Snares – either metal or rope – are indiscriminately killing wildlife across Southeast Asia, from elephants to mouse deer. The problem has become so bad that scientists are referring to protected areas in the region as “empty forests.”

Something about substantial animals makes them more vulnerable to population collapse, said William Ripple, director of the Global Trophic Cascades Program at Oregon State University. For starters, there are usually fewer of the big animals, at least compared with the little guys.

The Washington Post, April 12: Charismatic animals such as giraffes and pandas are ever-present in ads, logos, films, books and toys. The scientists posit that the ubiquity of these depictions — which they say amount to a “virtual population”— may lead “the general public to think that these animals are common and abundant, when they’re not,” said co-author William Ripple, an ecologist at Oregon State University.

NY Times, March 16, 2017: “We’re just uncovering these effects of large carnivores at the same time their populations are declining and are at risk,” said William Ripple, an ecologist at Oregon State University. He’s found that if you rewild some carnivores, or return them back to lost ranges, a cascade of ecological bounty may follow.