- Series:Animals, Transcript English
Ecclesiastes 3:19-21
“For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity.All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.Who knoweth the spirit of man that goeth upward, and the spirit of the beast that goeth downward to the earth?”
Climate-change alarmists are also concerned about animals like cows delivering methane and CO2 into the atmosphere. Another creature causing climate change concerns is the elephant. But criticism of the effects caused by elephants would not be politically correct, as the particular species concerned is currently facing extinction.
The African Forest Elephant is the smallest of the three extant species of elephants – the other two being the African Bush Elephant (which is the largest), and the Indian Elephant. Forest elephants live mostly in the forests of West Africa, and, while feeding, cause a considerable amount of damage. As they are uprooting their favorite plants and gathering hundreds of types of fruit, many of their food sources are destroyed. If forest elephants were more common, I can imagine a culling exercise being proposed to save their forests, but their scarcity has encouraged further scientific research. This research has shown that the type of trees that the elephants damage are faster-growing trees which do not “soak up” as much carbon dioxide as the slower-growing trees which the elephants ignore. Computer projections have suggested that if the forest elephant became extinct, the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere might increase. So, fortunately for climate-change alarmists, a politically correct reason to save the elephant can be argued. A biblical case for saving the forest elephant would be different and would reflect our concern to be good stewards of God’s creation.
Prayer: Thank You, Lord, for Your people in many parts of the world who seek to be good stewards of Your creation. Amen.
Author: Paul F. Taylor
Ref: Saint Louis University. “Elephant extinction will raise carbon dioxide levels in atmosphere: As ecosystem engineers, forest elephants’ dining habits are climate-friendly.” ScienceDaily, 25 July 2019. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190725100433.htm>. Image: Adobe Stock Photos, licensed to author.
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