Laurel Kohutek

Connie Douglas
English 112
29 October, 2014

Round Table Essay

In South Africa there are many profound issues when it comes to certain species
becoming endangered. Although there are several viewpoints that could be addressed, my
research and findings conclude that a majority of the problems start from one viewpoint and
expands into others. Wildlife conservation starts with the people. People in South Africa have a
tedious relationship with the animals but without them their environment is at stake as well. The
viewpoints that were most significant were that of the people, the conservationists, and the
Poachers.
In the past years the world has started to see a depletion of wildlife at vast rates. There
are multiple reason why but the most significant causes, are those us humans are causing. The
main causes are deforestation, poaching, and certain diseases that can be transferred from
humans to animal, such as Ebola, the flu, and pneumonia. Our world population is expanding,
and we places to reside. In order to do this we are having to cut down trees and pave through
entire habitats. When doing so we are killing off all the animals that live in the trees, and in the
jungle. The effect of this is species dying off, and quickly. The citizens of Africa see this hands
on every day. They see lions like Americans see dogs or cats. These animals are potentially
extremely dangerous. Even through all of the fear that comes with the wildlife, the people of
South Africa are willing to take chances to protect these animals. Many people volunteer as well

as work to become a ranger or a scout in order to patrol the wild. The scouts are willing to spend
nights at a time searching for poachers. These people use special technology such as night vision
and in-fared vision to track poachers that roam in the night looking for an elephant for its ivory
or a rhinoceros for its horn.
Although many people do not know what is actually going on with our wildlife, there are
some people who take the initiative to work hands on with these animals. The people are called
conservationists. Conservationist raise and breed wild animals into a wildlife in which they can
thrive. The conservationists work in such places called a sanctuary where all the animals are
kept. Animals range from lions, leopards, jaguars, and cheetahs. There are many different
sanctuaries for multiple species in the area. One of the major sanctuaries in Africa is the Black
Jaguar- White Tiger foundation. This organization consists of a group of approximately ten
people who care and love these animals as if they were domesticated cats. The conservationist
live on the premises so they can take constant care for the babies and to watch over the
sanctuary. There are steps and guidelines in which the conservationists have to follow. Step one
is to breed these animals. Step two is to care and love these animals, treat them as they were
domesticated. These cats are not trained, they are given affection from the day they are born to
the day they die, so they grow to be pets as much as wild animals. Step two is to raise the babies
until they are about two years of age, and then they are released. Step three is to move the young
adult cats to a 10 acre piece of land to let them be in s semi-wildlife, but because they are still
young they need a small enough space to still be watched. They are fed chicken necks to make
these cats extremely healthy, so the future animals will be strong and abundant. In step four, the
newly adult felines are released into a 720 acre piece of land which simulate the actual wildlife.
In this step these animals are put out on their own to become wildlife and not a partially

domesticated cat. There instincts kick in and they are able to live in an environment free of
poachers. This origination fights for the animals rights because these creatures do not have a
voice. In order to make a change it is our job to be their voice in all aspects of conservation.
Poachers sneak around in the plains of Africa at night looking for a particular animal,
which provides money; such as, an elephant for there ivory. They dont see an innocent life, they
only view dollar signs. Poachers dont believe they are doing anything wrong. They are blind to
the depletion of species they hunt. In a matter of years there will be no elephants or rhinoceros to
hunt. Poachers are willing to go at all cost to achieve what they set out to do. The poachers in
Africa are willing to take any risk to get what they want. The scouts are out looking for them and
they have an advantage. The technology the scouts are using gives them the upper hand. Even
with the upper hand, they cannot completely control the wildlife. Poaching is still happening and
its the citizens of the world who can change that.
Without the people, and the conservationists, the poachers would take over. There would
be no one to speak for the animals and protect them as our own. We share an ecosystem with
them who we need to protect it for our own sake as well as theirs. Hopefully within the years to
come, the sanctuaries will start to see an increase in the population of endangered species that
could potentially keep these animals in our ecosystem for hundreds of years to come. Donations
to certain charities are able to provide more efficient equipment for when the scouts go into the
wild to protect our animals. Without the people they wouldnt have a voice, with the
conservationist the animals would have a chance, and in the upcoming years poachers will
realize that there are no more rhinoceros to hunt they will understand and stop their horrible
actions.

Works Cited
"10 Most Endangered Animals in Africa." Answers Africa RSS. Alexander Moore Partners, n.d.
Web. 03 Dec. 2014.
"Black Jaguar White Tiger Foundation." Home | Black Jaguar White Tiger Foundation. N.p., n.d.
Web. 2 Nov. 2014.
Johnson, Scott C. "Where The Wild Things Are." Foreign Policy 207 (2014): 28. MasterFILE
Complete. Web. 27 Sept. 2014.
"Rhino Sanctuary at Hluhluwe IMfolozi." African Wildlife Foundation. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Oct.
2014.
"The Wild Animal Sanctuary." The Wild Animal Sanctuary. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2014.