Social extinction precedes biological extinction in some species

Species can disappear from our societies, cultures and discourses at the same time as, or even before, they become biologically extinct due to various human actions.

In a study published in Trends in Ecology & Evolution, an international and interdisciplinary group of scientists found that whether a species becomes socially extinct depends on many factors. These include its charisma, its symbolic or cultural values, whether and how long ago it went extinct, and how distant and isolated its range is from humans.

Dr. Diogo Verissimo, a researcher at the Department of Zoology at the University of Oxford (United Kingdom) and co-author of the study, states that “the extinction of a society does not only occur in the case of animals, but also in that of living beings.” humans”.

As he explains, “Social extinction occurs not only in extinct species, but also in those that still live among us, often due to social or cultural changes, for example, urbanization or the digitization of society, which can radically change our relationship with nature, and lead to collective loss of memory.

An example given by researchers is the replacement of traditional herbal medicine with modern medicine in Europe. This is believed to have degraded general knowledge of many medicinal plants, causing them to become socially extinct.

As more and more species are threatened or extinct, they are also becoming isolated from people. This leads to the extinction of experience: the progressive loss of our daily interactions with nature. Over time, these species can completely disappear from people’s memory.

For example, studies conducted among communities in southwestern China and indigenous peoples in Bolivia have shown the loss of local knowledge and memory of extinct bird species.

However, the opposite can also happen. “Species can also continue to be known collectively after they have become extinct, or even become more popular,” explains Dr. Uri Roll, co-author and researcher at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel. However, our awareness and memory of these species gradually transforms and often becomes inaccurate, stylized or simplified, and dissociates from the actual species.”

For example, after the Spix’s Macaw became extinct in the wild, children in local communities in its former range mistakenly believed that this species resided in Rio de Janeiro, due to its appearance in the animated film Rio.

“Most species cannot become socially extinct simply because they never had a social presence to begin with.” regrets Dr. Ivan Jaric, lead author of the study and researcher at the Center for Biology of the Czech Academy of Sciences.

“This is common in uncharismatic, small, cryptic or inaccessible species, especially among invertebrates, plants, fungi and microorganisms, many of which have not yet been formally described by scientists or are known to humanity -continues -. Their declines and extinctions remain silent and unseen by people and societies.”

For his part, Dr. Josh Firth, co-author of the study and a researcher at the Department of Zoology at Oxford, stresses that “social extinctions can affect conservation efforts aimed at protecting biodiversity because they can lower our expectations of the environment and our perceptions of its natural state, such as what is standard or relatively healthy.

Further investigation by the team will now assess how social extinctions can produce false perceptions of the seriousness of threats to biodiversity and of true extinction rates, and decrease public support for conservation and restoration efforts, such as beaver reintroduction. Eurasian in the UK.

“Social extinction can reduce our willingness to pursue ambitious conservation goals. For example, it could reduce public support for rewilding efforts, especially if those species are no longer present in our memory as natural parts of the ecosystem.”Jaric concludes.