Recognizing that, Congress passed the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to protect our nation's and the world's most threatened plants and animals. It has proved to be a resounding success by the de-listing of 13 species as well as the stabilization of 41 percent of those still listed. We've heard ad nauseum anecdotes of sinister snail darters and deified spotted owls impoverishing whole regions of America. What is most surprising is how little time has been spent on why we need the Endangered Species Act, its ecosystem benefits and, in turn, mankind and sustainable economic activity. We live in a biosphere composed of thousands of ecosystems containing a diversity of millions of plants and animal species, none of which developed in isolation.
None survive insularly.
We are part of a complex life web containing treasures waiting to be discovered and explored. Too often we have a limited understanding of the significance of one organism within an entire ecosystem. A single plant or animal species may be the glue holding a fundamental part of an entire ecosystem together. A single species may be the key saving man from a once incurable disease. Today, species diversity maintenance is even more crucial as the line dividing the natural world from the technical world blurs, accelerating fragmentation of ecosystems.