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1979 THE ENDANGERED SPECIES: A SYMPOSIUM argument of the canary in the coal mine). Thus, it follows that if we are concerned about the ability of our children to function in the ecosystem in a manner at all com- parable with our present functioning, it may be important to maximize the survival of spe- cies other than Homo sapiens who are also dependent on that ecosystem. Another major line of argument is the di- versity-stability one (i.e., there appears to be a tendency for more diverse ecosystems to be more stable). Because more stable ecosystems tend to permit coping with times of poor productivity, it seems that enlightened self- interest would dictate that we make efforts to promote stability. Another cogent part of this argument is the inverse relationship be- tween diversity and energy flow (in molecu- lar systems, ecological systems, and in organi- zation of cities) described by Watt (1972, 1973). He pointed out that the principle ap- pears to be true in societal organization to the extent that in the U.S. we find fewer book titles per capita than less industrialized societies, as well as declining numbers of au- tomobile and airplane manufacturers, in- creasingly standardized foods in super- markets and restaurants, symphony orchestras almost restricting performances to the work of eight men, difficulties with pub- lishing innovative books or trying out in- novative ideas, and declining numbers of spe- cies (Watt 1972, 197.1). In some ill-defined way this general reduction in environmental diversity seems to result in a search for re- placement of the satisfaction or sensory stim- ulation which it provided. Thus, we have sig- nificant and expanding elements in our society attempting to satisfy their senses through membership in cults, sexual experi- mentation, use of drugs and alcohol, etc. Basically, it seems that as we manufacture a more "efficient" society we increase its energy flow while reducing its diversity. This seems to result in a search for diversity by the members of society. Perhaps the most dramatic demonstration that environmental stimulation derived from experiences with or in nature is essential to modern man's feeling of well-being comes from the successes real- ized in the treatment of "hopeless" mental cases (litis 1967). Dramatic improvements re- sulted from taking these people on camping trips. Many people obviously have expe- rienced the tremendous release of tension that can be felt when you "get away from it all," or, to put it another way, when you have an opportunity to become acquainted with the diversity and sensory stimulation available in nature. Finally, the availability of genetic diversity in plants and animals as a basis for producing new or better crops, med- icines, and pharmaceuticals (Reisner 1978) has been emphasized as one of the most com- pelling arguments for saving species. Thus, there are a number of biological rea- sons to justify saving endangered species. These usually have implications that extend to other areas of human endeavor. If man's uniqueness in fact is his knowledge of his world, if Homo sapiens is the knowing one, then each extinction diminishes man's capaci- ty of know-and to that extent man's human- ity. It seems to me that the Endangered Spe- cies Act represents a society saying "This is as far as we will go." The necessity of making such a statement will always be questioned, but it does represent an attempt at insuring that our children on into many generations will have available to them some of the hu- manizing experiences that were available to us. Perhaps we have taken the position that the extermination must stop because of our general awareness that there is no other choice. Human civilization has always had a very nomadic character about it. The domi- nant center of Western civilization has shifted from the fertile crescent of Mesopo- tamia to Egypt, Greece, Rome, Europe, Great Britain, and the United States as envi- ronmental overexploitation has forced (or permitted) these nomadic wanderings. With the entire planet occupied by civilized so- cieties, there is no way to continue the wan- derings of civilization. The last remnant of the tendency appears to be exportation of the environmental degradation required to sup- port the kind of society we have created. Thus, no longer does our civilization have its primary impact confined to national bound- aries. We find ourselves responsible for de- struction of tropical rain forests, whales, pup- fish, woundfin, and any number of other worldwide resources, both renewable and nonrenewable. A balance of payments deficit 57