The Pros And Cons Of Animal Reintroduction

Captivity or Death Species reintroduction may sound great on paper as animals are brought back home to the wild and are once again happy. Humans are able to save endangered species and nurture the populations back from the brink. Injured animals have a safe haven in which to rehabilitate and thrive, then return to their family at home in the wild. Animals in animal testing are released from their suffering of being poked and prodded. In theory, this all sounds great, but in reality, one forgets the crucial part: the animals in question. I believe that there are ethical issues with species reintroduction, which harm the animals that humans are trying to save.
Animals have evolved to succeed in their natural environment; however, with human intervention, the rules of natural selection have changed. Animal liberation groups call for the freedom of all animals, but this may no longer be feasible. Animals who were once fit to live in the wild, their natural habitat, have become accustomed to captivity. They have lost their natural instincts and are no longer able to adapt to the wild. …show more content…
In species reintroduction, multiple animals of the same species are released at one time. This means that there will be multiple animals who do not have the ability to fend for themselves and the wild population then must take care of them. If this occurs, the resources that the wild population has will dwindle and more effort will be required to “restock.” Finally, if a species is becoming endangered due to natural selection, species reintroduction will not save the population. Dying through natural selection shows a lack of fitness. Capturing them, allowing the population to grow, then releasing them back into the wild will ultimately result in the initial situation. The issue is fitness, which has remained the same, or due to captivity, possibly