Where Will Wildlife Live If We Take It All August 26, 2025

A drawing of a firefly, 2025, Acrylic on canvas, 10x12 inches

We, humans, often act with remarkable generosity toward ourselves when it comes to the environment, treating the Earth as if it were an endless resource to be taken at will. This mindset assumes that nature exists primarily to fulfill our needs and desires, leading to overconsumption, unchecked expansion, and the dismissal of ecological limits. We frequently justify our actions as “natural” or “deserved,” even when they come at the expense of other species or the well-being of future generations. In doing so, we grant ourselves indulgence that has devastating consequences. Already, we see deforestation, overfishing, and mining stripping ecosystems of balance, while air, soil, and water pollution continue to degrade the foundations of life. Our reliance on fossil fuels accelerates climate change, and widespread habitat destruction drives countless species toward extinction, undermining biodiversity on a global scale.

As we have taken over more than three-quarters of the planet’s land surface, we are left to ask: if this expansion continues, where else can wildlife live? Fragmented patches of forest, shrinking wetlands, and isolated reserves are all that remain for many species, yet even these are under constant pressure from our activities. Without intact habitats, migration routes collapse, genetic diversity declines, and tensions between humans and wildlife intensify—though it is always wildlife that bears the heavier cost.

We admire animals for their beauty and behaviors, yet our fascination often overlooks the fact that they cannot exist in isolation. Their survival depends on intact habitats that provide food, shelter, breeding grounds, and stability for future generations. Each animal is part of a trophic pyramid, a food web in which plants, prey species, and predators form layers of energy transfer, where the collapse of one layer inevitably affects the others. No ecosystem exists on its own—forests, rivers, oceans, and even deserts are interconnected, and disruptions in one system ripple outward to many others. For this reason, the animals we love and enjoy watching will only continue to exist if the broader ecological structures that sustain them are preserved. Without such preservation, our admiration becomes little more than a sentiment without real-world impact.

Even without thinking about exotic animals living in jungles or unique environments, we can see that biodiversity exists right where we live. The areas we now inhabit were once forests, meadows, or wetlands that supported countless species. Migrating butterflies and wild bees, such as bumblebees and sweat bees, play essential roles in pollination and plant reproduction. Birds, too, disperse seeds, feed on insects, and fill the air with their activity, while amphibians and small mammals quietly support ecological balance in soils and waterways. These creatures, together with countless others, form the living fabric of local ecosystems. Losing them is not just a loss of beauty or curiosity; it directly weakens the systems that sustain life, including our own food security. In short, the natural world around us, even in urban or suburban areas, is deeply interconnected, and its health is inseparable from our own well-being. While cities may not allow full ecosystem restoration, small green spaces, native plantings, and water sources can support pollinators, birds, and other adaptable wildlife. In suburban areas, backyards and community spaces can further sustain biodiversity, helping maintain the ecological functions that are essential for our well-being.

Ultimately, unless we move beyond our self-granted generosity—the belief that we may take endlessly without consequence—the outcome will be a world where not only wildlife, but we ourselves, find nowhere left to live. True love for animals and nature must therefore be paired with real responsibility for preserving the ecological structures that make life possible.