Animals are organisms which move. As a practical matter, animals can be said to fall into two broad categories. A small category and a much larger category.

Our Ecological Footprint, Figure 2.8; "Overshoot is growth beyond carrying capacity. Carrying capacity limits can be overshot without a big bang because of the availabilty of large capital stocks. Harvests can still increase and money incomes rise. While there may be signs of ecological stress, all else may seem normal. Ultimately, however, the consequences of eroded natural capital may be felt as eco-catastrophe and population crash."

Ecological stress is evident. Massive reductions in biodiversity are evident. Everyone ignores the destruction of biodiversity because to do otherwise would require acknowledgement of the cause, human overpopulation.

"The world's footdragging brings many scientists to despair. It exasperates Sherwood Rowland, who sounded the first alarm back in the 1970s. 'After all,' Rowland has said, 'what's the use of having developed a science well enough to make predictions, if in the end all we're willing to do is stand around and wait for them to come true?'"

Jonathan Weiner, The Next One Hundred Years, 1990

Exclusionary Principle

The exclusionary principle holds that many ecological concepts do not apply to humans. In particular the phenomenon of overshoot is said not to apply to humans.

"Who gives a hoot about habitat?"

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