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| Beware the Devil (Photo by Peter Shanks) |
Scientists in Australia were convinced that the Tasmanian Devil was going extinct. That’s because many of these marsupials were suffering from “a raging facial tumor disease.”
In their finite wisdom, researchers relocated an “insurance population” of the carnivores to a nearby island. The critters multiplied fast, gobbling up the native bird population.
Pretty soon there was nary a penguin left. Their thriving colony went from “3,000 breeding pairs” to a big round zero. And guess what? The disease that had been ravaging devils began to abate on its own.
Had humans left well enough alone, there might still be plenty of both species. The trouble with playing God is that devils then often win out.
Resources
https://www.rt.com/news/527159-tasmanian-devils-little-penguins
Copyright June 21, 2021 by Linda Van Slyke All Rights Reserved
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