Wildlife refers to undomesticated animal species , but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wild in an area without being introduced by humans . Wildlife was also synonymous to game : those birds and mammals that were hunted for sport . Wildlife can be found in all ecosystems . Deserts , plains , grasslands , woodlands , forests , and other areas including the most developed urban areas , all have distinct forms of wildlife. While the term in popular culture usually refers to animals that are untouched by human factors, most scientists agree that much wildlife is affected by human activities . Some wildlife threaten human safety, health, property and quality of life . However, many wild animals, even the dangerous ones, have value to human beings. This value might be economic, educational, or emotional in nature.
38-476: The Brandberg ( Damara : Dâures ; Otjiherero : Omukuruvaro ) is Namibia 's highest mountain . Brandberg Mountain is located in former Damaraland , now Erongo , in the northwestern Namib Desert , near the coast, and covers an area of approximately 650 km. With its highest point, the Königstein ( German for 'King's Stone') , standing at 2,573 m (8,442 ft) above sea level and located on
76-530: A laissez-faire position, which argues that humans should not harm wild animals but that humans should not intervene to reduce natural harms that they experience. This subsection focuses on anthropogenic forms of wildlife destruction. The loss of animals from ecological communities is also known as defaunation . Exploitation of wild populations has been a characteristic of modern man since our exodus from Africa 130,000 – 70,000 years ago. The rate of extinctions of entire species of plants and animals across
114-563: A common subject for educational television shows . National Geographic Society specials appeared on CBS since 1965, later moving to American Broadcasting Company and then Public Broadcasting Service . In 1963, NBC debuted Wild Kingdom , a popular program featuring zoologist Marlin Perkins as host. The BBC natural history unit in the United Kingdom was a similar pioneer, the first wildlife series LOOK presented by Sir Peter Scott ,
152-634: A dome-shaped massif. It originated during the Early Cretaceous rifting that led to the opening of the South Atlantic Ocean. Argon–argon dating yielded intrusive ages of 132 to 130 Ma. The dominant plutonic rock is a homogeneous medium grained biotite-hornblende granite . In the western interior of the massif (Naib gorge), a 2 km in diameter body of pyroxene-bearing monzonite is exposed. The youngest intrusive rocks based on cross-cutting relations are arfvedsonite granite dikes and sills in
190-539: A dramatic and rapid growth in recent years worldwide and many elements are closely aligned to eco-tourism and sustainable tourism . Wild animal suffering is suffering experienced by non-human animals living in the wild, outside of direct human control, due to natural processes such as disease , injury , parasitism , starvation , malnutrition , dehydration , weather conditions , natural disasters , killings by other animals , and psychological stress . Some estimates indicate that these individual animals make up
228-498: A number of ways, including the legal, social and moral senses. Some animals, however, have adapted to suburban environments. This includes such animals as feral cats , dogs, mice, and rats. Some religions declare certain animals to be sacred, and in modern times, concern for the natural environment has provoked activists to protest against the exploitation of wildlife for human benefit or entertainment. Global wildlife populations have decreased significantly by 68% since 1970 as
266-434: A period of acclimation can increase in numbers significantly, having destructive effects on many elements of the native environment of which they have become part. This final group is one of secondary effects. All wild populations of living things have many complex intertwining links with other living things around them. Large herbivorous animals such as the hippopotamus have populations of insectivorous birds that feed off
304-612: A result of human activity, particularly overconsumption , population growth , and intensive farming , according to a 2020 World Wildlife Fund 's Living Planet Report and the Zoological Society of London 's Living Planet Index measure, which is further evidence that humans have unleashed a sixth mass extinction event. According to CITES , it has been estimated that annually the international wildlife trade amounts to billions of dollars and it affects hundreds of millions of animal and plant specimen. Wildlife trade refers to
