Global extinction is a terminal issue. Dodo, roc, great auk, Tasmanian wolf, all gone, never to be seen again, unless Michael Crichton is proved right and DNA samples can indeed by synthesised into entire beasties. We shouldn't put all our faith in works of science fiction however, it’s hardly the responsible thing to do.
And the saddest thing about these biodiversity catastrophes is that the culprit, nay the villain, on each occasion has been ours-truly, good old homo sapiens. My ultimate hero, Sir David Attenborough, puts the argument succinctly and, I would say, unarguably: “We are the only species on Earth capable of recklessly and knowingly leading to the total disappearance of another species. And for this reason alone we have a responsibility not to.”
There are masses of other moral, economic, ecological and environmental arguments - many of which are being covered by the BBC series Saving Planet Earth, but I find these simple two sentences are enough to have me convinced.
Of course there's no going back for the species listed above, but there are localised extinctions that are reversible.
The water vole is an animal that is officially extinct in Devon. I have heard of many people who know of 'secret' populations of these little mammals, and have learnt of a few captive breeding programmes, intending to help water voles refind a footing in the County, but the official line is “gone, but not forgotten”.
The district council, in partnership with the Environment Agency, has been leading a project to assist in the re-establishment of sustainable water vole populations. If water voles are going to make a comeback anywhere in Devon, they will probably do so along the River Axe, where there are populations in the headwaters in Dorset.
Water voles' problems have been mink-shaped. Devon was the first county in Britain to record American mink breeding in the wild - 1954 on the river Teign. 40 years later we also had the dubious honour of being the first county in the UK to have totally lost water voles in our rivers and streams.
The problem was that mink are able to get into a water vole burrow, and so the voles have no safe refuge from this impressive predator.
Please don't get me wrong - this is not a character assassination of mink. Having no human character, that is, of course, impossible. In their correct place on the planet, North America, I have nothing but deep respect for this animal. I marvel at its efficiency and strength, similar to our native weasel to which it is closely related.
The reprieve for water voles has come from the return of otters on all rivers in Devon. Otters will also prey upon water voles if the opportunity arises, but are too big to fit down a vole burrow, so the voles can bid a retreat. Otters also do not tolerate mink in their territory and are usurping them as they make their way back into our county.
So keep your eyes peeled over the next few years to see the return of Ratty.
Other animals are perhaps making their own comeback. Large tortoiseshell butterflies were last officially recorded in the UK in the 1960s. Local naturalist Mike Lock photographed one recently in East Devon, and the photo has caused some excitement. There are a few records every few years of large tortoiseshell, but these are normally thought to be immigrants flying over from the continent, or escapees from butterfly breeders’ collections. However, this year there have been a number of new insects spotted.
Scarce chaser dragonflies are abundant in the area while large red-eyed damselflies were found last year. Could this be the beginning of another insect incursion?
One of the best-known recolonisations was that of the little egret. Often wrongly heralded as an indicator of climate change, the ever-expanding population of little egrets was first noted in the south west.
These birds were hunted to extinction in the UK with huge demand for their plumes for the millinery trade.
Awaiting a colony of little egrets is a frustrating catch 22 situation - you could say the archetypal egret-and-egg quandary. Egrets will not breed in anything other than an established colony, and a colony won't establish until they start breeding.
There has been a breeding colony of little egrets on the Exe for many years now, and this year has seen the first fluffy fledgling in the Axe valley, which is an exciting turn up for this year's bird report.
Some disappearances are forever, some just temporary, but it is our responsibility to make sure our responsibility of species loss is minimal.