Challenges of Saving Plants in Peril
Shrinking Habitat
The greatest threat to biodiversity today is habitat loss and alteration.
Across the globe, habitat for wild plants and animals is shrinking at
alarming rates as human needs has often overlooked the needs of wildlife,
it is now obvious that our well-being as a species depends on the health
of other species. For example, over the last 200 years, nearly half of
all U.S. wetlands, once considered undesirable and useless land, have
been destroyed by development. From experience and research, we now understand
that wetlands not only provide essential habitat for many species, including
commercially important fish, but also act as buffers against flooding
and erosion and help to filter sediments and pollutants from the water.
Harmful Hobbies
Our recreational habits can sometimes have adverse effects on wild plants
and animals. Uncontrolled use of off-road vehicles, for example, endangers
fragile habitats such as California sand dunes, which are home to dozens
of native species that grow nowhere else. Plant collecting can also
become a harmful hobby when we take rare plants from the wild to fill
our homes and gardens. Many people unwittingly buy endangered plants
or bulbs for their gardens because they are unaware that these plants
were taken from the wild illegally. To combat this problem, conservation
organizations have produced informational materials such as The Gardener’s
Guide to Plant Conservation (World Wildlife Fund), and laws have
been created to prohibit the sale of endangered species. However, collecting
pressures continue to threaten many cacti, orchids, pitcher plants,
and other native species of ornamental value
Alien Invaders
Whether they are introduced intentionally, species that are brought
to an area where they don’t naturally occur (called alien, introduced,
or exotic species) can have devastating effects on biodiversity as they
outcompete or destroy native species. For example, native plants are
literally trampled and eaten into extinction in Hawaii and some other
parts of the country by introduced animals such as goats and pigs. Introduced
plants, like kudzu, can have the same impact by overcrowding or outcompeting
natives. Although Hawaii appears very lush and green, most areas seen
by tourists now contain no native species.
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