342-839: Is considered its preferred area or territory . Many processes associated with human habitation of an area cause loss of this area and decrease the carrying capacity of the land for that species. In many cases these changes in land use cause a patchy break-up of the wild landscape. Agricultural land frequently displays this type of extremely fragmented, or relictual habitat. Farms sprawl across the landscape with patches of uncleared woodland or forest dotted in-between occasional paddocks. Examples of habitat destruction include grazing of bushland by farmed animals, changes to natural fire regimes, forest clearing for timber production and wetland draining for city expansion. Mice, cats, rabbits, dandelions and poison ivy are all examples of species that have become invasive threats to wild species in various parts of
380-585: Is home to a vast array of amazing wildlife. However, illegal hunting and trade poses a threat to Malaysia's natural diversity. A November 2008 report from biologist and author Sally Kneidel, PhD, documented numerous wildlife species for sale in informal markets along the Amazon River , including wild-caught marmosets sold for as little as $ 1.60 (5 Peruvian soles). Many Amazon species, including peccaries , agoutis , turtles , turtle eggs, anacondas , armadillos are sold primarily as food. Wildlife has long been
418-501: Is necessary to hike for about 40 minutes over rough terrain, along the ancient watercourses threading through the mountain. The higher elevations of the mountain contain hundreds of further rock paintings, most of which have been painstakingly documented by Harald Pager, who made tens of thousands of hand copies. Pager's work was posthumously published by the Heinrich Bart Institute, in the six volume series "Rock Paintings of
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#1732869396789456-587: Is the Doros Complex . The Brandberg is a spiritual site of great significance to the San (Bushman) tribes . The main tourist attraction is The White Lady rock painting , located on a rock face with other art work, under a small rock overhang, in the Tsisab Ravine at the foot of the mountain. The ravine contains more than 1 000 rock shelters, as well as more than 45 000 rock paintings. To reach The White Lady it
494-418: Is widespread and constitutes one of the major illegal economic activities, comparable to the traffic of drugs and weapons . Stone Age people and hunter-gatherers relied on wildlife, both plants and animals, for their food. In fact, some species may have been hunted to extinction by early human hunters. Today, hunting, fishing, and gathering wildlife is still a significant food source in some parts of
532-853: The US have dominated the market for shows about wildlife on cable television, while on Public Broadcasting Service the NATURE strand made by WNET-13 in New York and NOVA by WGBH in Boston are notable. Wildlife television is now a multimillion-dollar industry with specialist documentary film-makers in many countries including UK, US, New Zealand, Australia, Austria, Germany, Japan, and Canada. There are many magazines and websites which cover wildlife including National Wildlife , Birds & Blooms , Birding , wildlife.net , and Ranger Rick for children. Many animal species have spiritual significance in different cultures around
570-536: The Upper Brandberg" edited by Tilman Lenssen-Erz. (I. Amis Gorge, II. Hungorob Gorge, III. Southern Gorges (Ga'aseb & Orabes), IV. Umuab & Karoab Gorges, V. Naib (A)and the Northwest, VI. Naib (B), Circus & Dom Gorges. Volume VII. Numas Gorge is unlikely to be published due to discontinued funding.) The area is uninhabited and wild. It is very arid and finding water can be difficult or impossible. In summer,
608-568: The competition between members of a population. However, if this hunting continues at rate greater than the rate at which new members of the population can reach breeding age and produce more young, the population will begin to decrease in numbers . Populations that are confined to islands, whether literal islands or just areas of habitat that are effectively an "island" for the species concerned, have also been observed to be at greater risk of dramatic population rise of deaths declines following unsustainable hunting . The habitat of any given species
646-472: The context of the philosophy of religion as an instance of the problem of evil . More recently, starting in the 19th century, a number of writers have considered the subject from a secular standpoint as a general moral issue, that humans might be able to help prevent. There is considerable disagreement around taking such action, as many believe that human interventions in nature should not take place because of practicality, valuing ecological preservation over
684-622: The extreme climatic conditions. The Brandberg lies within the Karroo-Namib floristic region and some members of the Cape flora are represented. A checklist of 357 species was published in 1974 by Bertil Nordenstam stating that 11 taxa are endemic to the Brandberg, with a further 28 species endemic to the Kaoko element. A large and significant group of species has a disjunction between the Karroo-Namib region in
