Because the human population grows larger, more space to accommodate it becomes necessary. Unfortunately, this means the destruction and development of many wild habitats for animals such as the leopard. In India, humans have been reaching out closer and closer to the edges of the jungles, forcing the leopards into closer proximity with humans. Just over the last five weeks, 16 people have been injured in only four encounters. Because the people are untrained in how to deal with leopards, the chances of injury increase. Possible solutions to this problem are to limit the amount of jungle the humans can take, leaving plenty of space to give the leopards a wide berth. Also, further injuries might be avoided in future encounters if the inhabitants are provided with more education as to how to behave in the case of a confrontation. Barriers to these solutions are the overcrowded villages the people may have to endure in order to protect themselves and ensure the safety of the cats, as well as lack of concern for the welfare of the leopards. Lack of money could be an issue as well. I think that both the cats and people should try to respect the other as much as possible. As superior beings, I think it is the duty of the humans to show that courtesy first. Leopard attacks were not a problem until humans began invading the cats’ boundaries.
Friday, August 5, 2011
Leopards Attack as Humans Encroach on Jungles in India
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I agree that humans should show respect for the cats first. The cats did not feel threatened about their territories until humans encroached upon it, causing these attacks. These attacks exemplify a need for jungle preservation for the cats for a possibility for harmony between the humans and the cats.
ReplyDeleteIt is truly unfortunate that the earth is too small to contain the many types of life existing. India is one of the more dense populations of the world and crowding is huge problem in many of their cities. This scenario is a perfect example of one of the biggest ecological decisions we as a society have to face and an urgent one at that. World leaders need to come to a solution on the matter so as not to tip the delicate balance of our ecosystems.
ReplyDeleteIt is ultimately the humans that paid the price in this incident. They should have been wary that an environment can fight back a foreign invasion. It’s like how you don’t touch a hot stove after your burned your finger from when you first touched it—there needs to be some prohibition from this. I understand India’s rapid population growth, but endangering the lives is not the way to go about it. The Indian government could go about this two ways—finding a new living space for the rapid population or find a way to decelerate the growth of the population whether it be a policy as strict as China’s or through educating the masses.
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