Is it how
as humans we express our passion for the living, or the fear of losing
an unknown natural resource that might yield a medicinal commodity
or scientific insight? Or, is it the work of those bound by the law
of the land, or could it be simply that such pursuits are uniquely
human? Whatever the reason, the following quotes have been assembled
to capture the essence of why people have been, and remain dedicated
to the preservation of the Devils Hole Pupfish and the conservation
of its unique habitat.
Why
save the Devils Hole Pupfish?
1) Saving
the Devils Hole pupfish means saving its water supply. The underground
aquifer that feeds Devils Hole also serves the entire Ash Meadows
desert community, which has the highest rate of endemism in America.
Fishes, snails, plants, etc., almost all of them unique.* Loosen
protections on the pupfish, thereby allowing for unrestrained groundwater
pumping, and the whole desert ecosystem begins to crumble. And for
what? More cattle farms? Casinos? Gas 'n' Go's?
2) The National
Science Foundation advocated saving the Devils Hole pupfish because
it and its relatives thrive in extreme conditions, e.g., salty and
hot water. Their extraordinary thermoregulatory system and kidney
function can serve as useful biological models for human research
on the human kidney -- and on survival in a seemingly hostile environment.
3) The Devils
Hole pupfish is an object of aesthetic beauty and a part of our natural
heritage. Humans are a "saving" species. We like to save
things that aren't always of immediate practical worth. Treasured
works of art. Historic buildings. Ancient artifacts. Rare manuscripts.
Family heirlooms. Why should species and their ecosystems be any
different? Isn't the Devils Hole pupfish a greater, far more complex
creation than, say, the Mona Lisa? Humans like to build museums and
protect for generations the works of other humans. Why shouldn't
we do it for the works of nature, too? Ultimately, which will be
more important?
4) We should
save the Devils Hole pupfish -- and all species, for that matter
-- simply because there is no long-term imperative for not saving
them.
Chris Scharpf
Baltimore {Source}
*Though
not exactly accurate, the statement above does attempt to capture
how unique the Ash Meadows complex is. According to United
States Fish and Wildlife Service, the agency that manages the
Ash Meadows refuge, "Unlike most USFWS refuges, Ash Meadows
was created to "conserve and recover listed endangered
, proposed endangered, and candidate plant and animal species
found in the area" (USFWS 1984). The Ash Meadows refuge
is unique in that it provides designated critical habitat for
seven threatened and endangered plant species, one threatened
insect, and four endangered fish – all of which are endemic
to Ash Meadows. The refuge also provides habitat for around
100 species of plants and animals that are considered sensitive
or are state protected/priority species. With at least 27 plant
and animal species found nowhere else
in the world, Ash Meadows is distinguished as having the largest
concentration of endemic species of any terrestrial area in
the United States and second greatest in all of North
America. Another nine species are endemic to the larger
Death Valley ecoregion."
The Devils
Hole Pupfish is "a lighthouse species," said Death Valley
National Park's Terry Baldino. "When it winks out, what happens
to the species further down? Every species in the environment is
affected, including us, because we live in this environment." Although
scientists have been studying the Devils Hole fish for more than
30 years, "we still have a lot of unanswered questions," Baldino
said. "The loss of this species is a loss of knowledge."
Devil's
Hole is a magical place. "Several tens of thousands
of years ago the ceiling over Devil's Hole collapsed, opening it
to sunlight, rain, wind, dust, surface inflow, and colonization
by aquatic organisms. Owls, bats, chuckwallas, and honey bees find
refuge in its fissured walls, drink its waters, and, along with
the wind, carry in organic materials from the surrounding desert
to help feed the flatworms, ostracods, beetles, snails and pupfish
that live in isolated splendor in its tepid waters." ( From
the 2003
Desert Fish Council Meetings Abstract)
"It
is an ecological truism that organisms do not exist in isolation,
but are relevant only as components of, and in reference to, their
environments. It follows, then, that to understand the Devils Hole
pupfish we also have to understand the Devils Hole environment." (2003
Desert Fish Council Meetings Abstract )
"Our
only realistic hope of preserving this marvelous biological resource
lies in educating the public and gaining their support. Changing
people's values constitutes a major challenge and task. Problems
to be surmounted therefore lie more in the realm of philosophy than
in science. Science has clearly defined the problems of species preservation,
but only by moving biodiversity issues higher on public priority
lists do we hold any hope of saving this resource for the benefit
and enjoyment of future generations." {Source}
"If
a North American desert fish species is not currently listed
as endangered, it will not be long before it reaches that point" (Pister
1990, p. 186.). This sobering prediction is based upon rapid
human population growth in a very arid portion of North America.
