered species, causes for their endangerment, and ways in which we can protect these species and their habitats, before they become extinct.


Topic Analysis:

The academic disciplines related to this subject are; environmental studies, natural resources, wildlife preservation, and wildlife conservation. The library of congress classifications for this subject are; SF for animal cultures, QH for natural history, and QL for zoology. Some useful keywords and subject headings to use when searching this subject are; endangered species, threatened species, world wildlife fund, extinct species, natural resource preservation, wildlife protection, rare species, endangered species list, save endangered species, poaching, illegal hunting, wildlife conservation, and endangered species act. The most important databases when researching this subject were; Internet Public Library, Public site search, ProQuest, Google Advanced Search, and Academic Search Premier.

When it comes to identifying keywords and subject headings, I began only searching the keywords ‘endangered species’, and then branched off from there. Some of the most helpful keywords I used were; endangered species, threatened species, save endangered species, and wildlife conservation. These keywords led me to a large number of organizations that focus on saving endangered species. Organizations such as the World Wildlife Foundation seem to be the most interested in protecting endangered species. When I searched for the endangered species list, it was much harder to find, and much more detailed than I thought. The list is very extensive, and there are many levels of status for species, from extinct to least concern.


Best Reference Sources:

Organization: World Wildlife Fund

Endangered Species. World Wildlife Fund. 2008. World Wildlife Fund. 19 Feb. 2008. <http://www.worldwildlife.org/endangered>.

This organization relates to my topic because it is one of the largest, if not the largest wildlife conservation organizations in the world. Because they are the largest, they generate more money and can do more to protect endangered species and their habitats. You can contact the World Wildlife Fund by visiting their website or writing to the U.S. Headquarters, which is located in Washington D.C. There are several different headquarters in countries all around the world. You can also call them at 1-800-960-0993, 24 hours a day to get information about their organization.


Statistical Information: The IUCN Red list of Threatened Species

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The IUCN Species Survival Commission. 9 Feb. 2008. The World Conservation Union. 3 Mar. 2008. <http://iucnredlist.org>.

This website relates to my topic because it contains something called "the red list." This list, composed in 1996, describes the status of 5,205 species around the world, surveyed by over 500 scientists. This site reveals that nearly a quarter of the species included in this list are at risk of extinction. It is the most collective, up to date endangered and extinct species list available.


Two Articles From Encyclopedias:

"United States Fish and Wildlife Service." Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia. 2007<http://encarta.msn.com/fws>.

This article discusses the role that the United States Fish and Wildlife service plays in the conservation of wildlife. The article talks about the two U.S. bureaus that were created in the late 1800's and how they have merged into one department, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service. This service monitors wildlife, endangered species and their habitats, and educates the public about wildlife conservation.


"Conservation of Natural Resources." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Columbia University Press. 2007.

This article discusses the definition of conservation of natural resources, and when conservation became a part of the U.S. government policy, during the late 1800's with the formation of the first national forest reserve. The article goes on to talk about various organizations and laws that have been established to help aid the conservation of natural resources. The article mentions a few world wide organizations as well. There is no known author for this article.


Best Books:

Goddard, Donald L., and Sam Swope, eds. Saving Wildlife: A Century of Conservation. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1995.

This book discusses the conservation efforts that have been made by the Wildlife Conservation Society over the last 100 years. The society’s achievements in saving endangered species and protecting their habitat are discussed. This book relates to my research topic because it holds examples of how we have helped save endangered species, and how we can continue to do so in the future.


Appolonio, Marco, and Marco Festa-Bianchet, eds. Animal Behavior and Wildlife Conservation. Washington D.C.: Island Press. 2003.

This book brings up a different angle to wildlife conservation. It talks about how understanding animal behavior can aid in the effectiveness of wildlife conservation programs. This book helps my research because it brings up an interesting aspect of wildlife conservation that is a new idea, but could help future conservation efforts work more efficiently.


Best Periodical Articles:

Bird, Maryann, et al. "Noah’s New Ark." Time Europe. 8 Jan. 2001: 38.

This periodical article brings up a new and controversial idea; cloning endangered species in order to prevent them from extinction. The article discusses how scientists have successfully cloned a dead gaur, an endangered wild ox found in India, and named it Noah. A cow named Bessie should give birth to the guar clone very soon. Some scientists feel that this will help save endangered species and may allow to bring back some extinct species, others feel that it is not a good idea. This article has helped me with my research topic because it brings up new, unorthodox way of trying to save our planet’s endangered species. I found this article through Academic Search Premier.


Knickerbocker, Brad. "Polar Bear Habitat at Center of Drilling Debate." The Christian Science Monitor. 5 Feb. 2008: 3.

