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“Granddad” was the longest-living fish in a zoological setting. He was acquired by the Chicago Shedd Aquarium back in 1933 (!!!), supposedly for that year’s Chicago World Fair. The aquarium reported that he was euthanized after showing signs of organ failure. He was believed to be in his mid-90s. Lungfish like “Granddad” are native to Australia and can live over a hundred years. They have a single primitive lung and are among the few fish who can breathe air. Although they have existed for nearly 400 million years, they are now considered a “vulnerable” species (meaning, they are likely to become endangered unless their circumstances improve). For context, modern humans have only been around about 200,000 years. So, we’re basically the “new kids on the block” compared to species like the lungfish. Yet, in our short existence, we’ve managed to drive an alarming number of fellow Earthlings to extinction — so many, in fact, that biologists classify our time (right now) as the Sixth Mass Extinction in our planet’s history. Isn’t it something that so many animals with millions of years of evolutionary history are suddenly and rapidly becoming endangered and going extinct, as a result of the activities of one relatively new species, humans? One of the main reasons for this loss of biodiversity is our destruction of natural habitats, driven in large part by deforestation and overfishing. And, when it comes to deforestation, did you know that it is animal agriculture that is the main driver (according to the UN)? This is because we (the consumers) have massively increased in numbers (the human population is now 7.4 billion and still growing), AND we (the consumers) have increased our demand for animal foods (meat, fish, dairy, eggs, etc.), AND producing animal foods at scale is enormously resource-intensive and environmentally destructive (particularly when you consider the enormous land-footprint needed to grow all of the crops required to support the billions of livestock animals continuously bred into existence to meet this demand). This is why our (the consumers’) demand for animal foods is the number one driver of deforestation, and also results in overfishing, and is fueling this extinction crisis. Luckily, one of the badly needed solutions is also very straight forward and can be done today by anyone and everyone: go vegan. Living vegan (by boycotting animal products) is one of the most positive impactful actions you can take as an individual, to both help protect and restore our environment and to respect all life. And, as no small added bonus, a well-balanced vegan diet is also very healthy, and it removes our support for the unnecessary exploitation and death currently inflicted upon billions of sentient animals used for food every year. As a final thought, although Granddad had a long life, most animals have shorter lifespans in captivity than in the wild. Respecting animals also involves not using them for our entertainment. |