We made the cover of Current Conservation! A great feature article entitled “The second extinction of forgotten species” covering our paper on “Societal extinction of species” published a few months back.
The idea of “societal extinction,” which is when a species disappears from collective memory and knowledge. This can occur in addition to biological extinction, when the last animal or plant of its kind dies. The loss of daily interactions with nature and a growing disconnection from the natural world can lead to societal extinction. We provide examples of species that have been lost from memory and culture, such as the Japanese wolf, and the impact on local ecological knowledge. The text also mentions that extinct species can sometimes remain present in cultural memory and be used as conservation flagships.