722-494: The flat Namib gravel plains, on a clear day 'The Brandberg' can be seen from a great distance. There are various routes to the summit, the easiest (also steepest) being up the Ga'aseb river valley. Other routes include the Hungurob and Tsisab river valleys. The nearest settlement is Uis , roughly 30 km from the mountain. The core area of 450 square kilometres (170 sq mi)
760-451: The granite forming a magmatic breccia. The origins of the magmas that formed the Brandberg intrusion are related to emplacement of mantle-derived basaltic magma during continental break-up which led to partial melting of crustal rocks resulting in a hybrid granitic magma. Erosion subsequently removed the overburden rock. Apatite fission track dating indicates approximately 5 km denudation between 80 and 60 Ma. An associated feature
798-513: The many parasitic insects that grow on the hippo. Should the hippo die out, so too will these groups of birds, leading to further destruction as other species dependent on the birds are affected. Also referred to as a domino effect , this series of chain reactions is by far the most destructive process that can occur in any ecological community . Another example is the black drongos and the cattle egrets found in India. These birds feed on insects on
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#1732869396789836-594: The planet has been so high in the last few hundred years that it is widely believed that a sixth great extinction event ("the Holocene Mass Extinction ") is currently ongoing. The 2019 Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services , published by the United Nations ' Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services , says that roughly one million species of plants and animals face extinction within decades as
874-568: The products that are derived from non-domesticated animals or plants usually extracted from their natural environment or raised under controlled conditions. It can involve the trade of living or dead individuals, tissues such as skins, bones or meat, or other products. Legal wildlife trade is regulated by the United Nations ' Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which currently has 184 member countries called Parties . Illegal wildlife trade
912-435: The reproductive capacity of the population is being exploited. The effects of this are often noticed much more dramatically in slow-growing populations such as many larger species of fish. Initially when a portion of a wild population is hunted, an increased availability of resources (food, etc.) is experienced increasing growth and reproduction as density dependent inhibition is lowered. Hunting, fishing and so on, have lowered
950-789: The result of human actions. Subsequent studies have discovered that the destruction of wildlife is "significantly more alarming" than previously believed, with some 48% of 70,000 monitored animal species experiencing population declines as the result of human industrialization. According to a 2023 study published in PNAS , "immediate political, economic, and social efforts of an unprecedented scale are essential if we are to prevent these extinctions and their societal impacts." The four most general reasons that lead to destruction of wildlife include overkill, habitat destruction and fragmentation , impact of introduced species and chains of extinction. Overkill happens whenever hunting occurs at rates greater than
988-616: The south, and the arid parts of north-east Africa. These appear to be remnants of a hypothesised arid-track joining the two areas. Damara (people) Too Many Requests If you report this error to the Wikimedia System Administrators, please include the details below. Request from 172.68.168.133 via cp1102 cp1102, Varnish XID 111370704 Upstream caches: cp1102 int Error: 429, Too Many Requests at Fri, 29 Nov 2024 08:36:36 GMT Wildlife Humans have historically tended to separate civilization from wildlife in
1026-464: The southwestern periphery of the Brandberg massif which crop out in the Amis valley. The arfvedsonite granites contain minerals rich in rare-earth element minerals such as pyrochlore and bastnaesite . Remnants of Cretaceous volcanic rocks are preserved in a collar along the western and southern margins of the massif. Their angle of dip increases towards the contact where clasts of country rock occur within
1064-475: The temperature frequently rises above 40 °C. Nonetheless, the Brandberg area is home to a large diversity of wildlife . The numbers of animals are small because the environment cannot support large populations. However, most of the desert species that are found in Namibia are present and visitors to the area might glimpse a desert dwelling elephant or a rare black rhino . The new insect taxon Mantophasmatodea
