To lump or to split? Deciding whether an animal is a species or subspecies profoundly influences our conservation priorities
There’s a tendency to view extinctions of this kind as sub-extinctions, which don’t really count. We see them as drills, trial runs, from which we can take lessons for *next time*. In a sense, it’s true, these are subsidiary losses; they are lost battles in a wider war. But they are also endings in themselves. They are no less total or profound because there’s another subspecies in the next state, or on the next island along.