Author: Lai Lok Yiu
Class: 3C
Dear Editor,
I am writing to express my concerns about the brutal killing of pangolins. It is heartbreaking to see endangered species such as pangolins getting so little attention in society. Thanks to the growing demand for their scales, an increasing number of pangolins have been killed in recent years. If we allow poaching to continue, the pangolins will become extinct before long.
If we want to get pangolins the projection they need, raising public awareness of them is what we need to do. Most people hardly know pangolins are covered in scales and they are mammals instead of reptiles. Also, they are timid and look amazingly cute when they roll up into a ball. If I had known more about pangolins, I would have told more people to care for them earlier.
Another way to help the pangolins is to decrease the demand for them. In some places in China, people think the meat of pangolins is delicious and their scales can cure serious diseases. It is ridiculous of people to think that pangolins’ scales can help people who suffer from malaria.
The pangolins are in danger of extinction because of peoples’ traditional beliefs. How long will it be before we see the last pangolin on earth? Not too long I suppose, unless we could debunk peoples’ false beliefs and let them understand the importance of respecting wild animals.
Yours faithfully,
Karina Lai
