A Killer of Devils

When I was a kid, like most kids, I gravitated towards the television on those rare occasions when my parents did not insist that I play outside.  Like most of my generation, there were various cartoons and kid shows that I enjoyed and one of those was the smart-alleck, Brooklyn-inspired Bugs Bunny.  Within the show, there were a host of other characters that flittered in and out but one that struck and fascinated me most was the Tasmanian Devil.  So, it was with interest and a little sadness to learn that the population of the little marsupials, exclusively found in the wild on the southern Australian island of Tasmania, is dying out.  However, it is not poachers or global warming to blame for their demise but a rare and contagious form of cancer.   

The cancer first came to the attention of scientists in the 1990s when, in the opinion of those following the situation closely, a single female devil developed a tumor that mutated and spread.  The diffusion of the disease took advantage of a typical devil practice – fighting.  Apparently, the devils fight by biting one another in the face.  Scientists felt that, during one of these fights, a devil bit the female in the face, pierced the tumor and the liquid within entered the bloodstream of her combatant.  Scientists first determined the contagious nature of the cancer when, upon an autopsy of a dead devil, they discovered the cells of the cancer did not originate from the devil itself but from another. 

From infection to death, the devils are dying in about six months’ time.  However, the cancer is more diabolical because, in most cases, it is not the cancer that is killing the devils.  Rather, the tumors make it difficult for the devils to eat and ultimately, they are starving as the cancer kills them.  To make matters worse, the cancers are infecting an animal whose cell defense is not diverse enough to detect the cancer.  The marsupial has struggled with the cancer in the decade or so since its first identification and in that time, it has killed nearly 85% of the Tasmanian Devil population on the island and it is still going strong.   

While both the Australian government and that in Tasmania are actively working and funding research and measures to protect the devil population, scientists are taking the lead.  They are encouraged by the fact that a small population of the devils is developing a resistance but not enough to prevent potential species extinction.  New ideas are also being considered and tested.  One of the major efforts is to relocating a group of unaffected animals onto a nearby island southeast of Tasmania – Maria Island.  By relocating these healthy devils, they are hoping that, were the Tasmania population to die out, the species would stave off extinction.   

There is a certain paradox on the part of the scientists who are leading the effort to the save animals.  Such animal advocates and other activists are always quick to point out, rightfully so, of the actions of man and its impact on the world, the lives of animals and their environment.  Don’t get me wrong, I don’t have a problem for a person to speak up for animals but those same folks who worry about the actions of men and its impact on animals, do not see the problem with the artificially re-bolstering of an endangered population.  I wonder if there will be any ramifications of the scientists’ actions.  I certainly don’t know but any disease that can mutate and spread as quickly as this cancer will continue to pose a threat in one form or another.  Might it reappear once the healthy devils are reintroduced in Tasmania?

 

This blog is called the Non-Sequitur and I suppose an article about the near extinction of the Tasmanian Devil would certainly fit.  When I watched the Bugs Bunny cartoons as a child, I felt sorry for the devil because it seemed as if it really did not have much control of its surroundings or the things happening to him.  His fierce scream seemed a “rage against the machine” but, how ironic would it be if the “machine” would actually manage to save the species.  I will continue to read and learn, keeping abreast of the situation and hope for the best.  I'm glad someone is looking out for them.