"Where can I hold a sloth?"
What if someone came to your touristic agency and asked you that?
Would it be inappropriate to say that this is an anti-ecological and unnecessary attitude?
What should I do, should I express myself or should I shut up and indirectly support the consequences of this kind of attitude?
It is amazing that we all know and we all have heard, but why we don’t practice it.
Every time that we (foreigners) show interest to see, touch or even just take a picture with an animal we are supporting the greatest evil on the jungle. THE WILDLIFE TRADE.
Behavior like that will motivate locals to go to the jungle and capture animals so they can have also a “attraction" and use as an income source charging people to hold it, take photos, and of course cuddle, always using the argument “we saved it from someone else.”
Animal should be in the jungle and naturally we won't be able to touch, sometimes not even a photo, maybe not even get to see it. That is when you need to have a very well-informed and responsible guide to teach you about the natural history and entertain you with information about the local culture, natural history etc. There is always more than enough to be informed and learned of the rain forest.
That is why one should be careful when choosing with whom to go. Take your time, look around and ask questions. Look at the photos, do not accept your guide to show you animals in captivity or catch animals during your tour.
While we still treating wildlife with no responsibility, we cannot hope for better life for ourselves.
Writing this (in a language that I’m not fluent) gives the feeling that I might talk to the wind. But I’m not the first and there will be more after me. Hope for the humans….
We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. – Elie Weisel
As long as man continues to be the ruthless destroyer animated beings of the lower planes, not know health or peace. As men slaughtering the animals, they will kill each other. Whoever sows death and suffering cannot reap joy and love. - Pythagoras
Compassion for animals is the noblest virtues of human nature. - Charles Darwin
Among the brutality toward the animal and cruelty to man, there is one difference: the victim. - Lamartine
When men learn to respect even the smallest being of creation, whether animal or vegetable, no need to teach you to love your neighbor. - Albert Schwweitzer (Nobel Peace Prize – 1952)
First it was necessary to civilize man in relation to man himself. Now is necessary to civilize man in relation to nature and animals. – Victor Hugo
Can anyone considering a living being as property, investment, a piece of meat, a “thing” without degenerating into cruelty towards that creature? -Karen Davis, PhD (Prisoned Chickens, Poisoned Eggs, 1996)
A man is only noble when you can feel pity for all creatures. -Buddha (563? – 483? B.C.)
The civilization of people are evaluated by the way its animals are treated. - Humboldt
The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated. - Mahatma Gandhi
Compassion for animals is intimately connected with goodness of character, and can be safely asserted that whoever is cruel to animals cannot be a good man. - Arthur Schopenhauer
The animals exist for their own reasons. They were not made for humans as well as non-blacks were made for whites or women for men. -Alice Walker
Last week when we were at the nesting area at the Tapiche Reserve, I could see in the eyes of my friends the ecstasy of experiencing to see the Nature with all its harmony in front of them.
Thousand and thousands of birds of different species living and breeding on the same space, sharing protection. Then we start wondering what this place is all about. A nesting area of that proportion will hatch thousand of birds, that will attract predators, birds of prey, reptiles, different types of snakes, constrictors and not, lizards and iguanas, and of course cayman.
All these birds will produce a lot of dung that will fall in the water (the nesting area is in a flooded forest) feeding the fishes, that will attract pink dolphin, etc .
None of this would be possible if there was no extreme measure taken, closure, no hunting and no logging allowed. The speed that the nesting area recovered was incredible, three years ago there was nearly nothing left as a result of the poaching of the eggs for trade.
With the alternative income generated by visitors to our reserve, the locals didn’t hunt any longer and the jungle took back its space in an amazing speed. Now every time I go to the area, it is like the paradise opens its doors.
We are merely apprentice and should enjoy the nature as it is.
Wildlife in the wild. Is it not logical?