For instance, the rapidly growing city of Las Vegas, Nevada,
is located near key pupfish habitats lying within Ash Meadows
National Wildlife Refuge. Each time a new home connects to a
domestic water supply, it directly or indirectly extracts water
from an aquatic habitat. The same situation is occurring throughout
the southwestern U.S. and northern Mexico, many parts of which
receive annual precipitation of less than 100 mm. Both surface
and groundwater resources are rapidly being depleted. Adding
to the overall problem is physical destruction of aquatic habitats
by farming operations and urban development. {Source}
"Preventing
the demise of species from pollution and loss of habitat is important," said
Jim Deacon, a zoologist who founded the environmental studies program
at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, "not only for Devils
Hole pupfish but all species on Earth."
"Their
natural time cycle gives us an index of the health of the planet.
As we accelerate extinction of species, it's like telling us the
Earth is less and less capable of supporting life of various kinds," Deacon
said.
"The
kicker is that we don't know what kind of utility various species
might have in the future. I believe we owe our children the opportunity
of finding out if these things are useful." (Jim Deacon)
Intrinsic
Value in Nature: a Metaethical Analysis (Two Proofs
for the Existence of Intrinsic Value) J. Baird Callicott Presbyterian
College
"For
a few frightening moments, there was only myself standing between
life and extinction. " Edwin Philip Pister (Photo
Credit: Nancy Hadlock)
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The long-term
ecosystem monitoring protocol for Devils Hole has been established
and are constantly being modified to support the findings of ongoing
studies.
A number
of investigations since the late 1960s have studied various aspects
of the ecology of the species. But not until the last couple of years,
however, has a comprehensive monitoring strategy been undertaken
to assess temporal changes in the "vital signs" of the
dominant ecological processes and keystone species that affect the
number of Devils Hole pupfish. In 2002, a three-tiered monitoring
protocol was developed to track a number of these vital signs. Each
tier provides for different intensities of monitoring based on available
funding. Tier 1 is the most expensive and comprehensive monitoring
protocol, while tier 3 represents the absolute minimum program for
monitoring factors that might affect pupfish numbers.
The abiotic
variables that would be quantified in a tier 1 program include: substrate
composition, water level, water temperature, solar energy levels,
physico-chemical constituents (e.g., dissolved oxygen, pH, etc.),
nutrients (total nitrogen and phosphorus), effects related to earthquakes
and flash floods, and various parameters measured by a weather station.
The biotic variables that should be documented in a tier 1 program
include mass and composition of algae, invertebrates, allochthonous
carbon input, flatworm (Dugesia sp.) densities and distribution,
and microbiological analyses involving total coliform and fecal coliform.
The abiotic
parameters that would be monitored under the tier 3 protocol include:
substrate composition, water level, water temperature, pH, percent
oxygen saturation, and specific conductance, and earthquake, flash
flood, and weather station parameters. The biotic variables assessed
in the tier 3 protocol include: seasonal photodocumentation of filamentous
algae, summer and winter allochthonous input, and flatworm densities
and distribution.
Monitoring
of critical habitats is frequently overlooked as an important tool
in the conservation of natural resources. Resource managers should
collect comprehensive, long-term, ecological data sets when fish
communities are healthy in order to identify factors that may be
responsible for declines in fish numbers at a later date. (Adapted
from the 2003
Desert Fish Council Meetings Abstract )
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