Elephantes e leones in Texas?

(Languages of this post: Interlingua, English)

Secundo un studio del Officio Meteorologic de Anglaterra, le temperatura medie del terra forsan essera plus alte que illo ha essite in un million de annos. Mesmo si le temperatura medie del terra non attinge 4º Celsius al fin de iste seculo, le cambio climatic que comencia a affliger nostre planeta va a continuar.

Probabilemente nostre specie supervivera proque, a differentia de altere species, nos pote manipular nostre ambiente. Ma sin le ressources technologic de nostre specie, le altere species solmente potera migrar verso le polos nord e sud pro superviver.

Nunc, con multe partes del superficie del terra dedicate al agricultura, multe species non trovara ambientes con systemas ecologic assatis complicate pro accommodar los. Il ha exceptiones naturalmente, specialmente in le caso del insectos, le quales ruinara le capacitates agricole de multe partes del terra que se trova assatis proxime al equator.

Totevia multe species potera superviver si nos los adjuta a migrar. Si nos los adjuta de iste maniera tamen, nos debera confrontar le question de seliger le species que nos va a adjuvar e ubi nos va a introducer los. Le introduction de nove species a in nove ambientes in le passato, sia deliberate, sia accidental, nos monstra que alicunes non supervivera. Alteres supervivera e multiplicara excessivemente, causante le extinction del species native de lor ambientes nove.

Le creation de nove ecosystemas que misce species native con nove species de altere ambientes ha su riscos. Ma durante le plus recente reunion del Societate del Paleontologia del Vertebrates in Bristol, Anglaterra, Anthony Barnosky del Universitate de California, Berkeley, e Elizabeth Hadly de Stanford University suggereva un maniera de minimalisar iste riscos.

Illes propone que nos studia attentemente le flora e fauna qui viveva durante le epocha Pleistocene, que comenciava ante 2,6 milliones de annos e terminava ante solmente 10.000 annos, con su diverse epochas characterisate per glacieros gigantic. Le plantas e animales de iste epocha debeva confrontar cambios climatic simile a illos que nos debera confrontar.

In 2005, tal studios revelava le possibilitate de importar animales african in periculo de extinction a areas de Texas, un idea proponite per Josh Donlan de Amherst College in Massachusetts. Ben que ille pensava del extinction de iste animales causate per chassatores e le reduction progressive de lor ambientes native, un parte de su inspiration veniva del fossiles que se ha trovate in le America del Nord.

Illos monstra que in le passato recente, Canada e le Statos Unite habeva un grande varietate de megafauna simile al animales que se trova in le Africa contemporanee. Pro exemplo, le ossos trovate in Rancho La Brea in Los Angeles monstra que animales simile a elephantes e leones viveva in le California meridional ante 10.000-38.000 annos.

Le doctor Donlan dice que iste evidentia monstra que le idea de mover elephantes e leones de Africa a America non es de ulle maniera stupide. Ben que iste animales non es le mesme species que disappareva del Americas ante 10.000 annos, illos es le equivalentes ecologic de iste species, e Donlan dice que il es melio introducer iste animales a un nove ambiente que lassar los cader a in le extinction.

Ben que il ha differentias in le climate del America del Nord de iste epocha passate e le temperaturas que nunc se trova in Africa, studios per paleontologos del diverse species que coexisteva in le passato forsan essera un maniera utile que nos adjuvara a designar nove ambientes diverse in le futuro. Tal studios forsan potera adjuvar nos si eventualmente nos decide colonisar Marte.

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According to a study of Britain’s Meteorologic Office, the average temperature of the earth will possibly be higher than what it has been in a million years. Even if the average temperature of the earth will not reach 4º Celsius at the end of this century, the climate change that is starting to afflict our planet is going to continue.

Probably our species will survive because, unlike other species, we can manipulate our environment. But without the technological resources of our species, other species will only be able to migrate toward the north and south poles to survive.

Now, with many parts of the surface of the earth dedicated to agriculture, many species will not find environments with ecological systems that are complicated enough to accommodate them. There are exceptions, naturally, especially in the case of insects, which will ruin the agricultural capabilities of many parts of the earth that are rather close to the equator.

Still, many species will be able to survive if we help them migrate. If we help them in this way, however, we will have to confront the question of selecting the species that we are going to help and where we are going to introduce them. The introduction of new species into new environments in the past, whether deliberate or accidental, shows us that some will not survive. Others will survive and multiply excessively, causing the extinction of native species in their new environments.

The creation of new ecosystems that mix native species with new species from other environments has its risks. But during the most recent meeting of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology in Bristol, England, Anthony Barosky of the University of California, Berkeley, and Elizabeth Hadly of Stanford University suggested a way of minimizing these risks.

They propose that we study carefully the flora and fauna that lived during the Pleistocene epoch, which began 2.6 years ago and ended only 10,000 years ago, with their various eras characterized by gigantic glaciers. The plants and animals of this era had to confront climatic changes similar to the ones that we will have to confront.

In 2005 such studies revealed the possibility of importing African animals in danger of extinction into areas of Texas, an idea proposed by Josh Donlan of Amherst College in Massachusetts. Though he was thinking of the extinction of these animals caused by hunters and the progressive reduction of their native environments, part of his inspiration came from the fossils that have been found in North America.

They show that in the recent past, Canada and the United States had a large variety of megafauna similar to the animals that are found in contemporary Africa. For example, the bones found in Rancho La Brea in Los Angeles show that animals similar to elephants and lions lived in Southern California between 10,000 and 30,000 years ago.

Dr. Donlan says that the idea of moving elephants and lions from Africa to America is not at all stupid. Though these animals are not the same species that disappeared from the Americas 10,000 years ago, they are the ecological equivalents of these species, and Donlan says that it is better to introduce these animals into a new environment than to let them fall into extinction.

Though there are differences in the climate of the North America of this past era and the temperatures that are now found in Africa, studies by paleontologists of the diverse species that coexisted in the past will perhaps be a useful way of helping us to design diverse new environments in the future. Such studies could possibly help us if eventually we decide to colonize Mars.