SPECIAL SECTION VANISHING FAUNA
through the destruction of wild lands, consumption of animals as a resource or a
luxury, and persecution of species we see as
threats or competitors.
Such global loss of animal species, or de-
faunation, is increasingly recognized as a
problem akin to deforestation in terms of
scale and impact. Though for emotional or
aesthetic reasons we may lament the loss
of large charismatic species, such as tigers,
rhinos, and pandas, we now know that loss
of animals, from the largest elephant to the
smallest beetle, will also fundamentally alter
the form and function of the ecosystems upon
which we all depend (see Dirzo et al., p. 401).
Identifying the drivers of these extinc-
tions is straightforward, but stemming the
loss is a daunting challenge. Animal spe-
cies continue to decline in, and disappear
from, even large, long-protected reserves,
due both to direct impacts, such as poach-
ing, and indirect ecological feedbacks, such
as habitat fragmentation. Though hunting
and poaching might seem obvious candi-
dates for targeted policy and management
interventions, there are complex social is-
sues underlying these activities that will re-
quire coordinated and cooperative actions
by nations (see Brashares et al., p. 376).
While stemming this loss remains a chal-
ecies
Asia, the
shown in
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high rates
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