This article discusses the plans for oil drilling in Alaska's Chukchi sea, and the fact that there are polar bear habitats in the same area. The conflict has become heated because drilling rights in the area are going on sale soon, and in the same week, polar bears are to be listed as "threatened species" under the Endangered Species Act. Plans to prevent drilling in these areas, as well as other environmental hazards such as global warming are also mentioned in the article. This article relates to my topic because it is one example of how people and large companies are destroying the habitats of endangered species, causing them to look elsewhere, or die out. I found this article through the Internet Public Library.


Telford, Laura. "Endangered Species Need A Law They Can Live With." Nature Matters. Fall 2001: 1.

This article discusses endangered species in Canada. Although the Canadian government has taken measures to help protect these species by restricting hunting, environmentalists feel that a law needs to be passed to prevent the loss of their habitat as well. The article encourages people to write letters to the prime minister of Canada, in order to bring this issue into light. This article is useful to my subject because it discusses the ongoing battle between environmentalists and government. I found this article through Academic Search Premier.


Best Internet Sources:

Endangered Species Program. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 27 Feb. 2008. Department of the Interior. 2 Mar. 2008. <http://www.fws.gov/endangered>.

This website contains information on a large number of endangered species in the United States. Individual stories, articles and updated information on specific endangered species. Information on efforts that are being made to protect species, laws, rules and regulations related to these species. This website was very helpful because it has regularly updated information on endangered species and issues related to them.


Kurpis, Lauren. Endangered Species. 2002. Endangered Specie.com. 19 Feb. 2008. www.endangeredspecie.com>.

This website contains information about local and world wide endangered species, causes for their endangerment, and ways to help protect these species. It also includes information about existing laws that protect endangered species, specific case studies, and a list of endangered species organizations. There is a link to a large photo gallery and profiles of many of these species. This website was very useful to my subject, because it has the most collective information about endangered species on one web site.


Best Non-Print Source:

Cesa, Michael. "Un-endangered Species." The Counsel for Wildlife Conservation and Education. NSSF. Force of Nature Film Works. 2004. <http://www.streamingvideoencoding.com/NSSF/UnSpecies.wmv>.

The Counsel for Wildlife Conservation and Education has put together this excellent 22 minute video segment. The video begins in a classroom setting, with guest speakers educating students about the Counsel for Wildlife Conservation and Education. In the video, they talk about "un-endangered" species, which are thriving today because of efforts that have been made in the past to protect them. Several people are interviewed throughout the video, from the senior science advisor of the National Wildlife Federation, to the program coordinator of the Wildlife Management Institute, and the senior vice president of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. President Roosevelt’s extensive efforts to conserve wildlife are mentioned.

I think the intention of this video is to educate people about wildlife conservation efforts that have been made in the past, and why they have been so important. I think this video is very successful in educating viewers about conservation efforts. The video has been put together well. It contains several interviews, video footage of a variety of animals and statistics about them, and information about past and present conservation efforts. The video supports my thesis because it discusses the importance of wildlife conservation, and preventing species from becoming endangered.


Review of my Research Process:

Searching the same keywords on different databases brought up a large variety of information. For example, the key phrase "save endangered species" would bring up a large number of web sites or articles on one database, and would bring up very little on another database. I used these keywords and key phrases in different combinations on different databases to find information on my topic. The only real challenge I ran in to was the fact that I did not find as many books about protecting endangered species as I did articles, journals and web sites.

This is a topic that is mostly researched by environmentalists, natural resource specialists, and organizations who’s main goal is to help protect endangered species, and educate the public about these species. This is an on-going topic, because the status of all animal species are constantly changing. Some species are closer to extinction, some are thriving, and some remain about the same in population. Because of this, I was able to find older information as well as current information on endangered species and how to protect them and their habitats.

When I began this project, I thought that most of my information would come from articles about specific animals, and stories about their endangerment. As I have discovered, there are far too many different individual stories to sort through. It is better to research endangered species as a whole, and what can be done to help protect them. Also, I thought I would be able to find a lot of statistical information about these species, but I realized that because there are so many of these endangered species around the world, that was going to be very hard to do. I could search for a list of endangered species in Washington state only, or the United states only, or any other country only, but even these lists are huge. And since I am researching this topic on a global level, it is easier to search the idea of "endangered species" itself. Luckily, I found the IUCN Red List website, with the most current list of the world’s endangered species.

Using the internet as a resource helped me research my topic tremendously. I was able to find not only web sites, but articles from magazines and periodicals, and even streaming video programs about certain endangered species. At the Wenatchee Valley College library, I found not nearly as many books about endangered species as I thought I would. Because of this, the periodical database at the library and the internet at home helped me out a lot.

-End-