It’s no understatement to say that during human history, we have witnessed the extermination of many beautiful creatures, their lives being cut off as a result of loosing their food and their homes. In severe cases, the whole breed has been completely snuffed out from the face of our earth. What is the root cause of this devastating loss? You and me!
Because of mankind’s selfish nature and being devoid of a consequence driven attitude, we now have an escalating crisis of global warming and climate change resting heftily on our shoulders. Due to ongoing habitat loss, overhunting and very small population size, many creatures from the beloved animal kingdom will soon perish, becoming totally extinct. Popular victims up to date have been the Thylacine (or Tasmanian devil) the flightless Dodo, the Passenger Pigeon and the adorable Caribbean Monk Seal.
But you already knew all that. With constant reminders in the papers, on the TV, in books we read, in movies we watch and with pioneering environmental companies like Enigin, we can’t be anything less then concerned of our global predicament. But do you know which of our animal kingdom members are at the highest risk?
Here at Enigin, we publish and advertise with powerful images of lonesome polar bears slipping of isolated pieces of ice in the middle of the arctic ocean. We campaigns in aid of pandas, lions and chimpanzees. Of course, these dear little creatures are certainly venerable, but upon research for this article I was surprised that according to the IUCN Red List of Endangered species, polar bears and lions were only among the ‘Venerable’ group. Of far more interest to me were the groups 
‘Endangered’ and ‘Critically Endangered’. In these two groups are tigers, snow leopards and the awe-inspiring blue whale. Who would have thought that such a majestic beast, growing to an incredible 108 feet in length and weighing a heavy 172 tones, could so easily be defeated by our ravenous greedy society. Blue Whales became a much sought after species for their large amounts of blubber. They were also hunted years ago for their baleen, which was used to make brushes and corsets. But it was their size and high yield of oil that made them the target of choice for modern commercial whalers. Pollution contributes to the death of thousands of blue whales. Before mans intervention there were 228,000 Blue whales swimming the oceans of the world. After being relentlessly slaughtered for every reason imaginable, almost to the point of extinction, there is now only an estimated 10,000 blue whales world-wide. What a horrific consequence of such brutal actions.
Another animal of interest to me was the Albatross. I had no idea that they were officially an endangered species. After doing some research, I was taken aback by how unusual these birds are. Being one of the largest birds, these creatures have a wing-span of up to 11ft! That’s taller then Robert Waldow, the tallest man in recorded history. But something else that amazed me about these birds was their commitment. Dare I say that these birds demonstrate more commitment then some men and women!
When seeking a mate, the Albatross undergoes some unusual behavior, which involves synchronized performances of various actions such as preening, pointing, calling, bill clacking, staring, and combinations of such behaviors. When a bird first returns to the colony it will dance with many partners, but after a number of years the number of birds an individual will interact with drops, until one partner is chosen and a pair is formed. They then continue to perfect an individual language that will eventually be unique to that one pair. Having established a pair bond that will last for life, however, most of that dance will never be used ever again. Albatrosses are held to undertake these elaborate and painstaking rituals to ensure that the appropriate partner has been chosen and to perfect partner recognition, as egg laying and chick rearing is a huge investment. What a sensible way of approaching a relationship! And this is what really tickled me pink. The “divorce” of a pair is a rare occurrence, usually only happening after several years of breeding failure.
Who would have thought that these little creatures had such a complex yet simple approach to life? I find it heart warming to think that they form strong bonds with their partners that can last a life time. But sadly as always, humans get in the way…
The amount of plastic in the seas has increased dramatically in the last 50 years, coming from waste discarded by ships, offshore dumping, litter on beaches and waste washed to sea by rivers. It is impossible to digest and takes up space in the stomach or gizzard that should be used for food, or can cause an obstruction that starves the bird directly. Studies of birds in the North Pacific have shown that ingestion of plastics results in declining body weight and body condition. This plastic is sometimes regurgitated and fed to chicks causing premature deaths. Oil spills and other destructive pollution is a major threat to the lives of Albatrosses.
Don’t the quirky characteristics we see in abundance in our animal kingdom just melt your heart? Does it not make you want to protect and care for them? It proves that these animals should be there for our pleasure and enjoyment. They are not deserving of such brutal destruction!
At Enigin, we are not hardened to such things. Instead, it is a prime motivator in pushing us forward towards helping our environment to regain its luster. Although we can’t bring back to life those dear species that have perished, we can stop it happening again.
Not everyone can their hiking boots on and journey into the big world trying to defend and protect every living thing under threat. But by taking the initiative to do little things at home and in the office, we can all come together as one united army and win the war against our environment. This generation can redeem the careless and hazardous mistakes of the last.
Enigin gives you that opportunity. With its top of the range energy saving and 100% environmentally friendly products, you know you’ll be doing your bit, if not more to helping us improve our world, and take this planet from paradise lost to paradise regained!