1102-768: The three days of Eid. In Christianity the Bible has a variety of animal symbols, the Lamb is a famous title of Jesus. In the New Testament the Gospels Mark , Luke and John have animal symbols: "Mark is a lion, Luke is a bull and John is an eagle." Wildlife tourism is an element of many nations' travel industry centered around observation and interaction with local animal and plant life in their natural habitats. While it can include eco - and animal-friendly tourism, safari hunting and similar high-intervention activities also fall under
1140-487: The umbrella of wildlife tourism. Wildlife tourism , in its simplest sense, is interacting with wild animals in their natural habitat , either actively (e.g. hunting/collection) or passively (e.g. watching/photography). Wildlife tourism is an important part of the tourism industries in many countries including many African and South American countries, Australia , India , Canada , Indonesia , Bangladesh , Malaysia , Sri Lanka and Maldives among many. It has experienced
1178-509: The vast majority of animals in existence. An extensive amount of natural suffering has been described as an unavoidable consequence of Darwinian evolution , as well as the pervasiveness of reproductive strategies , which favor producing large numbers of offspring, with a low amount of parental care and of which only a small number survive to adulthood, the rest dying in painful ways, has led some to argue that suffering dominates happiness in nature. The topic has historically been discussed in
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1216-481: The well-being and interests of individual animals, considering any obligation to reduce wild animal suffering implied by animal rights to be absurd, or viewing nature as an idyllic place where happiness is widespread. Some argue that such interventions would be an example of human hubris , or playing God , and use examples of how human interventions, for other reasons, have unintentionally caused harm. Others, including animal rights writers, have defended variants of
1254-513: The world, and they and their products may be used as sacred objects in religious rituals. For example, eagles, hawks and their feathers have great cultural and spiritual value to Native Americans as religious objects. In Hinduism the cow is regarded as sacred. Muslims conduct sacrifices on Eid al-Adha , to commemorate the sacrificial spirit of Ibrāhīm in Islam ( Arabic-Abraham ) in love of God . Camels, sheep, goats may be offered as sacrifice during
1292-490: The world. Frequently species that are uncommon in their home range become out-of-control invasions in distant but similar climates. The reasons for this have not always been clear and Charles Darwin felt it was unlikely that exotic species would ever be able to grow abundantly in a place in which they had not evolved. The reality is that the vast majority of species exposed to a new habitat do not reproduce successfully. Occasionally, however, some populations do take hold and after
1330-471: The world. In other areas, hunting and non-commercial fishing are mainly seen as a sport or recreation. Meat sourced from wildlife that is not traditionally regarded as game is known as bushmeat . The increasing demand for wildlife as a source of traditional food in East Asia is decimating populations of sharks, primates, pangolins and other animals, which they believe have aphrodisiac properties. Malaysia
1368-614: Was a studio-based show, with filmed inserts. David Attenborough first made his appearance in this series, which was followed by the series Zoo Quest during which he and cameraman Charles Lagus went to many exotic places looking for and filming elusive wildlife—notably the Komodo dragon in Indonesia and lemurs in Madagascar. Since 1984, the Discovery Channel and its spinoff Animal Planet in
1406-530: Was declared a National Monument in 1951. The name Brandberg is Afrikaans, Dutch and German for Burning Mountain . It refers to its glowing color, which is sometimes seen in the setting sun. The Damara name for the mountain is Dâures , which means 'burning mountain', while the Herero name, Omukuruvaro means 'mountain of the Gods'. The Brandberg Massif or Brandberg Intrusion is a granitic intrusion , which forms
1444-401: Was first discovered on this mountain in 2002. The scorpion fauna of the Brandberg massif is probably the richest in southern Africa. The Brandberg is home to some interesting desert flora . Damaraland is well known for its grotesque aloes and euphorbias and the region around the mountain is no exception. The area has many plants and trees that display an alien appearance, due in part to
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