Two Dutch and Australian research say so: reintroducing certain mammals in territories in which they disappeared or where they never existed could prove useful to combat the damage of climate change
(by Giovanni D'Agata) The magazine of the Royal Society devotes an entire issue to the reintroduction of wild species as a means to combat global warming. A better known method under the name of "ré -auvage" according to which "evidence is accumulating to show that the global loss of wildlife, or 'defaunation', involves not only the loss of native animals but also the functions they fulfilled in ecosystems, ". The Dutch researchers Elisabeth Bakker and Jens-Christian Svenning support this, Giovanni D'Agata, president of the “Rights Window”, points out.
Therefore, to restore this lost balance, the method would consist in reintroducing large mammals to the territories where they disappeared. And the idea is gaining momentum. Thus, an Australian study published in the same journal last October described the positive impact of these animals in reducing fires during droughts and heat waves. In fact, in areas depopulated by some herbivores, scientists have noticed an increase in the calcined surface. The absence of these animals has changed the landscape and its natural regulation: herbivores graze and reduce the fuel that allows the flames to spread. Elephants in Europe? "Driving large animals that are responsible for stabilizing ecosystems and supporting biodiversity leaves the animals themselves repairing ecological processes, especially in ecosystems that have been degraded by the extinctions of past species," says the professor. Christopher Johnson, co-author of the study, is a researcher who also considers the reintroduction of "hippos and elephants" to Europe to be "bold and courageous". Europe, ideal candidate.
Europe really seems the "ideal candidate", because large mammals are not very numerous in the Old Continent. As long as the food chain is preserved and the conditions of adaptation of these species are optimized in Europe, the presence of some herbivores could help to “restore ecosystems” and “free nature from human actions”. In short, let the animal take care of its environment. The concept is obviously not unanimous in the scientific community and some experts do not hide their skepticism about this naive view which, according to them, would be a "drop of water in the ocean". An ambitious initiative has paid off in the Russian tundra in the Far East. The Pleistocene (Siberia) park, once inhabited by mammoths as far as the eye can see, has reintroduced herds of elk, elk, reindeer, horses and bison with very encouraging results.