Egrets in late afternoon light

I am presenting this first image as an example of committed in the beauty of the Great Egret.  It's hard to imagine that in the 1800's these beautiful creatures were shot nearly to extinction in Florida.  This travesty was in the name of beauty for high fashion women of that period.  The highly sought after feathers of the Great Egret were used to decorate hats!  Not only were birds shot for feathers, but orphaned chicks were left to die from malnutrition and predation after their parents were killed.  (I tend to use "shot" and "killed" instead of euphemisms such as "taken" and "removed".)  Birds were not the only victims. In 1905, Guy Bradley an Audubon warden assigned to the area was shot and killed by poachers in the Everglades area.  Two other wardens were killed by plume hunters before legal steps were taken in New York to ban hats decorated with plumes.  Bradley's death helped to bring about these changes.  In 1935 The Everglades National Park was founded (without funding). Today these beautiful birds can be found in abundance, although development and climate change represent a serious threat for their future. Talking points: 1) Does vanity justify the killing of wildlife?  2) Does it take violence toward humans who are protecting wildlife to change our understanding of the value of wildlife and motivate us to protect wildlife through the strengthening and implementation of laws?  I encourage everyone to present their thoughts on these "talking points".  All comments are welcome, whether related to the "talking points" or not.